A lot of candidates make the mistake of thinking that their job is to answer the question. It isn’t!

If the examiner asks you about your hometown and you say, “It’s called Carrara,” you have answered the question, but you haven’t answered it well. Your job is to keep talking. Add more information. “It’s called Carrara. It is about 10 minutes by car to a beautiful beach. My family moved there when I was eight years old. I went to school there and I used to go to the beach most weekends. Transport was mainly by bus, but there was  good network. I left Carrara when I started studying at university.”

IELTS SPEAKING TIP 1