IELTS Cue Card 8: A Time When You Helped Someone

IELTS Speaking Cue Card with Sample Answer. Cue Card A Time When You Helped Someone. IELTS Speaking Part 2 With Model Answer.

 

A Time When You Helped Someone

You should say:

• who you helped and why
• how you helped this person
• what the result was
• and explain how you felt about helping this person.

Tips for answering this cue card topic:

Describe someone you know, your friend, cousin, grandmother etc.

 

 Model Answer 1:

Man is a social animal – a part of society.
 In a society everyone needs help of someone or the other
 I have also given and received help many times
 Here I am going to talk about a time when I helped a needy classfellow
 Her name is Suman
 I remember I was in 10th class
 She did not have money to buy books
 Her father suffered a heavy loss in business and was hospitalised because of
depression
 I used to receive hundred rupees per month as pocket money
 I used to spend it all on chocolates
 I am very fond of chocolates
 I gave all the money to her
 I remember how her face lit up
 She bought the books
 Since then we‟ve been the best of friends
 At that moment I found a great happiness
 I had never experienced such a feeling before
 I realised that some things can give more joy than eating chocolates
 I remembered the saying
– To have enough to share
– To know the joy of giving
– To thrill with all the sweets of life
– Is living

Model Answer 2:

Thank you for giving me the chance to talk about this topic. Actually, I can remember quite a few occasions when I tried to raise my helping hands for others. The particular event that I would like to talk about was the time when I helped a poor family in our hometown during my college years.

I can’t recall the exact name of the person but I remember that he had a family of 5 members and he was a technician. He had very little education and he mostly relied on the small shop he had to repair electronic goods. After a devastating cyclone, his small shop was demolished and he had no other income source or ability to rebuild it. One day I noticed him trying to console his small kids who were demanding for foods. This happened near our college campus and I had been there to meet a friend. I was so touched by the beautiful yet gloomy faced kids that I went ahead and talk to this person. He explained what happened and was talking in a trembling voice. He also told me he assured her wife that he would feed the kids and would bring foods to home.

I bought them some snacks and fruits and asked them to stay nearby for a while. I watched the small kids were eating the foods voraciously and they had smiles on their face. I went to my class and told the whole story to my three close friends. Finally, we went to our class teacher and wrote an application regarding the suffering of the person and his family. The teacher permitted us to spend an hour to raise some money for the suffering family from other classes and we were so glad to have the permission.
We had been able to convey the sufferings of this person and his family to the students and teachers and we raised a significant amount of money which was beyond my expectation. With this money we bought some foods and clothes for this family and they were so grateful that the husband and wife started crying and praying for us. We gave the man the remaining amount and he had been able to start his work again.

About my feelings, I was very satisfied and contended. This is the first time I realised how enthralling and satisfying it is to help someone. I felt like blessed and the person and his wife revered me as if I was their dear one. In fact being able to help someone in need is something we can only feel and words can’t actually describe it.

 

 

Model Answer 3:

Well, let me tell you about a time when I helped someone not familiar. One day in the morning, I met a neighbour in the shop who was an old lady and also lived in the same building as me. She just bought a bag of rice and was ready to take the heavy bag home. I saw the bag was quite heavy and she was trying to life it up. I walked straightly to her, and told her that I could help her take the bag home. She was very thankful and agreed to accept my kindness. I could feel that she really hope someone could stand out and do her a favour at that moment.

The bag was quite heavy and it took us ten minutes to move back home. I took the bag directly to her home, and helped pour the entire rice into the bucket. She really appreciated my offer and wanted to give me some gifts, but I refused. I guessed that helping elder people is a kind of virtue in China; besides, getting alone well with neighbour is also very important to lead a happy life.

 

 

Model Answer 4:

In my life, I got numerous help and useful advice and I am really grateful to the Almighty for that. Among those, one of the important help I got was from one of my teachers. The name of this teacher was (…say a teacher’s name…) and he helped me during my term final at my grade eight.

This final exam was very important in terms of getting admitted in a renowned high school. I was very much eager to get a great grade to get admitted in the most renowned high school of our town. My parents had a great expectation as well. I was probably 14 years old at that time and on the third day of my exam, I reached to the exam hall at around 8.45 am. as I thought the exam would start at 9:00 am. But to my worst surprise, I noticed that the exam room was already silent and everyone was busy writing on the answer sheets. I could not relate the reality to what was happening. Then I found that a teacher was scolding me for being 1 and half hour late for the exam. I could not think rationally and did not know what to do. I felt like I was just thrown down from a mountain and I was falling with great speed without any hope of surviving. At that moment I noticed Mr. (…say the teacher’s name…) and he tried to calm me. He assured me that everything would be fine. Then he asked me the reason for being late. I told him the truth that I had the incorrect timing in my exam schedule.

He then assured me and after taking permission from the principal, he arranged me the full three hours of exam time. This was really unexpected for me and I did well in the final exam. Because of the help I got from this teacher, I had been able to secure A+ and got admitted in one of the best high schools in our city. The reason he helped me is because he was a good man with a benevolent heart, good will and honesty. He loved his students and simply helped me because he knew that this exam was important to me.

I felt overwhelmed and really grateful for what he did to me. The help was unexpected and that saved me from a disaster. I felt very much happy and grateful. I still feel grateful to this teacher and will always remember the help I got from him that day.

