You should say:
- What it was
- What you did for this activity
- Who you did it with
And explain how you felt about this activity.
Band 8 Sample
I’d like to talk about a craft activity I did in elementary school – origami. I guess I don’t need to say much because origami is already so popular worldwide. It’s the art of paper folding in order to create a particular object or animal.
It was all the rage in my old school because to do this, you have to be very skillful and patient to make a beautiful paper figure. It was like a challenge for young kids, you see. I was caught up in all this hype so I asked my desk mate to show me the ropes. Although he was a boy, he was one of the best in my class when it came to origami. Anyway, he showed me how to fold the easiest figure – the crane. It looked so easy when he did it. He told me to just follow the exact steps and I could create a paper crane. Easier said than done, though, because in the end my crane was misshapen beyond recognition. I didn’t know what I did wrong. Even when he patiently showed me one more time, the result wasn’t much better. He finally gave up on me and I was sorely disappointed in myself.
In retrospect, I think I was too clumsy and careless. I rushed things because I wanted to do it so badly. But origami isn’t about speed, it requires patience and accuracy. That’s why I admire origami artists so much. Maybe in the future I might try origami again, but this time I will take my time and relax more.
Vocabulary highlights:
- To be all the rage: to be very popular or fashionable.
- To be caught up in all this hype: to be involved in a discussion on TV, radio, etc.
(disapproving)
- To show somebody the ropes: To show somebody how something is done.
- Easier said than done: to be much more difficult to do than to talk about.
- Misshapen beyond recognition: with a shape that cannot be recognized.
- In retrospect: Thinking about a past situation
