talisae:
Pls can u send the material to me..@ taflino@gmail.com.Thanks alot.

1. Stick to a FEW practice materials! The number of materials for IELTS that we see on a daily on this thread can be overwhelming. Try out only a few and stick to the one that resonates with you. Don't use ieltsliz, Jay, Cambridge, ieltsadvantage, road2ielts etc at the same time (some of these peope don't agree on the same approach and reading all can get really confusing). If you try one and it sits well with you, ditch others. Focus on that one and be a master of it. I almost got overwhelmed at some point, because l wanted to open every link or try every material l saw here. But l had to give myself brain oh.

2. Practise everyday. No excuses. Create the time. Even at work, you can use your lunch break to practise. Instead of listening to music or radio on your way to work, listen to your downloaded tips on writing, speaking, reading, listening. When walking down the streets, have an earpiece on (l hate this, but we can make sacrifices for one month abi?) and keep LISTENING. At weekends, practice speaking with your wife/husband, friend, son/daughter etc. Write out questions and tell them to ask you (under exam conditions). I finished a WHOLE 30 leaves notebook for listening practice (yeah l work an 8 to 5 and live on the mainland with my office on the island -remember, no excuses!). Always check your wrong answers and replay those portions and find out what you didn't hear properly. I used youtube for listening/speaking/reading.

3. There's this ielts expert too, one Ryan (cannot remember his surname) that l think is underrated. I used his tips for writing. He talks about 15 sentences max for writing. 3 paragraphs with 4 sentences and the closing paragraph should have 3 sentences. This keeps you in check and you already know what to write before the exam, all you will be waiting for on the ielts day is the topic given! I can share his materials if you drop your email address.
For writing, write letter and essays! Don't read what someone else wrote. Write yours too. Some people practise writing by reading another's work -WRONG! write yours too and compare. Minimum letters to write on different topics - 10. Minimum essays - 20. Revise your work and look for better ways to reconstruct your sentences. I suggest you write with pencil on your exam day so you can erase if need be.

4. For reading - use youtube. It also has a timer, so practice using the time and don't stop the timer or pause the video. The easiest comprehension in reading are the first two. Spend less time there. Say 5 mins tops for each. You do not need to UNDERSTAND nada. Just look at the instructions (very important), then the questions, then scroll through the passages for the answers. You need all your time for the last two passages. They are more technical.

5. For speaking - Be confident, relaxed and know your basic english and introduction (see ieltsliz). See this as an interview. We all attend interviews don't we? I got a list of 42 likely cue cards from ieltsliz blog (l think she said they change it every 3 months but she always update the cue card questions) and l practiced the 42 different topics and l always set my two minutes timer with my phone. You can be in the BRT or your car and practice this one, or when walking down the street or whilst doing chores at home, or lying down in your bed doing nothing (l did this. Some days, people will think you are going crazy because you are talking to yourself, but...who no go no know). One of the 42 questions l practiced was my cue card during my speaking test -something on my pet animal (l was wondering "madam why me? Animal kwa?" but because l had practised earlier, the examiner had to cut me off when it was two minutes. I just went on and on.

4. Lastly and certainly not the least...the place of PRAYER. I'm catholic, so when l saw the prayer to St. Joseph of Cupertino here, l made a mental note to say it. I started saying it every day from September till i wrote my exam on the 1st of November. I even added a 9 days St. Joseph of Cupertino novena with prayer and fasting which ended on the 31st of October (l'm that extra oh. I left no chances). I asked my family to add me in their prayers too. So, pray, pray and pray. Whatever works for you. Someone dropped one St. prayer here on financial assistance for POF, best believe l'll look for that prayer and do it too!

5. People have done it, you too can. Don't be discouraged if you have tried more than once. We don't give up on this thread oh. Being here has taught me a different level of selflessness and never say never spirit. People you don't even know are quick to help and empathise and l am still in awe of you guys.

6. Please drop your email address so l can send the Ryan materials to you.

This too shall pass!

All the best everyone and my apologies for the long post.

Heartbender:
Call me I have what you're looking for

Heartbender:
Call me I have what you're looking for