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🏅 Unit: Mega Sporting Events

Module 1: Language & Grammar Build-Up

Warm up with the essential words and grammar patterns you will need in your essay.

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How to use this lesson

T For Teachers

Spend 15 minutes on these five quick warm-up tasks before starting the main writing prompt.

Let students compare their answers in pairs, then check the key patterns together on the board.

S For Students

Complete each vocabulary, phrase, and grammar exercise carefully one by one.

Check your answers and study the feedback before you begin writing your essay in Module 2.

Word Forms: Adapt the Unit Words

Change the word in brackets into the correct form to complete each sentence.

Item 1 Prompt: construct

The massive ____ of new stadiums costs huge sums of public funds.

Item 2 Prompt: organise

Event ____ face major planning problems before the games begin.

Item 3 Prompt: pride

Local citizens felt extremely ____ when their home city hosted the tournament.

Item 4 Prompt: host

A capital city can raise its global profile by ____ major sporting events.

Item 5 Prompt: deficit

City governments frequently run into severe budget ____ when revenue targets are not met.

Collocations: Common Word Combinations

Complete each natural phrase with the correct Unit word: bid, taxpayer, tourism, legacy, disruption.

1. Cities spend years preparing an official proposal to win the ____ to stage international games.

2. Local leaders must justify using millions of pounds of ____ money on venues that may not be used.

3. Welcoming thousands of international spectators helps to boost ____ and support local businesses.

4. A successful tournament should leave a positive and lasting ____ for future generations.

5. Road closures and long building projects cause serious everyday ____ for local residents.

Common Essay Phrases

Use each phrase from this word bank exactly once to link ideas naturally:

As a result For instance In my view On the other hand In addition

1. ____, governments should plan how venues will be converted years before construction starts.

2. Upgraded train stations improve daily commutes across town. ____, new parks provide green spaces for families.

3. Many arenas are rarely used once the athletes leave. ____, several large stadiums stood deserted only months after the closing ceremony.

4. Ticket sales generate welcome income during the competition. ____, the ongoing maintenance costs remain high for years.

5. Building costs rose far beyond the original budget estimates. ____, the city council had to cut public services to repay debts.

Rewrite the Sentence: Paraphrasing Practice

In IELTS essays, rewriting ideas with different vocabulary and sentence structures is a vital skill. Fill in the missing words to complete each paraphrase.

Original sentence:

"Hosting the Olympic Games costs an enormous amount of public money."

Rewrite: An enormous amount of public money is ____ on staging the Olympic Games.

💡 Why this works: Turning active verbs into passive verbs lets you put the focus on public spending.

Original sentence:

"Many stadiums are rarely used after the tournament ends."

Rewrite: Once the tournament is over, many stadiums sit ____ for years.

💡 Why this works: 'Sit' plus a describing word is a natural way to say a place is not used.

Original sentence:

"Cities must find sensible ways to maintain new sports facilities."

Rewrite: Sensible ways to maintain new sports facilities must be ____ by host cities.

💡 Why this works: Moving the object to the start of the sentence helps highlight the practical solutions.

Grammar: Three-Part Phrasal Verbs

Pattern Rule

How these verbs work together

These verbs are made of three words that must stay together, in the same order. Notice how the three parts work in everyday sentences:

come + up + with

"We must come up with a realistic plan for after the games."

put + up + with

"Taxpayers will not put up with rising debts."

end + up + with

"Poor planning means cities end up with unused buildings."

Complete each sentence with the correct three-word verb from the box:

1. City officials must ____ practical solutions to keep sports venues in daily use.

2. Local families should not have to ____ months of severe noise and closed neighborhood streets.

3. If city planners fail to budget sensibly, the host city will ____ enormous financial deficits for decades.

🏆 IELTS Writing Task 2

Module 2: Essay Writing Task

In this module, you will write a complete IELTS essay using the vocabulary and grammar you have learned.

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How to use this lesson

T For Teachers

Give learners 40 minutes to write their response independently.

Check their word count and ensure they used the required phrasal verbs and topic vocabulary.

S For Students

First read the task and requirements carefully, then use the paragraph starters to organise your draft.

Next write your essay in the box below and check your work against the 4-item list before submitting.

The Task IELTS Writing Task 2

"Many cities spend huge amounts of public money on hosting big international sports events and then struggle to use the venues afterwards. What are the causes of this problem, and what solutions can you suggest?"

Write at least 250 words.

📌 Learner Requirements

Requirement 1

Length

At least 250 words.

Requirement 2

Grammar

At least 3 sentences using the grammar (three-part and prepositional phrasal verbs).

Requirement 3

Vocabulary

At least 5 Unit words from the list.

📐 4-Paragraph Plan

Start each paragraph using only these words:

1 Paragraph 1

"In this essay I will discuss ..."

2 Paragraph 2

"One cause is ..."

3 Paragraph 3

"To reduce the problem, ..."

4 Paragraph 4

"In conclusion, ..."

