IELTS Reading Tips For Band 9

Welcome to your journey towards mastering the IELTS Reading section! Whether you're preparing for the IELTS Academic or General Training, it's completely normal to find this part difficult. But don't worry, you're not alone in this. With consistent practice, interesting discussions, and smart strategies, that high score you're dreaming of is definitely possible.

Now, let's focus on specific strategies and tips that will help you in your IELTS preparation journey. Getting a high band, like 7 or even the perfect score of 9, often feels hard when it comes to the IELTS Reading section. However, with the right approach, this tough task becomes easier. The key is to get familiar with the different types of reading tasks and keep improving your skills. In the next sections, we'll guide you through these methods, helping you not just deal with the difficulty of IELTS reading, but to master it, ensuring you get the score you need to achieve your goals.

1. A Good IELTS Practice: Get an overview of the passage first

Do you think you should read the text first or look at the questions? This is a problem many students have in the IELTS test. While there is no answer that works for everyone, a good method is always to get a general understanding of the passage first. Here is what you should do:

• Read the title of the passage carefully: This should give you some idea of what the passage is about.

• Then, read the first paragraph: The first paragraph usually gives an overview of what is coming up.

• Then, quickly read the questions: Reading the questions gives you an idea of what information you need to focus on when reading the passage.

While no single method fits all, this three-step process has worked well for most of my students, and it should work for you too.

2. The Right Reading Time? No more than 17 minutes per passage. [But Not for general training reading!]

This might sound like a strange suggestion, but it is common for students to find a hard passage and spend more than 20 minutes on it. This means they have less time for the easier passages (which they could have scored better on).

But why 17 minutes per passage and not 20? Spending only 17 minutes leaves about 10 'use-as-you-wish' minutes at the end of the test. In these 10 minutes, you will be better able to decide which passage to use that time on. For example, if one of the passages is complicated, you may choose to spend 10 minutes on the easier one and just guess for the difficult one.

In short, the 17-minute rule helps you avoid spending too much time on a passage and ensures enough time at the end of the test to use your remaining minutes wisely.

Note: There are slight differences in how the IELTS general and Academic reading tests are structured. In the IELTS academic test, there are three passages, while in General IELTS, there are 5 sections divided into 3 parts. The first two parts have 2 sections each, while the last part has 1 section. In the general training reading, it is recommended to save a bit more time (25 minutes) for the last passage, which is almost always the most difficult one.

3. The Two common mistakes in the IELTS reading exam

It is important to learn from your mistakes in IELTS reading. Some mistakes that students make are unique to them, but two are common mistakes that almost all students make at first. Knowing these mistakes in advance can help you avoid them.

• Common Mistake 1 - Not paying attention to the word limit: For the summary-type questions (fill in the blanks), always pay attention to the word limit mentioned. If it says 'no more than two words', then your answer can be one word or two words. If it says 'no more than one word and/or a number', then your answer can be one word, one number, or both.

• Common Mistake 2 - Transferring answers incorrectly: When moving answers to the answer sheet, if you fill in one answer in the wrong place, you may end up filling the rest of your answers in the wrong places as well. It is a good idea always to double-check that the number of questions and the number on the answer sheet match. Even if you find and fix the mistake later, you may have wasted important time that could have been used elsewhere.

You do not want to take the IELTS exam again just because of a silly mistake.

4. Improve Your Score By Learning Key Vocabulary [free IELTS vocabulary]

If you have already taken a few tests, it may be clear to you that reading is mainly a test of your vocabulary. A student with a good vocabulary, even if their grammar is weak, will still get a good score on the IELTS reading test, but the same cannot be said for a student with good grammar but weak vocabulary.

While many students like you understand that vocabulary is important, they still do not know which words they need to learn. In other words, there are a quarter of a million words in English, but which of these is the most relevant to IELTS reading? Here are the three types of vocabulary you need to learn:

• 2000 Most Frequently Used Words: As the name suggests, these are the 2000 most commonly used words in the English language. You can check these words here: [Link To The page]

• The Academic Vocabulary List: These are words you would see often in the (academic) IELTS readings. Here is a list for you to check:[Link To The page]

• Synonyms (words with the same meaning): This is something you would need to learn along the way. It is common for IELTS reading passages to use synonyms to see how well you understand the given information. Take a look at this free IELTS resource for synonyms: [Link here]

This focused approach to improve your vocabulary can enhance your understanding skills, which the reading module tests.

5. The Correct Pace for IELTS Reading Section

A good reader always knows which parts of a text are dense (full of information or heavy words) that need to be read slowly and which parts are lighter (not too much information) and can be read faster. IELTS reading is no different.

If you read the dense parts too quickly, you risk not understanding it at all, and if you go through the lighter parts slowly, you are spending more time than necessary. It is a good idea to always be aware of how well you understand the current sentences and adjust your pace accordingly.

Another part of good pacing is - never getting stuck on unknown words. If you wait too long trying to understand such words, you break your reading flow. This is not necessary because you can still understand the idea even if you do not understand one (or even two) word(s).

6. Learn the keyword scanning technique for better reading section speed

The keyword scanning technique is one of the most important reading strategies to save time.

