IELTS Speaking band 8 sample test 7: Family and relationships

Examiner: Let's talk about your family. How many people are there in your family?

Candidate: There are five of us in our household: my wife, Anna, our two kids, Maya and Sam, and me. Our kids are sixteen and thirteen, so the house is noisy and rarely quiet. My parents are still close by, which means the extended family feels pretty present too, for better or worse.

Examiner: Who are you closest to in your family?

Candidate: I'd say I'm closest to Anna, my wife, which probably isn't a surprise to anyone who knows us. We met at university in Ohio, and twenty years on we still tell each other everything. Those long, quiet evenings after the kids are in bed are when we really catch up. Honestly, that partnership is the foundation of everything else in our family.

Examiner: How do you usually spend time with your family?

Candidate: Mostly it's Sunday dinners at my parents' place, which the kids grumble about but secretly love. We also have a standing movie night on Fridays, and in summer we're usually at the lake or camping. My daughter and I have started going for runs together, which is a nice surprise. Simple things, really, but they're the moments that matter most to us.

Examiner: Now, I'm going to give you a topic, and I'd like you to talk about it for one to two minutes. Describe a family member you admire. You should say: who this person is, what they do, and how you spend time together, and explain why you admire them. You have one minute to prepare.

Examiner: All right, please start speaking now.

Candidate: The family member I admire most is my dad, Ray. He's now in his late sixties and retired from teaching high school maths in Dayton, Ohio, where I grew up. He's the sort of man who can fix almost anything, and who would rather spend a weekend in the garage than watch television. Since retiring, he's got really into woodworking, and his workshop is full of half-finished chairs and bookshelves.

Candidate: What I admire most is how he handled a difficult stretch when I was a teenager. He lost his job at the factory and then had to retrain, which was a huge upheaval for everyone. Instead of getting bitter, he went back to school at night, passed his teaching certificate, and went on to teach for almost thirty years. He never made a fuss about it, and I only really appreciated what it cost him when I had kids of my own.

Candidate: These days we spend time together mostly in his workshop. I'll go over on a Saturday morning, and we'll sand, plane and argue about the best finish for a tabletop, while my kids pretend they aren't interested. He taught me to measure twice and cut once, which sounds like a cliché, but he means it. Why I admire him, I think, is that he's patient, steady and honest about his mistakes. He's the person I'd call first in a crisis, and that's the highest compliment I can pay anyone.

Examiner: Thank you. Do you think children today still look up to their grandparents in the same way?

Candidate: Some do, but I think it's changed. Many kids now have grandparents who are working, travelling or online, so the relationship looks different. Still, my kids adore my dad, so I'd say it depends on how much effort the family puts in.

Examiner: Let's talk about families more generally. How have family structures changed in recent decades?

Candidate: The most obvious change is that there's far more variety now. When I was growing up, the traditional model of two parents and two or three kids was still the norm in most neighbourhoods. Today you see single-parent households, blended families, couples who choose not to have children, and same-sex couples raising kids. Divorce rates and later marriages have also reshaped things considerably. On the other hand, I think some things haven't shifted much. Most people still say that family is the thing they value most. So, in my view, the structure has changed, but the underlying need for close, dependable relationships hasn't.

Examiner: What role do grandparents typically play in families today?

Candidate: In many households, grandparents are now a vital part of the support network. A lot of them provide childcare, especially when both parents work long hours, and some are even raising grandchildren full-time. Financially, they often help out with school costs or a first car. Yet I think the role has become more negotiated. Grandparents are living longer and are more active, so they're less likely to be the quiet figure in the armchair. My own parents, for instance, take the kids on trips and have their own busy social lives, which I think keeps everyone happier.

Examiner: Do you think family relationships are becoming closer or more distant?

Candidate: In some ways, closer. Technology means people can video call the grandparents or message siblings across the country every day, which would have been unthinkable a generation ago. But I'd argue that's a different kind of closeness. Phones can keep us in touch without actually bringing us together, and it's easy to assume that a quick text counts as real contact. Personally, I think families who make time for a regular meal together stay closest, regardless of the technology. It's a matter of intention, really, rather than the tools themselves.