Unemployment: day 34
Today our family made a popcorn from a dry corn. The dry corn was bought at Biei, Hokkaido as a souvenir of Hokkaido family trip. This was the firs time making a popcorn from a dry corn. Although the corn was hard, it was difficult to pick up a peace of corn separately. One-third of whole corn became enough amount eating our family of four. We will enjoy at least two times someday.
References
Correct version
Today, our family made popcorn from dried corn. The corn was bought in Biei, Hokkaido, as a souvenir from our family trip to Hokkaido. It was our first time making popcorn from dried corn. Although the kernels were quite hard, it was difficult to pick out a single piece. One third of the entire batch was enough to feed our family of four. We’ll be able to enjoy it at least two more times in the future.
IELTS Improvement Points
Collocation:
“make popcorn”
→ This is the standard collocation used to describe preparing popcorn. “Make a popcorn” (with “a”) is unnatural in English.
“first time doing something”
→ The phrase “It was our first time making popcorn” is a natural and correct way to express new experiences. “The first time to make” is incorrect.
“souvenir from a trip”
→ Use “souvenir from” rather than “souvenir of” when talking about trips. It’s more idiomatic and natural.
Template:
“It was our first time [doing something]”
→ Useful for describing personal experiences. Works well in Task 1 or Task 2 writing (e.g., “It was my first time travelling abroad”).
Vocabulary:
“kernels”
→ This is the correct word for individual pieces of corn used for making popcorn. More precise than “a piece of corn”.
“feed a family”
→ A natural and idiomatic phrase to describe providing enough food. Example: “This meal can feed a family of four.”
“a batch (of food)”
→ “Batch” is used when referring to a quantity of food made at one time. Helps avoid repetition of “corn”.
