家庭是雅思中最贴近日常生活的话题之一，也正因如此，考生容易在熟悉的内容上失分。Writing Task 2 可能问：父母与学校谁对儿童影响更大，越来越多老人住养老院而不是与子女同住是不是好事，以及发达国家的人们为什么生育更少。Speaking Part 3 中，考官可能问近几十年家庭发生了什么变化，以及父亲是否应该像母亲一样参与养育孩子。仅有 mother 和 children 不够，还需要能谈论家庭类型、育儿、代际关系以及工作与家庭平衡的搭配。
这个话题最主要的陷阱，是表达“养育孩子”的动词。有些语言用同一个动词涵盖教学与养育，因此学习者容易选 educate。但泛指把孩子养大，英语用 bring up 或 raise children；教孩子怎样待人处事，则用 teach children to…。第二个陷阱是 elder：泛指老年人应说 elderly people 或 older people，不是 elder people。
下面介绍四个子话题中的 30 个搭配、常见误用，以及 LetsWords 对造句进行反馈的示例。其他考试话题见雅思话题词汇指南。
家庭与儿童：词汇和搭配
家庭类型及其变化
| 表达 | 含义 | 例句 |
|---|---|---|
| the nuclear family | 由父母和子女组成的核心家庭 | The nuclear family has replaced larger households in most cities. |
| the extended family | 包含祖父母及其他亲属的大家庭 | In many cultures, the extended family still lives under one roof. |
| single-parent families | 只有一位家长的单亲家庭 | Single-parent families often need more support with childcare. |
| start a family | 生育第一个孩子 | Many couples postpone starting a family until they own a home. |
| a falling birth rate | 出生率下降 | A falling birth rate means fewer workers will support more pensioners. |
| get married later in life | 在较晚的年龄结婚 | Today many people get married later in life than their parents did. |
| a close-knit family | 成员关系亲密的家庭 | I grew up in a close-knit family where everyone ate dinner together. |
| strong family ties | 亲属间紧密的关系 | Strong family ties can protect young people from loneliness. |
养育孩子
| 表达 | 含义 | 例句 |
|---|---|---|
| bring up children | 养育孩子 | Bringing up children in a big city is expensive and tiring. |
| raise children | 照顾孩子直到他们长大 | It is harder to raise children without help from grandparents. |
| set a good example | 以行为为他人树立好榜样 | Parents who read every evening set a good example for their children. |
| set boundaries | 明确哪些行为被允许、哪些不被允许 | Children feel safer when parents set clear boundaries. |
| instil values in | 逐步向某人传递价值观 | Families instil values such as honesty and respect in children long before school does. |
| spend quality time with | 专心陪伴某人，度过有质量的相处时间 | Even busy parents can spend quality time with their children at weekends. |
| a stable home environment | 平静、安稳的家庭生活环境 | A stable home environment is linked to better results at school. |
| strict parents | 对规则要求严格的父母 | Strict parents may raise disciplined children, but not always confident ones. |
代际关系与照顾年长亲属
| 表达 | 含义 | 例句 |
|---|---|---|
| the older generation | 年长的一代 | The older generation often find online banking difficult. |
| the generation gap | 年长者与年轻人之间的差异，代沟 | Technology has widened the generation gap in many families. |
| elderly parents | 年迈的父母 | More people in their fifties are caring for elderly parents. |
| care for | 照顾需要帮助的人 | Many adult children care for ageing relatives at home. |
| care homes | 老年人居住并接受照护的机构 | Care homes provide medical help that families cannot always offer. |
| look after grandchildren | 照看孙辈 | Retired grandparents often look after grandchildren while parents work. |
| pass down traditions | 把传统传给下一代 | Grandparents pass down traditions such as family recipes and songs. |
工作与家庭
| 表达 | 含义 | 例句 |
|---|---|---|
| working parents | 有工作的父母 | Schools should take the needs of working parents into account. |
| dual-income families | 父母双方都有收入的家庭 | Dual-income families can afford more, but they have less free time. |
| juggle work and family | 同时兼顾工作与家庭生活 | Many mothers juggle work and family without enough support. |
| affordable childcare | 价格可以负担的幼儿照护服务 | The lack of affordable childcare keeps many women out of work. |
| parental leave | 为照顾婴儿而休的育儿假 | Longer parental leave allows fathers to bond with their babies. |
| share the housework | 分担家务 | Young couples today are more likely to share the housework equally. |
| a stay-at-home parent | 不从事有薪工作、在家照顾孩子的家长 | More fathers now choose to become stay-at-home parents. |
常见错误
Parents should teach their children respect other people.
正确：Parents should teach their children to respect other people. 说明教某人做什么时，需要 teach someone to do something：teach children to respect others。泛指养育孩子则用 bring up 或 raise。更多用法见 bring up 练习。
Elder people should live with their children, not in care homes.
