IELTS Speaking Part 1: Rubbish and recycling
The questions
Asked in this order, in one sitting.
- How do you usually deal with your household garbage?
- Do you sort your garbage before throwing it away?
- What do you do when you see garbage on the street?
- Did you learn about recycling when you were a child?
How to answer it
The temptation is to be virtuous, and virtuous answers all sound the same. Describe what actually happens in your building — how many bins there are, whether anyone uses them properly, what the collection is like — and you have specific content nobody else has. The fourth question moves you into the past and is worth a real memory: a school project, a poster competition, a parent who was strict about it.
What moves the band
- Say bins, rubbish and food waste if you speak British English, garbage and trash if American — just be consistent within the answer.
- Recycling lexis is easy marks: sort, separate, kerbside collection, compost, single-use, biodegradable.
These are candidate recalls. These are questions reported by test-takers after their exams, not official or leaked IELTS material. Wording varies by test version, location and memory. Use them for timed practice — never as a prediction of what you will be asked.
Practise these next
Know the number. Now move it.
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