💬 B1 Preliminary speaking part 2 Talk on your own

Model answer

In Stage 2 of the B1 Preliminary speaking exam, candidates will have to speak on their own for about one minute on a given topic. They will be given a task card with prompts and questions related to the topic. Candidates will have one minute to prepare their talk and may take notes if they wish. After the preparation time, the candidate will speak for about one minute. The interlocutor may then ask follow-up questions related to the topic. This stage of the exam is designed to test the candidate’s ability to communicate effectively and coherently on a specific topic, as well as their ability to organize their thoughts and ideas under time pressure.

Here is a sample of the picture and the description, take a look:

I can see three people in this picture, two women and a man. Although, there might be a fourth person since there is a hand holding a green pen on the side. I think they are students because they are all holding a pen in the library, writing something in their notebooks or copybooks. They look serious or worried, I’m not sure. What I am sure of is that they are quiet and concentrated on their notes. I think they are in the library because there are many shelves around them with books of different sizes and different colours. They might be preparing for a test or doing their homework together because on the table I can see not only their books but also a couple of tablets.

As you can see, I tried using everything I could from the picture, I described:

• the room;
• the people;
• the items on the table and on their hand.
• If there is still time, I could use it and try talking about something extra like:

I think it’s a warm day since the man on the left is wearing a short-sleeved jeans shirt. The women are wearing long sleeves, but the blue sweater and the green sweatshirt seem light, and they don’t look like they are freezing.

As you can see, I didn’t try to think about the reasons that they were studying. I just described what I could see with much detail as possible. Because, as I mentioned, you have one minute to “show off“. If the picture doesn’t offer much detail, try to grasp anything that is visible and you can describe:

• the look on people’s face;
• the color of their clothes;
• their gender and age.

There are cases, however, that the picture offers too many details, then you try to describe it as a whole and describe what the main focus, for example:

In this picture, I can see five people. They look like a family of five: the grandfather in the middle, sitting at the table between a younger man and woman, and two people standing up next to the table who seems to be even younger than the three sitting down. It may be a special day because on the table I can see many breakfast items like orange juice, jam, water, a fruit or a bread basket and some plates. Also, the two people standing up are holding objects on their backs to prevent the person – probably the grandfather – from seeing the items. The young girl is holding a bouquet of flowers and the young man is holding a present. The people in the picture are smiling and cheerful. It is a sunny day in the picture and it’s probably warm since the people in the picture are wearing light and short clothes.

You could if you need some more to fill in your minute, describe the garden and the house behind them. But remember that for this part of the exam, all criteria are assessed: Global Achievement, Grammar and Vocabulary, Discourse Management, Pronunciation, and Interactive Communication.

Now it’s your turn to try!!! Look at the pictures above and try to write down what you would answer! 🙂:

Your turn: