Describe a practical skill you learned (e.g. driving, painting, making clothes)
You should say:
- What the skill was;
- Who/Where you learned it from;
- How you learned it;
- And explain whether it is difficult or not.
Sample Answer
I’m going to talk about how I learned to bake cakes. I had the idea to learn the skill when my mom’s birthday was coming up. I thought no gift was more genuine than a gift I made myself. So I decided to bake a delicious butter cake for her.
The main problem with my plan was that I didn’t have a clue when it came to baking. So I googled how to bake a cake online, and found a ton of recipes and videos that teach you how to make cakes. In the end, I chose to challenge myself and picked one that was very detailed. I purchased lots of ingredients like cake flour and butter according to the recipe. The next morning, I followed the recipe and its procedures to the bone. I made sure to complete every step exactly as it was shown online to avoid making any mistakes. Eventually, I managed to bake a cake all by myself. To be honest, my first cake looked a little rough, but my mom was over the moon when she saw it.
Anyway, baking a cake isn’t exactly rocket science, but covering the cake with icing was harder than I thought. I’ve been practicing baking, and I tried baking all kinds of cakes, like sponge cakes and cheesecakes. I think it’s a really practical skill to learn. Once you get the hang of it, it can save a lot of money for parties and celebrations. Most of all, I actually quite enjoy it.
Vocab Highlights
be coming up: to be going to happen soon
not have a clue/have no clue: to be completely unable to guess, understand, or deal with something
to the bone: all the way through, or very badly
over the moon: extremely happy; delighted
rocket science: something that is very difficult to learn or understand
get the hang of: learn how to operate or do (something)