A keyword is any word in the question that can be easily found in the passage. This may be a word that includes numbers (because numbers are easy to spot), names (as they start with a capital letter and cannot be changed), or difficult words (as they are usually not rephrased). Let's look at some example True/False/Not Given questions below:

1. Chronobiology is the study of how living things have changed over time.

2. Dietician Geraldine Georgeou believes that not eating carbohydrates after five o'clock is more of a cultural myth.

3. A ‘night person’ can still have a healthy circadian rhythm.

For several reasons, the three marked words  – Chronobiology, Geraldine Georgeou, and ‘night person’ – are good keywords. First, Chronobiology is a unique, technical term, unlikely to be frequently used or rephrased in the passage, making it easier to find. Second, Geraldine Georgeou is a proper noun, starting with a capital letter and representing a specific person, which helps in quick identification. Lastly, the phrase ‘night person’ is in quotation marks, showing its importance or uniqueness in the context, making it easier for the reader to notice.

The scanning technique involves moving your eyes quickly over a text (instead of reading it) to find these specific keywords. This method saves time, as it focuses on finding important information or answers without reading the entire text in detail. It's especially useful when you need to find specific information quickly, like in exams or when doing research. By identifying and focusing on keywords, you can filter out less relevant information, making your reading faster and more effective for the IELTS exam.

If you need to improve your reading speed without losing your understanding (remember, just reading faster can lower accuracy), then this reading technique is essential.

7. The Right Strategies To Prepare For The IELTS Reading Question Types

You must get familiar with the  different questions that appear in IELTS reading. These generally include:

• The True/False/Not Given Type Questions

• The Fill-in-the-blanks Type Questions

• The Multiple Choice Type Questions

• The Heading Type Questions

• The Paragraph Matching Questions

• The Name Matching Questions

Not knowing the right strategy to use for each question type can mean spending more time than needed and having lower accuracy. Having the wrong strategy for a question is like using a map of Paris to navigate through London – you might find some similarities, but ultimately you'll get lost. It is thus vital for a good band score to have the right plan when answering each question type. Feel free to click the links next to the question types above to see my suggested strategy for each question type.

8. Not Just IELTS Reading Tips and Tricks But Also A Daily Reading Practice Routine

Perhaps this is too obvious to even mention, but the truth is many IELTS students spend a lot of time looking for the right IELTS reading tips and strategies, and not as much time practicing them. A daily practice routine is a must for any real improvement in your score in IELTS Reading because:

• Through practice, you build your mental stamina

• Through practice, you learn from your mistakes

• Through practice, you learn which strategy works for you

• Through practice, you improve your understanding

So, what does an excellent daily reading routine look like? Well, it depends on how much time you have. If you have enough, doing a complete test daily is a good idea (as long as you also have time to review it). If you are busier, you could even do just one passage and still get many of the benefits of daily practice (as long as you do it with focus and review your performance).

One important thing to remember is to choose the right source for your reading practice tests. It is recommended that you use only the Cambridge IELTS series books for practice tests as they reflect the actual test format and difficulty. Practicing reading with other resources can give you a false sense of improvement.

9. The Important Role of Review and Revision in the IELTS Reading Test

Once you finish your daily reading and have checked your answers, you should take a closer look at the ones you got wrong. A teacher can be very helpful here, helping you find where the answer is, understand why it was the correct answer, and see why your answer was wrong. Doing this daily can help you get familiar with the IELTS mistakes you make and, if you are serious enough, to overcome most of them.

But what if you do not have access to a teacher? Don’t worry, as there are many websites that have detailed solutions to almost all the Cambridge reading passages. This is a good one: [Link here]

Besides daily discussion, it is a good idea to keep track of which questions you find easier and which you struggle with. You can simply download and print this template I made for my students: [Link to download]

Tracking your progress this way can be helpful in two ways. One, it helps you understand your weaknesses and maybe work harder on them. Two, because it allows you to see which question types you are struggling with, it can help you improve your strategy. For example, if you find that you have trouble with Multiple Choice Questions, you can try to leave the passage with MCQs for last, so that you can focus on the easier passages first.

10. Casual Reading  - A less stressful way to improve your IELTS reading Score

While there is no doubt that IELTS reading passages are the best for developing your understanding and reading skills for the IELTS through daily tests, they can be very stressful and even boring. Students who take the approach of ' practice reading as much as possible ' usually end up tiring themselves out.

To counter this, it’s helpful to create a casual reading routine. Engaging in relaxed, everyday reading, such as reading news articles, novels, or magazines, can greatly improve your reading fluency and understanding in a more enjoyable way. This can help you improve your English (and improve your score) without the stress that comes with it.

Additionally, casual reading can relieve the pressure related to test preparation, making the learning process more enjoyable and less boring. By including different reading materials in your daily routine, you create a balanced way to improve your reading skills, which is important.

This practice can also keep you informed, stimulate your mind, and develop a lifelong habit of reading, all of which positively contribute to your overall language ability.

If you find IELTS reading passages interesting, then you can read them casually without doing the questions (just don’t use Cambridge books for this). Here is a good resource for this: [Link to non-cambridge readings]

Conclusion: Practice tests are not enough; Apply These IELTS Reading Lessons Before You Take The IELTS Test

I hope you found these free IELTS reading tips useful to help you improve your score in the IELTS reading exam. Remember, improving your reading band score is a mix of tips and practice. Getting a high score is about learning different reading skills. IELTS candidates who do well in IELTS are those who put in the hard work to apply the strategies and tips. So, keep the above tips in mind but also remember to use them in your next IELTS reading test. Best of luck!