IELTS Speaking for Success - 📄 Paper (Part 1) + Transcript

Episode Date: October 25, 2026

Get access to our premium episode archive: https://successwithielts.com Does Rory still write letters by hand? Find out why he carries little notebooks on long trips, who got his last handwritten letter, and how he made origami hand puppets with his classes, plus high-level phrases like 'nip out', 'sentimental value' and 'dexterity'. Tune in and have a great day! - Book a class with Rory here: https://successwithielts.com/classes Our course on Phrasal Verbs: https://successwithielts.com/podcourses Transcript: https://successwithielts.com Find an IELTS Speaking Partner: https://links.successwithielts.com/ieltspartner Our social media: https://linktr.ee/successwithielts © 2025 Podcourses Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Okay, when I sell my business, I want the best tax and investment advice. I want to help my kids, and I want to give back to the community. Ooh, then it's the vacation of a lifetime. I wonder if my head of office has a forever setting. An IG Private Wealth advisor creates the clarity you need with plans that harmonize your business, your family, and your dreams. Get financial advice that puts you at the center. Find your advisor at IG Private Wealth.com.

Hello, lovely, I'm Maria. And my name is Rory, and we're the host of the IEL Speaking for Success podcast, the podcast that aims to help improve your speaking skills as well as your listening skills along the way. We've started this podcast to give you super grammar and fabulous vocabulary for your high IEL score. Your band, nine score. Rory, what are you doing? What are you doing, Rory? Oh, sorry, Maria. I was just fixing some papers. Fixing some papers.

Papers. I see. Shall we talk about paper? Let's talk about paper. Yes, dear, listen. It's a brand new topic. Paper. Paper? Like paper, you know, this is like white stuff you used to write on with a pen. Have you ever seen paper in your life? And actually, I have like blue paper, pink paper. I really like paper, like colorful paper. What do you call it? Like not white paper, but like... Colored paper? Maybe. Yeah. Green paper.

So white paper is boring for me now. So I prefer, you know, blue, green. What about you, the listener? How do you feel about lined paper? Lined? Oh, like a piece of paper and there are lines. Yes. No, no, no.

I need freedom. No lines. No structure. No organization. Oh, no. I must have structure. Everything must be narrow ruled. So if you're a fan of paper with lines on it, you have wide-ruled paper,

where there's a big space between the lines, and you have narrow ruled paper where there's a small space. Ruled? Yes, ruled. It just, because it's the word for the lines that go from one side to the other. Oh, okay. Right, dear listener, you see a new topic, super new vocabulary? Here we go.

Rory, do you carry paper and pens with you when you go out? If it's a long trip, then yeah, just to, make notes on. I have a lot of small notebooks for that just in case the mood takes me. But if it's something like nipping out to the shops, then I prefer to just take them on my phone's notebook app instead of having sheets or reams of paper with me. Do people still keep handwritten letters today? I think so. I suppose they're so seldom sent these days that most people keep them for the sentimental value they might have. I've certainly kept a hold of mine. Do you still write physical letters Oh, absolutely, but only on special occasions.

Like, I think the last one I wrote was to my flatmate on his final day staying with me, just to say thank you for all the memories and wishing him all the best for the future. It could have been an email, but it wouldn't have had the same emotional impact, I suppose. What did you like to do with paper as a child? Oh, all kinds of things. I did a lot of drawing, and I was a lot better at it back when I was younger, so the house would be covered in all kinds of sketches. and designs and plans.

And I wrote a lot, especially when I started getting homework tasks or just to doodle on when I got bored. Have you made any crafts with paper? Actually, yes, I have. I used to make origami hand puppets with my classes, which was a lot of fun, not just for the artistic and creative aspects, but also to help develop students' dexterity,

since you need to coordinate your hand actions to make these things, even if they are quite simple. Okay, when I sell my business, I want the best tax and investment advice. I want to help my kids, and I want to give back to the community. Ooh, then it's the vacation of a lifetime. I wonder if my head of office has a forever setting. An IG private wealth advisor creates the clarity you need with plans that harmonize your business, your family, and your dreams.

Get financial advice that puts you, at the center. Find your advisor at IGPrivatewealth.com. As you know, we now release all of our premium content for free, and it's available for one month. After one month, it goes into our super secret archive. To sign up for the archive, click the link in the description below. See you soon. We might carry paper with us. You know, you carry your keys, you carry your phone, you carry your bag. You carry your bro. You carry your brain inside. So, like, you know, like a usual question, like, do you carry paper with you? Do you carry some paper and pens? No, actually, sometimes you do. Sometimes you do, yeah.

Yeah, okay, if you go to school, I don't know. Right. So you can say, I carry paper, and it's paper, not papers, paper, just like love, paper, water. But if you say papers, like, for example, when we cracked that joke at the beginning, Rory said, like, papers. I was just fixing some papers. So they are pieces of paper. For example, Rory has some legal documents, and it's all legal stuff on paper. So there are different pieces of paper, right? You can have sheets of paper as well.

Sheets. Careful with this word, dear listener. Sheets of paper, pieces of paper. Pieces of paper. or papers. I have my papers with me. It means I have my documents with me, maybe passports, maybe some, you know, legal documents. So, like, I carry paper to make notes on. Make notes on paper when you write something down.

Or you can say I have some small notebooks, paper notebooks. Roy, what did you say about the shops? What do you do? Like you, to the shops. Oh, I nip out to the shops or I pop out to the shops. I think we've talked about this before. Why out? Because you go outside to go to the shops.

Oh yeah, you go outside. You're home. Yeah, okay. I hope you go outside unless you live in a shop, in which case that's horrible. Yeah, nip out. Kniep out to the shop. Or you can say I never carry any paper with me because I make notes on my phone or on my phone's notebook app. I have a notebook on my phone.

I use different apps. So instead of having sheets with me, so you can say like sheets of paper or just sheets. In this context, the examiner understands that it's like, you mean sheets of paper, but careful. Sheet. Roy, how do you say it? Sheet. Right. Can we pronounce another word?

No. All right. Okay. Because it's kind of spelled with an eye. So be careful. If you mispronounce it, dear listener, the examiner will be what? You carry what? I carry, mm, with me.

Sheet. I wonder. that's going to make it into the podcast. Whoa, I didn't say anything. You implied it, though, using the no-no words. Right. And another one, you said reams. Rims.

Yeah, reams of paper. That just means a lot of paper. Reims, a very large amount of something. Rims of data. A lot of data. Rims of information, a lot of information. Rims of paper. A lot of paper.

Write letters, dear listener. Yeah, like, 50 years. go, people used to write letters physically on paper. We call them handwritten letters. So do you write physical letters or handton letters? Or do you keep such letters? Like maybe at home somewhere. And you can say like, no, I don't keep them. But some people keep them for the sentimental value. Royo, what does it mean? The sentimental value of letters. Oh, that just means the emotional value. or the memories that you get from having them.

It's not about the money value or the monetary value. That's how much they're worth in terms of money. It's more about how much they're worth in terms of value to you emotionally. Yeah. And you know, like I was in China and I was very surprised when so many people were writing cards, not letters, but like postcards. Really? Wow.

Oh, gosh. Yeah. There were so many people in that. shop, like a souvenir shop, and you can buy a nice postcard, write something and send it there. Wow, that was so popular. So, dear listener, you can say, well, I don't know about letters, but a lot of people around the world still send postcards, cards, to their friends, relatives. So, yeah, there were, like, lots of people.

I was like, whoa, you write with a pen? Really? So, yeah, I'm like physical cards. I didn't know about postcards. I didn't know about letters, but yeah, it's funny, though, because you see, Postcards being advertised when sometimes people send them, I suppose. If you write physical letters, you say on special occasions, like on special events, on holidays. Like, sometimes I do write physical letters or never.

I usually send emails. And you can say, like, the last time I wrote a physical letter was to my flatmate, to my friend, because blah, blah, blah. And I wished him all the best for the future. I wished him or her. And if you wish someone the best, then you hope they do well, and you tell them this. And you can say that physical letters usually have an emotional impact. Because if you leave your soul, you know, on that letter, you do it with your own hands.

So you can say like, yeah, sometimes I do. Because writing a physical letter leaves or has an emotional impact on the reader, on the receiver. The next question is weird, strange. Like, what did you like to do with paper as a child? Toilet paper. Of course you would go there. Yeah, by the way, toilet paper. No, but come on, paper, you know, paper.

A strange question. So you can say, oh, all kinds of things. A lot of things. I did drawing. So I used paper to draw things, to paint with paints, draw with pencils and pens. I wrote a lot, so I would write things on paper, I did my homework on paper, or I used paper to doodle. What does it mean doodoo?

Doodling. Doodle, doodle, that means to make small drawings, especially when you're bored. They don't really have a point to them. Yeah, doodle, draw pictures while thinking about something. So, you know, like we usually doodle when you talk on the phone, for example, or when you listen to a boring lecture. So, or kind of if you have a textbook, you can doodle all over your textbook, which is not good. And I, I, I would doodle or I doodled on paper when I got bored. Okay, when I sell my business, I want the best tax and investment advice. I want to help my kids,

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Paper crafts. Do you listen to? So as a child, I made paper crafts or I did paper crafts. Do crafts or make crafts? I suppose when you're crafting, you make things, don't you? It looks like both. I'm just looking at the dictionary. Both, apparently.

Wow, for once it can be both. Yeah, you can do crafts. Because you're doing the activity, but you're making the thing. So both of them will be fine. Yeah, like do the activity. Okay, make something. All right, there you go. You're listening English.

Right, but what's that Japanese art? Oh, origami. Rigami. Origami. Right. So, yeah, origami. The art of my. making objects from paper, origami, and again, we do origami or we make origami.

Yeah, make origami. So you listen, you can say, I used to make origami from paper, right? Or hand puppets. Like, if you made specific things, so I used to make origami hand puppets, kind of little dolls from paper. Or I used to make origami giraffes, tigers, I don't know, just a lot. penguins, bears. Well, you can do all of these things.

