IELTS Speaking Part 2: Make the Most of Your 1-Minute Preparation

In IELTS Speaking Part 2, the examiner hands you a cue card with a topic, gives you a pencil and a blank piece of paper, and says: “You now have one minute to prepare.” For many candidates, this is the most terrifying 60 seconds of the entire exam.

If you use this minute poorly, you will likely run out of things to say after 45 seconds, leading to awkward silences and a plummeting Fluency score. But if you use this minute strategically, you can easily speak for the full two minutes, showcase Band 8.0+ vocabulary, and deliver a perfectly structured story.

This guide breaks down exactly what you should—and absolutely should not—do during your 60 seconds of prep time.

The Biggest Mistake: Writing Full Sentences

The most common trap candidates fall into is trying to write out their entire speech word-for-word.

If you write a full sentence like, “The most beautiful place I have ever visited is the Eiffel Tower in Paris,” you have just wasted 15 seconds of your minute on one sentence. Worse, when you start speaking, you will end up reading from the paper like a robot, which instantly lowers your Pronunciation and Fluency scores.

The Golden Rule: Never write sentences. Write keywords only.

The 60-Second Blueprint: Step-by-Step

Treat your one minute like a rapid-fire brainstorming sprint. Break the 60 seconds down into three distinct phases.

Phase 1: Choose Your Story Fast (Seconds 0 – 10)

Read the cue card and make a decision immediately. Do not spend 30 seconds trying to think of the “perfect” or “most impressive” memory.

• The “Lying” Strategy: The examiner is testing your English, not a lie detector. If the cue card asks you to “Describe a time you solved a difficult problem,” and you can’t think of one, invent it. Talk about a fake problem at work or school. A simple, well-told fictional story is much easier to describe than a complex, confusing true story.

Phase 2: The Keyword Map (Seconds 10 – 45)

Look at the cue card. It will always give you a main topic and 3 to 4 bullet points to guide you (e.g., Who you were with, Where you went, What happened, and Explain how you felt).

• Write down 2 or 3 specific keywords for each bullet point.
• Focus on Nouns, Verbs, and Adjectives.
• Example: If the prompt is “Describe a memorable holiday,” do not write “I went with my best friend.” Write: Best friend / College graduation / Backpacking.

Phase 3: Vocabulary Injection (Seconds 45 – 60)

This is the secret to a Band 7.0+ score. In your final 15 seconds, look at your notes and quickly write down 2 or 3 high-level vocabulary words or idioms that you want to force into your story.

• Instead of saying “very tired,” quickly write down Exhausted or Wiped out.
• Instead of saying “very happy,” write down Over the moon or Thrilled.
• Having these words physically written on the paper ensures you won’t forget them when you are speaking under pressure.

How to Structure Your Notes (The Quadrant Method)

Do not just write a messy list from top to bottom. Organize your scratch paper visually so your eyes can easily find the next idea while you are speaking.

Divide your paper into a quick grid or four corners:

Top Left: Background	Top Right: The Action / Story
Who? Where? When? – Summer 2023 – Tokyo, Japan – Solo trip	What happened? – Lost passport – Language barrier – Panic
Bottom Left: The Climax	Bottom Right: The Feeling / Conclusion
How was it resolved? – Helpful local – Police station – Relief	Explain how you felt… – Terrifying at first – Grateful – Vocab: A blessing in disguise

When you speak, just move your eyes clockwise around the paper. When you finish the bottom right corner, your two minutes will be perfectly up!

Top 3 Exam-Day Execution Tips

1. Always Write in English: Never write your notes in your native language. If you do, your brain will have to translate those notes back into English while you are speaking, causing you to hesitate, stutter, and use filler words like “um” and “uh.”
2. Point with Your Finger: When it is time to speak, keep the paper on the desk and put your finger on the first keyword. As you talk, slowly move your finger down your list. This prevents you from losing your place if you get nervous and look away.
3. Maintain Eye Contact: You are allowed to look at your notes, but do not stare at them the whole time. Look down to grab a keyword, then look up and make eye contact with the examiner as you turn that keyword into a spoken sentence.