Describe a story someone told you and you remember.
You should say
What the story was about? Who told you this story? Why you remember it? And how you feel about it?
Note: You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you are going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.
Model Answer 1:
Introduction: Well, I have read and heard many stories in childhood and I especially enjoyed listening to stories from my grandmother.
Who told the story? And here I would like to narrate my favourite childhood story of a farmer who taught his sons the lesson of unity. One day I was having a fierce fight with my brother and at that time our grandmother told us this story of a farmer.
What the story was about? There was a farmer having four sons who always used to quarrel with each other and the farmer was really worried about them. To teach them the importance of unity he brought few sticks and asked to break them into two.
All sons immediately snapped the stick taking no time. Later the father gave a bunch of sticks to each of his to break and no one could break this time.
Then the farmer said dear sons if you will remain together no one can harm you else you will be like those broken sticks. Listening to the story we realized our mistake as sons of the farmer and felt sorry to our grandmother and promised we will never fight again.
Why you remember it? and How you feel about it? I admitted listening to this story brought a huge change in our behaviour and developed our relationship. In fact, I have told this story later to my nephew and niece too.
Conclusion: Overall, it is a story which is my favourite that I heard in my childhood.
Model Answer 2:
Introduction:
I have heard many stories in my life.
I believe that storytelling is an art as old as civilization itself.
What the story was about? and Who told you this story?
My grandmother used to tell me stories every night at bedtime.
All her stories were fun to hear.
Some stories were fairy tales, some of princes and princesses and some were tales from the Panchtantra, which had animal characters in them.
Most of her stories had some moral behind them
Here I would like to talk about a story, which she told me many times.
He thought that there was another dog with a juicy bone in his mouth.
His mouth watered and he wanted to snatch that bone from him.
He started barking on him and as he opened his mouth, the bone fell down from his mouth in to the river.
The dog lost his own juicy bone.
He repented at his greed.
But, alas nothing could be done.
Why you remember it? And how you feel about it?
The moral of the story is that the greedy lose what they have.
Greed is a curse.
My grandma used to teach me values of life through these stories.
Now, I tell these stories to my niece and nephew when they come to my place.
They enjoy these stories a lot.
IELTS Speaking Part 3 : Follow up Questions
Here some examples of follow up questions that you may asked during your speaking part 3 by examiner related to cue card “Describe a story someone told you and you remember”.
1. Has storytelling changed over a period of time? Yes, definitely. Everything changes with time. My grandmother used to tell me stories from her memory, and had no book in her hand. Now, I see my sister reads out stories to her children from the various books she buys from the market. Telling stories to children has also largely been replaced by watching TV. Grandparents, parents and children are glued to the TV screen for long hours and there is no time left for story telling.
2. Which way is better, traditional storytelling or the use of technology in storytelling? I believe the traditional method is much better. It has a personal touch and increases the bonding between parents or grandparents and children. Unfortunately, it is dying out and programmes like curious George and ChhotaBhim are taking its place.
3. Do you think that generally most of the people are good at storytelling? It is very difficult to generalize and answer this question. One thing is sure, and that is that we all tell stories from time to time in our life. Some people are born storytellers and can bind their audiences for long periods of time. They can concoct stories on the spur of the moment. It is difficult to tell whether their stories are fake or real.
4. What makes storytelling effective? The way the stories are told can make any story effective. The use of gestures also helps. Using the right pauses at the right places and good pronunciation makes the stories effective. But, perhaps the most important thing to see is to read the interest of the audience. Fairy tales may amuse children, but may not create impact on adult listeners. Young people may be interested to hear stories related to their favourite celebs.
5. Is it important to tell stories? Yes, it is very important to tell stories. They are a good means of communication. Sometimes a message may be conveyed through a story in a much better way than by a simple conversation.
6. Is reading books beneficial or watching documentaries better? Both have their sets of pros and cons. But, I think reading has an edge over watching a documentary. Reading is an active phenomenon, whereas watching a documentary is a passive activity. Reading is not only good for children, but also delays cognitive decline in the elderly. Dementias can be delayed if people read a lot. However, watching a documentary can make things easier to understand, and if made well, can have a long- lasting effect.
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