IELTS Speaking 2025 Part 2&3: Describe a Useful Skill You Learned from an Older Person 👴🎓

Describe a Useful Skill You Learned from an Older Person 👴🎓

Suggested Ideas for Each Part

• What it is 🛠️

  • Cooking a traditional Vietnamese dish like pho 🍜
  • Fixing things around the house, such as changing a lightbulb or repairing a chair 🔧
  • Gardening and growing vegetables 🌱
  • Sewing or knitting clothes 🧵
  • Public speaking or storytelling 🎤

• Why the skill can be learned from older people 🧓

  • They have years of experience and wisdom 🧠
  • They have mastered traditional skills that are not taught in schools
  • They are patient and willing to pass on knowledge

• How you learned the skill from an older person 📖

  • Through hands-on practice and observation
  • By asking questions and listening to their advice
  • Through trial and error while they guided me

• How you felt if you mastered the skill 🎉

  • Proud because I could do something useful on my own
  • Grateful for the valuable knowledge passed down
  • Excited to continue improving and using the skill in daily life

Useful Grammar Structures

1. Used to + verb (for past habits)

   • My grandmother used to teach me how to cook when I was a child.
   • I used to struggle with sewing, but now I find it enjoyable.

2. Past Perfect for describing earlier experiences

   • By the time I finally mastered gardening, I had already killed several plants!
   • Before I learned how to fix things, I had always relied on my parents.

3. Present Perfect for lifelong skills

   • I have been practicing this skill for years, and now I’m quite good at it.
   • Since learning from my grandfather, I have developed a passion for storytelling.

Collocations

1. Pass down knowledge 🏫 (truyền lại kiến thức)
2. A hands-on experience 👐 (trải nghiệm thực hành)
3. A valuable life skill 🎯 (một kỹ năng sống quý giá)
4. Trial and error 🔄 (thử và sai)
5. Master a skill 🎓 (thành thạo một kỹ năng)

Full Sample Answer (2 Minutes)

One of the most useful skills I have learned from an older person is cooking traditional Vietnamese dishes 🍜. My grandmother is an amazing cook, and she taught me how to make pho, one of Vietnam’s most famous dishes. I always admired the way she could prepare everything from scratch, from making the broth to selecting the right spices.

Older people are the best teachers for traditional skills because they have years of experience 🧠 and know all the little secrets that make a dish taste perfect. Also, they are incredibly patient when explaining things, which makes learning much easier.

I learned this skill from my grandmother during my summer holidays. She didn’t just give me instructions—she let me have a hands-on experience 👐. I watched her prepare the ingredients, and then she let me chop the vegetables and season the broth. At first, I struggled because there were so many steps, and the broth had to be cooked for hours! But after several attempts and a lot of trial and error 🔄, I finally got the hang of it.

When I successfully made a bowl of pho on my own, I felt incredibly proud and grateful. It was more than just a recipe—it was a connection to my culture and my family. Now, whenever I cook for my friends or family, I remember my grandmother’s lessons, and I feel happy that I was able to master a skill 🎓 that is both useful and meaningful.

Part 3: Discussion Questions & Sample Answers

1. What can children learn from their parents or grandparents? 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

Ideas

• Practical skills: Cooking, gardening, fixing things
• Moral values: Respect, honesty, hard work
• Cultural knowledge: Traditional festivals, family stories

Collocations

1. Invaluable lessons 📚 (bài học vô giá)
2. Instill good values 💡 (truyền đạt giá trị tốt đẹp)
3. Shape their character 🎭 (hình thành tính cách của họ)

Sample Answer

Children can learn many invaluable lessons 📚 from their parents and grandparents, not just practical skills like cooking and fixing things, but also important moral values. Older generations often instill good values 💡 such as honesty, respect, and perseverance, which help children shape their character 🎭 and become responsible individuals. In Vietnam, for example, grandparents play a big role in teaching children about traditional customs and festivals.

2. From whom can children learn more, parents or grandparents? 👵 vs 👨

Ideas

• Parents: Teach modern skills, discipline, and academic knowledge
• Grandparents: Share wisdom, patience, and life experience

Collocations

1. Life lessons from experience 🧠 (bài học cuộc sống từ kinh nghiệm)
2. A source of wisdom 🎓 (nguồn tri thức sâu sắc)
3. A strong emotional bond ❤️ (mối liên kết tình cảm sâu sắc)

Sample Answer

Both parents and grandparents have valuable things to teach. Parents often focus on education and discipline, while grandparents are a source of wisdom 🎓 and can offer life lessons from experience 🧠. In many Vietnamese families, children spend a lot of time with their grandparents, which helps create a strong emotional bond ❤️. Personally, I think learning from both is ideal, as it gives children a balance of knowledge and experience.

3. What kind of help do you think older people need? 👵🤝

Ideas

• Physical help: Assistance with mobility, medical care
• Emotional support: Companionship, staying socially connected
• Technology help: Learning how to use smartphones and the internet

Collocations

1. Health and well-being 💊 (sức khỏe và hạnh phúc)
2. Stay socially connected 📞 (duy trì kết nối xã hội)
3. Bridge the generation gap 🌉 (thu hẹp khoảng cách thế hệ)

Sample Answer

Older people often need help with health and well-being 💊, especially as they become less physically active. Besides that, emotional support is just as important—they need to stay socially connected 📞 with family and friends to avoid loneliness. Nowadays, many elderly people are also trying to learn new technologies, and helping them with this can bridge the generation gap 🌉, allowing them to communicate more easily with younger generations.

4. Should older people be encouraged to work as long as they want? 👴💼

Ideas

• Yes: If they are healthy and still want to contribute, they should be allowed to work
• No: Retirement should be a time to rest and enjoy life

Collocations

1. Remain productive 🏢 (duy trì năng suất làm việc)
2. A sense of purpose 🎯 (cảm giác có mục đích trong cuộc sống)
3. A well-deserved retirement 🏖️ (một kỳ nghỉ hưu xứng đáng)

Sample Answer

I think older people should have the choice to continue working if they want to remain productive 🏢 and have a sense of purpose 🎯. Some people enjoy their jobs and feel happier when they stay active. However, retirement should also be respected, allowing people to enjoy a well-deserved retirement 🏖️ after years of hard work. It really depends on the individual’s health and personal preference.