Some people think that the teenage years are the happiest times of most people’s lives. Others think that adult life brings more happiness in spite of greater responsibilities. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

IELTS Cambridge 9

Before you go any further with ideas, there are two things I want to remind you:

1.      Regardless of your opinion, you HAVE TO discuss the two opposing sides of the argument. Then, of course, you also need to tell examiners which side you agree with.

2.      You may see two sides as “teenagers are happiest” and “adults are happier”, but NO. The task asks you to consider the “greater responsibilities” of adults as well, so do not forget that in your plan and essay. This is the fine line between band 6 and band 7 in Task Response.

To help you generate ideas for this task, we will think about personal experience of being teenagers or adults. Then, you can generalise it into ideas.

So, are you ready? Just start with the interactive exercise below and you’ll know what I mean.

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Don’t forget to fill out your table plan (you can see this in the end of the lesson above). Planning is essential but very often skipped by test-takers. Make sure that you’re not one of them.

Great! Now you have your ideas and essay plan. Let’s review some useful vocabulary that you’ve seen in the exercise, and you’re good to officially write your essay.

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If you need feedback on your essay, feel free to send it to your email:

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