The following hints will help you to make the most of your time in the IELTS reading test.   Pay attention to these, as failing to do so, could mean the loss of valuable marks.

Firstly,
 

• Remember to read the instructions carefully. This is really important. So often students fail to follow instructions.      The instructions will tell you where to find the answers, what you need to do, what kind of answer is required and importantly, the word limit. They will also tell you whether an answer can be used more than once.
• Read the questions very carefully.
• It is extremely important to underline key words in the questions.  

Then
 

• Scan for key words (or phrases) in the reading passage that match the items.
• Your main aim is to locate the answers to the questions.     You do not have to read word for word - scan the text, locate the keywords, then read around these to find your answer.  
• Don't worry if you do not know the meaning of certain words, try to guess the meaning from the context.  
• Remember that for many item types the questions follow the order of information in the reading passage.
• In Sentence Completion tasks, focus on the meaning when choosing the correct ending.
• Look and think about what certain pieces of information have in common or if they share any features.  
• Use the information provided in the examples, notes, diagrams, flow-charts or tables to predict the type of information that is required.

When writing your answers
 

• Your answers should be spelled correctly and be grammatically correct. Remember, you will be penalised for incorrect spelling.
• The words you may need to write will most probably be in the text you are reading, so remember to copy them carefully on to your Answer Sheet because if you don't, you will lose marks.
• Be careful when writing your answers on your Answer Sheet, make sure you are writing your answer against the correct question number.

Things to practice
 

• Reading skills like skimming and scanning for information are essential in the IELTS Reading test.   You should try to practise these as much as possible.
• To help you in the IELTS reading test it is also a good idea to learn synonyms, summary words etc. these will help you to more easily locate the information you need.   Synonyms will also help you in the Listening, Writing and Speaking tests as well.
• Think about the different ways of expressing the same idea or information in a text.
• Practice the different question types and the best way to approach them.

If you can, it is a good idea to complete an IELTS preparation course to help you to achieve a higher score in the IELTS Listening test.   Contact Australia English Institute to see how you can achieve a higher grade in your next test.

Good luck in your next IELTS Reading Test!