{"id":3228,"date":"2021-03-25T19:00:14","date_gmt":"2021-03-26T02:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/ielts\/?p=3228"},"modified":"2021-03-25T18:39:32","modified_gmt":"2021-03-26T01:39:32","slug":"ielts-academic-writing-task-1-grammatical-range-accuracy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/ielts\/ielts-academic-writing-task-1-grammatical-range-accuracy\/","title":{"rendered":"IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 and Task 2: Grammatical Range and Accuracy"},"content":{"rendered":"

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In this post, I’m going to give you some tips for success in grammatical range and accuracy. First things first—to get a top score in IELTS Writing Task 1 and Task 2, you should go to the source: the official IELTS Writing Task 1 rubric PDF<\/a> and IELTS Writing Task 2 rubric PDF<\/a>. Now, let’s get into what grammatical range and accuracy mean for IELTS!<\/p>\n

What is Grammatical Range and Accuracy?<\/h2>\n

This is a measurement of your ability to use a wide range of grammatical structures without making a lot of grammatical errors. If you have enough time (a few months or more) before you take the IELTS, consider taking an English class or investing in a good grammar book for self-study. I often recommend this grammar book<\/a> to intermediate and advanced students. It offers clear grammar explanations and contains many practice exercises. <\/p>\n

IELTS Writing Task 1 and Task 2 Grammar Tips<\/h2>\n

Here are some additional grammar tips to help you, even if your IELTS exam is coming up soon and you don\u2019t have time to take a class or study a textbook!<\/p>\n

Grammar Tip 1: Don\u2019t Use the Same Simple Sentence Structures Over and Over.<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The next time you write a practice response, take a close look at your sentence structures. Do you use a variety of sentence patterns? English language learners often develop a habit of using forms of the \u201cBE\u201d verb (am, is, are, was, were) very frequently as the main verb of the sentence. Using \u201cBE\u201d verbs is not a problem (I have used many in this blog post!!), but using them too often makes your writing sound very basic. Importantly, using “BE” verbs repeatedly also limits your grammatical range.<\/p>\n

Choosing more descriptive verbs opens up many grammatical possibilities. For example, you can use adverbs and adverbial phrases to describe an action. By limiting yourself to forms of \u201cBE\u201d as the main verb, you will mainly rely on adjectives for description. <\/p>\n

To work on this, go back through your practice essays and try to change every sentence that includes a \u201cBE\u201d verb as the main verb. Don\u2019t worry about sentences with \u201cBE\u201d auxiliary verbs like this:<\/p>\n

She is running.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cRunning\u201d is the main verb of this sentence and \u201cis\u201d is an auxiliary. There is no need to change this. You want to edit sentences that look like this:<\/p>\n

Michael is a history professor at my college.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIs\u201d is the main verb of the sentence. When you revise these sentences, don\u2019t change the meaning of the sentence too much. The sentence should still fit logically in your essay.<\/strong> This can be tough! Making these changes will force you to use different sentence patterns and, importantly, more descriptive verbs and adverbs when you write. <\/p>\n

Please note—you do not need to avoid all \u201cBE\u201d verbs when you write for the IELTS exam. This exercise simply helps you to develop your ability to use a variety of grammatical structures. Review the following examples: <\/p>\n