An IELTS scheme of work for Writing and Speaking: a 10-week term plan

By the IELTS Laboratory team. Published 23 October 2026. Updated 23 October 2026.

Short answer: If you are planning how to teach IELTS over a term, a good scheme of work alternates new input with review weeks built from the class’s own mistakes. Over ten weeks, cover each Writing task and Speaking part twice: once to learn the format and once to fix what students got wrong the first time, with a diagnostic at the start and a full practice test near the end.

Many IELTS courses are planned as a list of topics, one per week, with no time set aside to return to problems. Students meet each task once, make the same mistakes on it, and move on. This plan builds the return in.

What is an IELTS scheme of work?

A scheme of work is a term-long plan that sets out what will be taught each week, in what order and why.

In the UK and Australia, teachers usually call it a scheme of work. In Canada, the same document is more often called a course outline or curriculum. A syllabus is sometimes used for the list of content, without the weekly sequence. Whatever you call it, the job is the same: make sure every part of the test gets enough time, and that weak areas get a second look.

What should IELTS course materials and a course plan cover?

It should cover both Writing tasks, all three Speaking parts and the language that runs through all of them.

This plan is for Academic IELTS and focuses on Writing and Speaking, the two productive skills where teacher feedback makes the most difference. Reading and Listening can run alongside as homework or short weekly practice.

What does a 10-week IELTS scheme of work look like?

It runs in two five-week cycles. Weeks 1–5 introduce each task. Weeks 6–10 return to each one, starting from the mistakes students made in the first cycle.

How do you build the review weeks?

Collect the most common mistakes from the previous week’s writing and recordings, then teach the top three as a short lesson.

1. Collect: while marking, note each mistake that blocks meaning or holds the writing back.

2. Count: tally how many students made each one.

3. Choose: pick the three most common, plus one personal target per student.

4. Teach: show anonymised versions of the real sentences, fix them together, then practise.

5. Check: look for the same mistakes in the next piece of work.

Our Writing Task 2 lesson plan built from student mistakes is a worked example of one of these lessons.

How do you adapt the plan to your class?

Change the length, not the shape: keep the input, mistake, review cycle and stretch or squeeze the weeks around it.

What mistakes do IELTS courses commonly make?

The most common are teaching each task only once, leaving speaking practice unrecorded, and skipping the first-week diagnostic.

• One pass per task: students need a second attempt to show they’ve improved.

• No recordings: without them, speaking feedback relies on memory.

• No diagnostic: you can’t plan review weeks without knowing where students start. A short Task 2 essay and a recorded Speaking Part 1 and 2 in the first lesson are enough.

How can IELTS Laboratory support a scheme of work?

IELTS Laboratory (ielts-laboratory.co) is an independent online platform for IELTS teachers and learners that helps teachers turn 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 fits the review weeks in this plan:

• Teacher-marked drafts: you mark the Writing and give the bands, and first and second drafts sit under one report link, which suits week 6.

• Lesson packs and saved lesson plans help you turn the class’s common mistakes into a lesson.

• A class puzzle gives the group an anonymised text made from its own mistakes, and each student gets a personal puzzle.

• Speaking recordings are kept for 365 days, so you can compare week 1 with week 9.

• A teacher dashboard with classes lets you see work as students see it.

Nothing in the product is an official IELTS score.

FAQ

What is the difference between a scheme of work and a course outline?

They mean much the same thing. “Scheme of work” is more common in the UK and Australia; “course outline” or “curriculum” is more common in Canada.

How long should a course be when teaching IELTS?

It depends on the students’ starting point and goals. Ten weeks gives time to teach each task twice, but the cycle can be shortened for intensive courses.

Should a scheme of work include practice tests?

Yes, but not every week. A diagnostic at the start and one timed practice near the end is usually enough; the weeks between are for teaching.

Is this plan for IELTS Academic?

Yes. It covers Academic Writing Task 1 and Task 2 and all three parts of Speaking.

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