Model Answer 5:

It was an incidence of last year, when I was going to attend my friend’s birthday, and as soon as I left my home, at the cross road, I saw a horrible accident. People injured very badly. But nobody showed a sense of help. So I moved ahead and some other volunteers also assisted me and I rushed them to the hospital.

Meanwhile i forgot about my friend’s birthday where I have to reach in time, because there has been a label of being late comer on me. However, doctor had appreciated my work and gave me some papers to complete formalities, and police came, I got a bit nervous but they calmed me down and took my briefing of an incident.I stayed there and until those injured people’s relatives came. I had paid some fees even for their treatment and medicines.

However, later when I reached my friend’s birthday, he, being infuriate, banish me from the party. Later however, getting idea about my noble and benevolent task they felt great proud of me. came to me and asked about forgiveness. I also had forgiven them and demanded party from him.

But really I felt great of that deed for the sake of humanity. And most significantly, I earned good friendship of those injured guys.

 

Model Answer 6:

Well. I try to help people whenever I can, even if it is in a small way. I try to help my parents with work in the house, and I usually help with the cooking whenever fm around at the time the meal is being made. If I pass beggars on the street, I often give them something, though not always. Sometimes I’m not sure they arc real poor people because I’ve heard there are a lot of fakes who just pretend to be poor or sick.

One time in particular, I passed an old man who was begging. It was early in the morning, and 1 was on my way to a class. Something inside me caused me to take special note of this man. I started to get some money out of my hag for him when it seemed, as if a little voice inside told me to get some food for him instead. I surprised myself at this idea so I hesitated for a moment, but I couldn’t shake the thought. So I went to the nearby market and bought him some fresh stuffed buns, about five of them and a cup of warm soy milk. Then I went back to the man and handed it to him, and said some kind words to him. I think he was very happy to have some warm food on a chilly morning.

Honestly though, I think doing this might have made me happier than it did him. I really felt good after helping him.

 

Helping others

1. In general, why do people help others?

I think it’s the kindness that exists in most human hearts, at least a little. Many of us have needed some help ourselves from time to time, and we know what it feels like to need something. We know it feels good to have help from others when we need it, so we want to help others in the same way. Also, as I mentioned before, often it simply makes us happy to help others in some way.

2. Do you think it’s important to help people who need help?

Of course it’s important. We have a responsibility to do our part whether it’s in our family, our workplace, or amongst friends. None of us are like little islands with nothing or no one around us. We influence each other, and contribute to the atmosphere and environment around us, at least we should. And just as we want others to help us, we should naturally be willing to help others.

3. How do you feel after you have helped someone?

Usually I feel very good when I’ve helped someone. Even if the help I gave was difficult for me or ai an inconvenient time. Even if it was a sacrifice for me, afterwards it seems that I am happier than when I began, and sometimes I even seem to have more energy or time left for myself. It may sound funny, but sometimes it seems a little like magic how I end up with more time or more energy or more money or whatever, after I have given some away to another person.

4. Many people only look out for themselves and never think about helping others. What do you think of this attitude?

I think it’s sad. I know it is common, but it’s a sad statement of modern life, at least in big cities. I know not everybody is that way, but nowadays a lot of people have become very selfish. It seems that so many people are in such a rush to get rich or get better jobs or into the best schools that they hardly even notice people who need help. Maybe if people were not so absorbed in their own worlds, they would see the needs more and would do something about it. At least I hope so.

Helping visitors

5. What is the most important way for a country to help visitors?

Probably the most common form of help needed by foreigners is help with the language. I’ve also seen foreigners on the streets who seem to be a little lost. Sometimes they’re looking at their maps trying to find a famous tourist spot, so giving directions is another common way to help foreigners. I’ve done this a few times, and it was an interesting chance to talk to someone from another country.

6. Do you think that countries should help other countries in need?

Yes. by all means. Our country has helped other countries many times, such as after the tsunami caused so much damage in Thailand, Indonesia and India. We also sent aid to the United States after the severe hurricanes a few years ago. I think we should look at the world as a very large neighborhood, and if we can try and do as much as possible for our neighbors, everyone is a lot happier and friendlier towards each other.

Helping people in society

7. What kinds of people need help in China?

I think one of the biggest groups in our society needing help is the farmers. It would be better if the wealth and economic progress in our country was more evenly distributed. I live in a fairly prosperous family. We’re not rich but we do have plenty, and though I’m happy for this, I feel a little guilty that others have so much less than I do.

8. How does the government try to help these people?

I think one of the main ways is by investing in business in a certain part of the country so that more jobs are created for the local people. Another way is by providing training, for example in farming, in ways that can increase productivity. Also the government should make sure that officials of the provinces are doing their jobs correctly. The government is trying to eliminate corruption at the local level.

9. Are there any non-government organizations in China that help people?

Yes, there are. At first many of these were foreign, but that is changing now. Although there are still foreign organizations that help people, there are also more and more Chinese charitable organizations being set up. I just read some articles about this.

10. Where do these organizations get their money from?

The foreign organizations get their money from overseas. Some of the binding is governmental, but a lot of it comes from private donations. Here in China, more individuals arc getting involved in charities. It’s relatively new, but with the increased income of people, there is more of an awareness of a need to help others who are less fortunate.

Similar IELTS Cue Card Topics

Your preparation for this Cue Card would also help you answering the following cue card topics:

1. Describe someone who helped you.
2. Describe an event when you helped someone.
3. Describe something you did and felt good about it.
4. Describe a memorable event in your college or university.