Grammar for IELTS Speaking: teach from what students actually say

By the IELTS Laboratory team. Published 22 October 2026. Updated 22 October 2026.

Short answer: Teach grammar for IELTS Speaking from transcripts of your students’ own speech. Each part of the test naturally invites certain structures, so record students, find the two or three errors that come up most, fix them in context and have students record again, rather than teaching “advanced” structures they can’t yet use accurately.

Students often ask for “advanced grammar for IELTS Speaking”. What usually holds them back is not a missing structure but a basic one that breaks down under pressure, such as past tenses in a story or agreement in a long sentence.

How is grammar assessed in IELTS Speaking?

Grammar is assessed under Grammatical Range and Accuracy, one of four equally weighted Speaking criteria. It looks at the variety of structures a candidate uses and how many errors they make.

Both halves matter. A candidate who uses only simple sentences accurately shows little range. A candidate who attempts complex structures with frequent errors shows little accuracy. The goal is a natural mix, used with control.

Which grammar does each part of the Speaking test invite?

Each part tends to call for different structures, which gives you a practical grammar syllabus.

Use this table as a guide, not a checklist. A student doesn’t need every structure, but should handle the ones each part calls for.

What are the most common grammar mistakes in IELTS Speaking?

The most common are tense control in stories, articles, subject–verb agreement, and sentences that start complex and lose their way.

• Tense drift: starting a story in the past and slipping into the present.

• Articles: missing or extra a and the.

• Agreement: people is, the number of cars are.

• Broken complex sentences: a relative clause or conditional started and never finished.

• Question forms in Part 3 replies: I don’t know what is the reason instead of what the reason is.

Which of these matter depends on the student. A transcript shows you.

What is the record, notice, fix, re-record routine?

It is a four-step routine that turns a student’s own speech into grammar practice.

1. Record: the student gives a short, unscripted answer (a Part 2 talk works well).

2. Notice: the student reads a transcript of one minute and underlines grammar errors before you show yours.

3. Fix: together, correct the two or three most frequent errors and practise each correct sentence aloud.

4. Re-record: the student answers the same question again, aiming to avoid those errors.

A transcript is a written version of what the student said. You can type a minute by hand, or use an automatic transcription tool and check it.

What does a 50-minute IELTS Speaking grammar lesson look like?

It follows the same routine for the whole class, with one shared grammar point and one personal point per student.

How do you choose the class grammar point?

Pick the error that appeared in the most students’ recordings, not the one you find most interesting.

For example (invented): three students said When I was child, I go there every summer. That points to a lesson on past narrative with used to and would, which also adds range.

How do you drill without it feeling mechanical?

Drill the student’s own corrected sentence, then ask them to change one detail and say the new version.

When I was a child, I used to go there every summer. → When I was a teenager, I used to go there every weekend.

How do you add range without losing accuracy?

Add one new structure at a time, attached to a part of the test where it’s natural.

• Part 2 stories: add the past perfect for background (I’d never seen the sea before).

• Part 3 opinions: add a conditional for consequences (If more people cycled, cities would be quieter).

• Part 3 speculation: add modals (It might be because…).

Then check the next recording for both the new structure and the old errors.

How can IELTS Laboratory help?

IELTS Laboratory (ielts-laboratory.co) is an independent online platform for IELTS teachers and learners that turns learners’ own Writing and Speaking mistakes into flashcards, lesson packs and practice. It is not affiliated with IELTS, the British Council, IDP or Cambridge.

It handles much of the recording and noticing:

• A Part 2 cue-card trainer times each talk to 125 seconds and has a leaderboard.

• Recordings are kept for 365 days, and you can listen to them.

• Speaking reports keep the recording with a click-to-play transcript, and you mark the errors yourself, so the notice stage starts with evidence.

• Lesson packs group the mistakes you’ve sent to a class into a lesson with a short spoken drill.

For the full lesson on this part, see how to teach IELTS Speaking Part 2, and for building lessons from errors more generally, our guide to lesson plans built from learners’ mistakes. Nothing in the product is an official IELTS score.

FAQ

What grammar is useful for IELTS Speaking?

Present forms and used to for Part 1, past narrative tenses for Part 2, and comparatives, conditionals and modals for Part 3. Accuracy with these matters more than rare structures.

Should I teach advanced grammar for IELTS Speaking?

Only once the basics are under control. A complex sentence with errors doesn’t help; a simpler one used accurately often does.

How can students find their own grammar mistakes in speaking?

Record a short answer, make a transcript of one minute, and underline errors before the teacher points them out.

Is grammar for speaking different from grammar for writing?

The criterion is similar, but speech is less formal, uses shorter clauses and allows natural self-correction. Teach from speech, not from essays.

List your IELTS teaching on IELTS Laboratory

Teachers can list their teaching in the IELTS Laboratory directory, where learners search for tutors, filter by currency and maximum price per hour, and message a tutor directly. The teacher plan is free until 1 December 2026, then $29 a month, with as many students as you like for General English, and when we connect you with a new student we take 15% of the lesson fee. It is part of building a fairer IELTS teaching ecosystem.

Start advertising your teaching →

IELTS Laboratory is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to IELTS, the British Council, IDP: IELTS Australia or Cambridge University Press and Assessment.