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Self-Check List

Confirm all four requirements before submitting your essay:

____ 1. I wrote at least 250 words and answered both causes and solutions. ____ 2. I used at least 5 Unit words from the vocabulary list. ____ 3. I included at least 3 target phrasal verbs in my sentences. ____ 4. I followed the 4-paragraph plan using the exact sentence starters.

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Your Essay

Minimum 250 words

____ (Type your 4-paragraph essay here starting with the required phrases...)

Grading Criteria:

Task Response Coherence and Cohesion Lexical Resource Grammatical Range and Accuracy

🏅 Model Essay Study

Module 3: Study the Model Essay

Read this 263-word model essay to see how a strong B2 student organizes ideas and uses target patterns naturally.

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How to use this lesson

T For Teachers

Give learners 15 minutes to study the model essay and observe how the phrasal verbs fit into natural sentences.

Have students compare the model's layout with their own Module 2 draft, then review the three check questions together.

S For Students

First read the entire 4-paragraph essay openly to see how each paragraph develops its ideas step by step.

Next examine each bold sentence and its pattern note, then complete the practice questions below to test your understanding.

Model Answer

Host Cities and Sports Venues

263 words B2 Strong

1 Introduction

In this essay I will discuss why many cities face major challenges with unused sports venues after hosting international tournaments, and I will suggest some practical solutions to deal with these expenses.

2 Causes

One cause is that city planners often focus too much on immediate pride and international tourism while rushing through expensive stadium construction.

Many event organisers fail to face up to the enormous ongoing costs of long-term facility maintenance.

💡 Pattern: face up to + a difficult fact, like in "Officials must face up to the problem before debts increase."

Because of this poor planning, the city government quickly runs into a heavy budget deficit.

When these massive facilities cannot live up to unrealistic expectations, taxpayers end up with empty buildings that cost millions of pounds every single year.

💡 Patterns: live up to + hopes ("The venue did not live up to expectations") and end up with + an unwanted result ("They ended up with high debts").

In addition, local families often have to put up with severe traffic disruption during the building phase, only to see very little community benefit once the athletes leave.

3 Solutions

To reduce the problem, cities must change how they prepare before they even submit an official bid to the committee.

First, local officials need to come up with clear, practical plans to transform these arenas into useful public sports centres after the closing ceremony.

💡 Pattern: come up with + an idea or answer, like in "I will never come up with an answer in time."

Furthermore, host cities should cut back on building giant new stadiums and choose to improve existing ones instead.

💡 Pattern: cut back on + spending or action, like in "The government had to cut back on unnecessary building projects."

This approach protects taxpayer money and leaves a positive, lasting legacy for local people.

4 Conclusion

In conclusion, mega sports tournaments often leave host cities with severe financial debts because planners ignore long-term operational costs. If city leaders plan sensible public uses early on and avoid unnecessary construction, people in host cities can look forward to real pride and a stronger economy rather than empty stadiums.

💡 Pattern: look forward to + a positive future event, like in "Residents look forward to using the new facilities."

⭐ Why This Model Works

Clear 4-Paragraph Plan

Uses the exact sentence starters to clearly separate causes in paragraph 2 and solutions in paragraph 3.

All Unit Words Used

Smoothly includes bid, host, organiser, construction, taxpayer, deficit, tourism, legacy, disruption, and pride.

Natural B2 Voice

Explains realistic problems without making up false facts or naming specific real-world governments.

Check 1 Understanding Causes

In Paragraph 2, what does the writer mean by stating that organisers fail to "face up to" maintenance costs?

____ a. They avoid accepting and preparing for the difficult reality of future expenses. ____ b. They pay all maintenance bills before the competition even begins. ____ c. They easily manage building expenses without running into any debt.

Check 2 Connecting Solutions

In Paragraph 3, which two actions does the writer propose using target phrasal verbs?

____ a. Cities should put up with higher budgets and live up to corporate demands. ____ b. Leaders should come up with community plans and cut back on building giant new venues. ____ c. Organisers should end up with unused buildings and cut back on tourism.

Check 3 Sentence Completion

Fill in the missing three-part phrasal verb to express an unwanted final outcome:

"Without early planning for community use, host cities will ____ deserted arenas that continue to drain public funds."

Hint: Three words meaning to eventually have something undesirable.

IELTS Writing Task 2: Mega Sporting Events

Module 1: Language & Grammar Build-Up

How to use this lesson

Word Forms: Adapt the Unit Words

Collocations: Common Word Combinations

Common Essay Phrases

Rewrite the Sentence: Paraphrasing Practice

Grammar: Three-Part Phrasal Verbs

How these verbs work together

Module 2: Essay Writing Task

How to use this lesson

📌 Learner Requirements

📐 4-Paragraph Plan

Self-Check List

Your Essay

Module 3: Study the Model Essay

How to use this lesson

Host Cities and Sports Venues

⭐ Why This Model Works

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