Preparing for the IELTS exam is not only a long journey but also requires patience and a willingness to learn from each candidate. Diligent reading is also one of the strategies that helps you better understand the test and gain many effective test-taking tips. For those who are preparing for the IELTS exam, the Get Ready for IELTS book series focuses on practicing all IELTS skills and is quite suitable for those who are just starting to prepare for IELTS.
This article will introduce in detail the content and structure of the Get Ready for IELTS book series, evaluate its strengths, as well as how to effectively review knowledge with this book series!
Overview of the Get Ready for IELTS book series
Before reading a book, don't forget to consult the author's information, the book summary, or even a few chapters to help you achieve your reading goals effectively.
Author
Get Ready for IELTS is a book series from Collins - one of the reputable names when searching for academic English materials. The books are designed for students who have achieved an IELTS band score of around 3.0 - 4.0, with simple and easy-to-understand lessons developed by experienced IELTS teachers and experts.
Structure of each book
The series includes 4 books focusing specifically on each skill: Speaking, Listening, Reading, and Writing. Each book in the Get Ready for IELTS series consists of 12 Units, with each unit revolving around an important topic that frequently appears in the IELTS test.
The books also include a Review section to help you revise IELTS grammar. You can practice sample tests in the Practice Test section and check your answers through the Answer Key section. To learn new vocabulary, you can refer to the Glossary section at the end of the book.
Structure of each unit
In each unit, you will develop skills based on the following main contents:
Part 1: Language development: provides theoretical knowledge and exercises related to vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar. The lesson structure is quite clear and easy to understand.
Part 2: Skills development: This section guides readers to familiarize themselves with specific question types that frequently appear in the IELTS test. Each question type comes with theoretical knowledge and accompanying exercises with increasing difficulty. Once familiar with the question types, you will be able to develop effective test-taking strategies for yourself.
Part 3: Exam practice: This section includes practical exercises similar to the actual test. Through this part, you will be able to assess your abilities and your progress in preparing for the IELTS exam.
Finally, there is a Checklist of the contents covered in the entire Unit.
Special feature: In each lesson, the book also includes sections such as watch out, exam information, and exam tips to provide additional knowledge, test-taking strategies, and point out common mistakes to help you avoid unnecessary point deductions.
Main content of the Get Ready for IELTS book series
Get Ready to IELTS - Listening
The Listening skills book includes knowledge, test-taking methods, and practice exercises to reinforce listening skills. The book also comes with 2 CDs containing listening exercises. CD1 has a moderate speaking pace, while the listening exercises in CD2 are faster and more challenging.
Read more: Question Types in IELTS Listening Test
Get Ready to IELTS - Speaking
The Speaking skills book has a detailed lesson structure designed to help you easily study IELTS at home. The book includes 12 units focusing on different topics including: Family, Hometown, Technology, Environment & Nature, Travel … To help you familiarize yourself with each question type, you can practice with exercises and check the answers at the end of the book.
Read more: Question Types in IELTS Speaking Test
Get Ready to IELTS - Reading
For those who want to boost their Reading band score from 5.0 and above, this IELTS Reading skills book is a must-have. This book will help you improve your reading skills at the Elementary level for the Academic IELTS Reading test. The book provides a diverse range of study materials equivalent to about 50 hours of direct classroom instruction.
Read more: Common IELTS Reading Question Types and How to Answer Them
Get Ready to IELTS - Writing
If you're still not confident in your writing skills, you absolutely shouldn't miss this book. One of the distinctive features of the Get Ready to IELTS series is the test-taking tips that can be applied to the actual exam, helping you achieve the highest possible score.
The Writing skills book includes 12 units. Each unit focuses on a familiar topic in the IELTS Writing test such as: Family, Tourism, Films, Globalisation, Public Transport, presented in detail with clear examples to help you review and reinforce all the necessary skills for the IELTS Writing test.
Read more: Question types for IELTS Writing Task 1 and IELTS Writing Task 2 (With sample answers)
Overall assessment of the book series
Advantages
All books are designed attractively with accompanying illustrations, avoiding the feeling of boredom when having to read too much text. The main content and important information are presented in different fonts, colors, or framed to help you easily remember.
The content is suitable for learners' levels, even for those who are not exceptionally proficient. The vocabulary and grammar used in the lessons are manageable and not too difficult to understand.
The lesson structure is designed quite logically. First, readers are equipped with background knowledge of vocabulary and grammar (language development). Then, they approach test-taking skills, and finally, they complete exercises based on the provided knowledge.
The questions and topics covered in the books are those that frequently appear in the IELTS test. This will help you easily familiarize yourself with the test structure and content of each section effectively.
The author also points out common mistakes made during the test-taking process to help candidates avoid unnecessary errors.
Limitations
As the books are written entirely in English, it may sometimes be a bit challenging for those at the Elementary level. Readers can use a dictionary to accurately understand the meaning surrounding the test content, test-taking strategies, or tips.
The topics in the books are common topics, however, they are still limited as they are not updated regularly. Therefore, you need to combine with other materials to stay updated on trends as well as newly emerging topics.
Effective Guide to Using Books
The "Get Ready for IELTS" book series is quite popular among those preparing for the IELTS exam, suitable for those with intermediate-level knowledge. For those self-studying at home, you can refer to the books based on the following suggestions:
Accurately determine your own level to ensure this book series is suitable for you. This series is for those at Pre-intermediate level (equivalent to band score 3.0) who wish to achieve higher band scores. To determine your ability, you can register for an IELTS mock test at reputable IDP test centers.
Each Unit in the lesson is equivalent to 3 hours of study, you should understand this to allocate time appropriately. Avoid continuous studying as this will only make you tired and reduce your ability to absorb knowledge.
In each lesson, whenever you move to a new knowledge section, review the knowledge from the previous sections. By reviewing foundational knowledge, you will easily remember the information as well as learn how to systematize and connect different pieces of knowledge.
During the process of learning vocabulary, use a dictionary to understand the meaning and pronunciation of words. However, try to guess the meaning of words without a dictionary when doing Practice Tests or Exam Tasks. This will help you grasp the context and not rely on the dictionary.
When doing exercises or mock tests, use a pencil to easily edit your answers. You can also set a time limit similar to the actual test to learn how to allocate time appropriately and accurately assess your own level.
The "Get Ready for IELTS" series is suitable study material for those aiming to achieve band score 4.0 or higher in the IELTS exam. With the information above, we hope you will understand the content of the books and the objectives of each lesson to decide whether this series is suitable for you or not.
To improve your skills, you can refer to the entire available IELTS resource library to familiarize yourself with the test structure and confidently achieve the highest score in your test. The provided materials include Masterclass Webinars, Test Preparation Courses, and test-taking tips from international IELTS experts!
And when you're ready, register for IELTS with IDP today!