IELTS Listening Section 4- Note completion

You will hear a computer scientist giving a short talk on how

trying something new for thirty days can change your life
Complete the summary by writing NO MORE THAN THREE
WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER in the spaces provided
Benefits of a 30-day challenge
1. 30 days is the right length of time to add a
_______________________, such as watching the news, to your
life
2. Time is not forgotten so easily. It becomes much
________________ ________________
3. Trying something new increases your
_________________________ and can help you to become more
adventurous
Advice for your challenge
4. Be determined: If you want something badly enough, you can
do anything ______________________
5. Choose wisely: Small, sustainable challenges are more likely
to stick than _______________________ ones
Source: http://www.ted.com/talks/matt_cutts_try_something_new_for_30_days

Emily Clarke

Matt Cutts: Try Something New For 30 Days

October 2015

IELTS Listening Section 4- Transcript

0:11 A few years ago, I felt like I

was stuck in a rut, so I decided to
follow in the footsteps of the great
American philosopher, Morgan
Spurlock, and try something new
for 30 days. The idea is actually
pretty simple. Think about
something you've always wanted
to add to your life and try it for
the next 30 days. It turns out 30
days is just about the right
amount of time to add a new
habit or subtract a habit - like
watching the news - from your
life.
0:42There's a few things I learned
while doing these 30-day
challenges. The first was, instead
of the months flying by,
forgotten, the time was much
more memorable. This was part of
a challenge I did to take a picture
every day for a month. And I
remember exactly where I was
and what I was doing that day. I
also noticed that as I started to do
more and harder 30-day
challenges, my self-confidence
grew. I went from desk-dwelling
computer nerd to the kind of guy
who bikes to work. For fun!

1:16 Even last year, I ended up

hiking up Mt. Kilimanjaro, the
highest mountain in Africa. I
would never have been that
adventurous before I started my
challenges.
1:27 I also figured out that if you
really want something badly
enough, you can do anything for
30 days. Have you ever wanted to
write a novel?
Every November, tens of
thousands of people try to write
their own 50,000-word novel, from
scratch, in 30 days. It turns out,
all you have to do is write 1,667
words a day for a month. So I
did. By the way, the secret is not
to go to sleep until you've written
your words for the day. You might
be sleep-deprived, but you'll finish
your novel. Now is my book the
next great American novel? No. I
wrote it in a month. It's awful.
2:13 But for the rest of my life, if I
meet John Hodgman at a TED
party, I don't have to say, "I'm a
computer scientist." No, no, if I
want to, I can say, "I'm a
novelist."
2:28 So here's one last thing I'd
like to mention. I learned that
when I made small, sustainable
changes, things I could keep
doing, they were more likely to

Emily Clarke

Matt Cutts: Try Something New For 30 Days

October 2015

IELTS Listening Section 4- Transcript

stick. There's nothing wrong with

big, crazy challenges. In fact,
they're a ton of fun. But they're
less likely to stick. When I gave up
sugar for 30 days, day 31 looked
like this.
2:53 So here's my question to
you: What are you waiting for? I
guarantee you the next 30
days are going to pass whether

Emily Clarke

you like it or not, so why not think

about something you have always
wanted to try and give it a
shot! For the next 30 days.
Source:
http://www.ted.com/talks/matt_cutts_try_som
ething_new_for_30_days/transcript?
language=en

Matt Cutts: Try Something New For 30 Days

October 2015

IELTS Listening Section 4- Teachers Notes

Materials:

TED Talk Matt Cutts: Try

something New For 30 Days
(Audio and video formats)
Exam-style Listening task (note
completion)
Transcript

Procedure:
1. Lead in Pairwork 10m
Tell your partner about
the last time you tried
something new/about
something youd like to
try.
Encourage ss to ask
follow up questions
2. Context setting WC 10m
Show ss the pictures and
tell them theyre going to
listen to a talk. Ask them:
What can you predict
about:
a) the speaker
b) the topic of the talk
c) the sort of things that
will be mentioned in the
text
d) the length and style of
the text
Give ss time to look at
the photos and make
predictions. Ask
prediction questions if
they are struggling such
as:
Do you think the
speaker will be serious or
light hearted? Why?
Do you think the
speaker is giving advice
or presenting facts?
Ask ss to suggest some
30 day challenges and
which ones they think
will be included in the
talk.
Emily Clarke

Write all these on the

board.

3. Dictogloss Listening for key

information 30m
Play the video until 01:54
and ask ss to check their
predictions
Tell ss that on the second
listen, they will note
down key words or
phrases (maximum 15
remind ss to space out
what they write. Play
audio
Pair ss together and ask
them to pool and/or
improve their key words
(Each pair should now
have approx. 30)
Regroup the ss with
different partners and
ask them to reconstruct
the text as best they can
in ten minutes.
Finally, two groups
compare their completed
texts and then check
with the extract of the
tapescript. I would
normally allow another 5
mins here to note down
any useful vocabulary
but I will do this in the
second lesson to save
time.
4. Exam practice Listening
Section 4 Note Completion 15 m
Take away tapescript
extract and give a
completed note-taking
task in which some of the
answers have been
completed incorrectly.
Ss locate the answers
they think are incorrect
and give reasons.

Matt Cutts: Try Something New For 30 Days

October 2015

IELTS Listening Section 4- Teachers Notes

Emily Clarke

Play the recording so the

ss can correct the
inaccuracies

Matt Cutts: Try Something New For 30 Days

October 2015