正确：Elderly people 或 Older people should live with their children. Elder 主要用于家庭成员中的长幼关系，例如 my elder brother。泛指老年人，用 elderly people、older people 或 the elderly。具体区别见 older vs elder 练习。
My sister got married with a man from Canada.
正确：My sister got married to a man from Canada 或 married a man from Canada. Get married 后面接 to，而动词 marry 直接接宾语，不加介词。Got married with someone 是常见错误。可以在 get married 和 married to 练习中巩固。
In modern society family become smaller.
正确：In modern society, families are becoming smaller. Family 可数，泛指多个家庭时用复数；描述正在发生的变化，用 are becoming。如果把家庭作为一种社会组织来谈，也可以说 the family is becoming smaller。
LetsWords 如何解释这些错误
看表格时，每个词都很熟悉。真正动笔时，错误才会出现。下面是 LetsWords 中一道练习的过程。
假设你正在复习 set a good example。LetsWords 用母语提示给出含义，你回想英文表达，再写一句关于育儿的话：
Parents should give a good example to their children and spend with them more time.
LetsWords 的反馈指出两个错误：
- give a good example → set a good example：以行为成为别人的榜样，用 set an example；give an example 则是在论证中举出一个例子。效仿榜样的人通常由 for 引出；
- spend with them more time → spend more time with them：先说明花费什么，即 more time，再说明和谁一起度过。
Parents should set a good example for their children and spend more time with them.
几天后，这个表达会再次出现在复习中，你需要换一个情境使用它，例如在 Speaking 中回答家庭发生了什么变化。这样，词表中的搭配才会逐渐变成能凭记忆想起、并准确使用的表达。
注册时选择 IELTS 目标和水平，LetsWords 就会为你安排相应练习。付费前可以先体验反馈。
在 Writing Task 2 中使用这些搭配
一道符合考试形式的练习题：
In many countries, both parents now work full-time, and young children spend most of the day in childcare. Do the advantages of this development outweigh the disadvantages?
一个立场明确的示例段落：
Admittedly, dual-income families are usually more financially secure, and children in good childcare learn to share and follow routines before they start school. However, when both parents juggle work and family, the time left for their children is often limited to a rushed breakfast and bedtime. Young children need adults who set a good example and set clear boundaries, and this is difficult to do in twenty minutes a day. In my view, the disadvantages therefore outweigh the advantages. Yet the solution is not for one parent to give up work but for employers to offer longer parental leave and flexible hours, so that parents can spend quality time with their children without sacrificing their careers.
这个段落为什么有效？ 它先公平地承认好处，再用 However 指出代价，随后直接回答题目：弊大于利。段落没有笼统地说 parents don’t have time，而是给出具体画面：匆忙的早餐和睡前的二十分钟。话题搭配恰好出现在需要表达这些意思的地方。提出的解决方法也避开了“必须有一位家长留在家里”的极端结论，让立场更均衡。
在 Speaking 中使用
一道 Part 3 问题：
How have families in your country changed in recent decades?
示例回答：
I’d say the biggest change is that families have become much smaller. My grandparents grew up in an extended family with lots of cousins around, whereas most of my friends have only one sibling. People also tend to get married later in life and start a family in their thirties, mainly because housing is expensive. On the positive side, fathers are much more involved in bringing up children than they used to be.
回答具备 Part 3 所需的展开：总体判断、过去与现在的比较、原因和评价。话题词汇融入口语，没有生硬的书面结构。
免费练习
- bring up：养育孩子，以及另一个容易混淆的含义；
- look after：照顾儿童和老人；
- older vs elder：什么时候用 elder，什么时候用 older；
- get married：后面使用哪个介词；
- kid vs child：哪个词更适合作文；
- family：与你有亲属关系的人；
- spend time：与家人共度时间；
- look up to：敬佩长辈，并以其为榜样。
从词表走向实际运用
知道养育孩子用 bring up 或 raise 还不够：考试时，你需要在恰当的时刻独立想起这个词。可以通过 LetsWords 把词表变成实际练习：选择适合水平的 IELTS 词集，再把本页的搭配加入词集，例如 juggle work and family 或 instil values in。你根据含义回想表达，用它写一个句子；LetsWords 指出错误，用母语解释修改方法，并建议更准确的说法，间隔重复则安排表达再次出现，让用法逐渐熟练。之后再把词汇用于完整文章：IELTS Writing 专区提供家庭与文化话题的 Task 2 题目，涉及家庭庆祝活动以及如何向年轻一代传承传统；每篇完整回答都会得到围绕四项评分标准的详细反馈。注册时回答几个关于目标和水平的问题，LetsWords 就会安排练习；付费前可以体验反馈。更多话题见雅思话题词汇指南。