Some people prefer to plan activities for their free time very carefully. Others choose not to make any plans at all for their free time. Compare the benefits of planning free-time activities with the benefits of not making plans. Which do you prefer - planning or not planning for your leisure time? Use specific reasons and examples to explain your choice.
Sample Response
It is a fact that every individual spends his/her free time differently, as a group of people choose to spend their leisure time without any plan at all, while others prefer to spend it with agenda and schedule. Planned or unplanned leisure activities have their own positive sides but I prefer to have a planned free time activity and the following essay will discuss them in detail.
To begin with, some people prefer to spend their leisure activities freely, without any schedules. They believe that free time activities should be totally different from their daily activities, whereas they are full of routine activities, tight deadlines and busy schedules. They believe that leisure time should be spent doing anything they like doing that time, and they could do it as long as they like. For example, some people prefer sunbath activity at the beach during holiday periods, and they prefer to do it without any time limit. They will end their sunbathing activities after they are satisfied.
For a number of reasons, another group of people believe that free time activities would be more effective and efficient if they plan them. Firstly, by doing some preparation, they already have the agenda for the day on what to do, what to see and how will they travel to those places, therefore they could visit more attractive and unique places during their holiday time. Secondly, a planned holiday would definitely save more budgets. People who planned their holiday time could book airline tickets and accommodations from an earlier period. As a result, they get cheaper prices for aeroplane tickets and the hotel's room rate as well.
In conclusion, it is a fact that some people prefer to plan their holiday or leisure time, while others choose not to plan it. Each side has its own advantages, but I personally choose to have a planned holiday time, as I could see more attractive places during that time and save more money.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Add articles Original: with agenda and schedule Suggested revision: with an agenda and a schedule Why it matters: Both singular countable nouns need articles here.
- 2. Clarify both options Original: Planned or unplanned leisure activities Suggested revision: Both planned and unplanned leisure activities Why it matters: Use both...and to refer collectively to the two alternatives.
- 3. Use natural phrasing Original: a planned free time activity Suggested revision: planned free-time activities Why it matters: The plural phrase is more natural when describing a general preference.
- 4. Clarify the reference Original: will discuss them Suggested revision: will discuss both approaches Why it matters: The pronoun does not clearly refer to the two approaches.
- 5. Correct collocation Original: activities Suggested revision: time Why it matters: People spend time rather than spend activities.
- 6. Fix logical link Original: whereas they are full of Suggested revision: because their days are full of Why it matters: A causal connector expresses the intended reason more clearly.
- 7. Add preposition Original: doing that time Suggested revision: doing at that time Why it matters: The time expression requires the preposition at.
- 8. Keep tense consistent Original: could Suggested revision: can Why it matters: The general claim should remain in the present tense.
- 9. Use correct noun Original: sunbath activity Suggested revision: sunbathing Why it matters: Sunbathing is the natural noun for this leisure activity.
- 10. Use concise wording Original: during holiday periods Suggested revision: during holidays Why it matters: The shorter phrase conveys the same meaning more naturally.
- 11. Avoid awkward plural Original: their sunbathing activities Suggested revision: sunbathing Why it matters: Sunbathing is normally treated as an uncountable activity.
- 12. Identify second group Original: another group of people believe Suggested revision: the other group of people believes Why it matters: The definite phrase identifies the second group, and group takes a singular verb here.
Suggested Rewrites
- with agenda and schedule with an agenda and a schedule
- Planned or unplanned leisure activities Both planned and unplanned leisure activities
- a planned free time activity planned free-time activities
- will discuss them will discuss both approaches
- activities time
- whereas they are full of because their days are full of
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response addresses both approaches, maintains a clear preference, and organises its supporting reasons in an easy-to-follow structure. Its main limitation is recurring imprecision in collocation and grammar, which makes otherwise relevant points sound awkward and occasionally weakens cohesion. The highest-priority improvement is to use more natural noun phrases and sentence patterns while developing each benefit with a more specific, fully explained example.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
Both benefits are discussed, the preference is consistent, and the main reasons receive relevant support.
Develop the contrast beyond holiday planning and explain each example more specifically to deepen the argument.
Coherence and Cohesion
Clear paragraphing and a logical sequence make the comparison easy to follow despite some mechanical linking.
Use referencing and conjunctions more accurately so relationships between clauses flow naturally rather than relying on formulaic transitions.
Lexical Resource
The vocabulary covers the topic adequately, but recurring awkward collocations reduce precision and naturalness.
Replace phrases such as saving budgets and spending activities with accurate, conventional word combinations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of sentence forms communicates the message clearly, though article, tense, agreement, and clause errors recur.
Prioritise accurate complex sentences by checking article use, verb forms, and question-word clause order.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people prefer to plan activities for their free time very carefully. Others choose not to make any plans at all for their free time. Compare the benefits of planning free-time activities with the benefits of not making plans. Which do you prefer - planning or not planning for your leisure time? Use specific reasons and examples to explain your choice.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.