It's super easy. If you just type in origami hand puppets on YouTube, you can learn how to make them. You can make them with post-it notes or bits of paper. It's very easy. Yeah, and this was very creative, artistic. So it developed my dexterity. That's the word. Dexterity, because you're a super educated person.

So dexterity is the ability to perform a difficult action quickly and skillfully with your hands. Do you listen. And origami helps to develop manual dexterity. Dexterity. So being good with your hands. And then like a paper giraffe appears like magic. Yeah, like out of nothing. It's quite impressive, actually. I tried origami. Oh no, it was horrible. It was like my giraffe was half dead already. It was born, but it was dead. Like tired. It was dead on arrival. It was not. Not a well giraffe. Yes, it was dead on arrival, you know.

I just made an origami giraffe and it was just dead. Yeah, like this. Right, you listen. So paper, there are different kinds of paper. Roy, what did you mention like with lines? So I usually use what kind of paper? Oh, narrow ruled paper. And you can have wide-ruled paper,

but both of those are kinds of lined paper. You can have blank paper. You can also have, I think it's grid paper, where you have like squares. Is it called grid paper? I call it grid paper. Okay, blank paper, you know. Yeah, a sheet of paper, a piece of paper. We haven't commented on the grammar yet.

Oh, yes, grammar. Oh, newspaper, by the way. I usually use a newspaper. And filter paper, you know, if you are a fan of coffee, you use filter paper for your coffee. you know, go, do you carry paper with you when you go out? Yes, like filter paper. You know, for coffee. And newspaper?

A joke. Ha ha. Rory, go ahead. Grammar. The grammar. When you were asking about, do you still write physical letters? And I said, I wrote a letter. It could have been an email.

Could have been. But it wouldn't have had. Wouldn't have had. So talking about things being different in the past or the outcome. Is it? the third conditional. Yes, he is. Really?

I know. And all of that with the modal verbs and everything. Very nice. And then, when you asked me what I like to do with paper as a child, I said the house would be covered in all kinds of sketches. So here it was like what happened in the past. And talking about the past, I also said, I used to make origami hand puppets. Used to. The regular action in the past.

I haven't made hand puppets with my classes in a while, actually. maybe I need to start. Yes, I can. I should say, I've recently taken on some new students online who are young learners. They're like 10 years old. So I think that's what we're going to do in our next class. Yay! There we go. From explaining grammar to coming up with ideas for lesson activities. Right, dear listener. And I have a joke for you. Rory, you don't answer the question. You remember that, right? Why don't I answer the question? No, because it's a joke, Rory. I answer the question and then you explain the joke, right? You are so, so rude to me.

I know, I'm horrible. It's like, yes, I'm the worst person ever. I'm the worst in the world, yeah. I'm just, I'm even worse than the worst. So, the joke is, what do you call a paper airplane that can't fly? Stationery. Okay, that is actually quite funny. The reason why, if something is stationary, then it means,

it's not moving. But stationary is also the word we use to describe things like pens, paper, pencils, and anything else we used to write with or to help us write. Stationary train, a stationary car, is not moving. And one is with an E and one is with an A. I'm going to say the one with an E means that it's not moving and the one with an A means that it's connected to paper. Am I right? vice versa no no i've got it wrong i always get those two things wrong oh well it's a speaking podcast not a writing one so screw it there we go do you listen them huh thank you very much for listening we'll get back to you in our new episode bye bye okay when i sell my business i want the best tax and investment

advice i want to help my kids and i want to give back to the community ooh then it's the The vacation of a lifetime. I wonder if my out of office has a forever setter. An IG Private Wealth Advisor creates the clarity you need with plans that harmonize your business, your family, and your dreams. Get financial advice that puts you at the center. Find your advisor at IGPrivatewealth.com. Rory, do you carry paper and pens with you when you go out?

If it's a long trip, then yeah, just to make notes on. I have a lot of small notebooks for that just in case the mood takes me. But if it's something like nipping out to the shops, then I prefer to just take them on my phone's notebook app instead of having sheets or reams of paper with me. Do people still keep handwritten letters today? I think so. I suppose they're so seldom sent these days

that most people keep them for the sentimental value they might have. I've certainly kept hold of mine. Do you still write physical letters? Oh, absolutely, but only on special occasions. Like, I think the last one I wrote was to my flatmate on his final day staying with me, just to say thank you for all the memories and wishing him all the best for the future. It could have been an email, but it wouldn't have had the same emotional impact, I suppose. What did you like to do with paper as a child?

Oh, all kinds of things. I did a lot of drawing, and I was a lot better at it back when I was younger, so the house would be covered in all kinds of sketches and design, plans and I wrote a lot, especially when I started getting homework tasks or just to do the lawn when I got bored. Have you made any crafts with paper? Actually, yes, I have. I used to make origami hand puppets with my classes, which was a lot of fun, not just for the artistic and creative aspects, but also to help develop students' dexterity, since you need to coordinate your hand actions to make these things, even if they are quite simple.

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