CELPIP - Part 2: Speaking

In the second part of our CELPIP series, we'll look at ways to prepare for the speaking part of the test.



As always...

Practice! Practice Practice! Practice!

Use your English every chance you get. Study, writing, and reading are all important, but you need to practice. Practice will make you more comfortable and confident.  Interacting with native-speakers or other ESL learners who don't speak your language will lead to a stronger performance on the CELPIP test.

The speaking section has a practice task (which is not scored) with eight speaking tasks:

1) Giving Advice
2 Talk About A Personal Experience
3) Describing a Scene
4) Making Predictions
5) Comparing and Persuading
6) Dealing with a Difficult Situation
7)  Expressing Opinions
8) Describing An Unusual Situation.

In this post, we'll go over the kinds of language you'll need for the different sections.

  Giving Advice

To give advice you can use modal verbs such as: should, can/could. My post on explaining your culture is about how to use modal verbs in business situations.

Conditional phrases are also commonly used: If I were you, I would...if I were him/her, If you/them...then...., It would be a good idea to...., You'd be better off if you...etc. You can learn more about conditionals here.

Don't worry if the topic is unfamiliar. It's not a test of your knowledge; it's a test of your communication skills (and you can ask for a different topic).

Talk About A Personal Experience

This part of the speaking test is storytelling. The most important things for storytelling are the little details. For example:

I went to a restaurant and ordered a hamburger.

The sentence above has correct grammar, but it's not an interesting one. Read the sentence below; see how the sentence becomes more interesting when a few details are added.

I went to a great restaurant on Robson Street and ordered a

    fantastic hamburger.

Adding details makes what your saying more interesting for the listener. It also shows that you have a good range of vocabulary and strong communication skills. 

The grammar you would use most would be past simple with past continuous.

Omar was walking down the street when he saw a car accident. He ran to a phone booth and called 9-1-1.

To learn more about storytelling and past tenses read our posts on past simple vs past continuous, past tenses, and talking about work experiences.

Describing A Scene/An Unusual Situation

Describing a scene is where you tell the teacher about a photo that only you can see. The goal is to give the listener an accurate image of the picture. 

Again, the little details are important, especially adjectives. You also need to think about prepositions.

Where people and objects are, and what direction they are going/moving in are important details to add. It will, again, let the teacher evaluate your grammatical accuracy and your vocabulary as well.

A good practice activity is to take a photo/picture (like the one above) and write down as many nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and prepositions as you can (use the picture above to practice). Then write a paragraph about the image using the words from your list.

For unusual situations, you'll be asked to describe strange objects or situations. You can use adjectives, but if you can't think of the right words, it's still possible to describe the picture you see by:
 

 
Saying what it's shaped like or what it looks like:

 It's a chair shaped like a woman's hand/ a hand-shaped chair
It's a chair that looks like a woman's hand.

Talking about what it's doing or looks like it's doing;

It's chair shaped like a woman's hand giving the "I'm fine" gesture.

What the object is made of: 

It's a light-brown, wooden chair that looks like a woman's hand. (it's made of wood)

It would also be a good idea to study the names of shapes.

Making Predictions

In this section you'll be shown a picture (photo or drawing). You can do the same exercising: finding adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, nouns, and verbs. The question you'll be asked is:

In this picture, what do you think will most probably happen next?

Of course, you can use words like probably and maybe along with future tenses. The teachers will also look for you to use phrases such as:

It's likely that a bus will arrive in a few seconds.

Looking at | the body language, only three people will likely get on the bus.
Judging by|  the look on their faces, most of the people won't board the bus.
I can tell by| the way she's walking that the young woman to the right is probably not going to
                      get on the bus.


Using words and phrases like looking at, judging by,  I can tell by, etc is a way of explaining why you made your prediction. It also shows the teacher your vocabulary, grammar skills, and communication ability.

 Comparing & Persuading

You'll have to choose between two options (houses, electronics, etc). You have to pick one, then make try to persuade another person to choose that option. If you can't make a choice, the computer will make it for you.

For this task you will need to use comparatives and superlatives (review here).

Paris has much nicer weather than London. (comparative)

The London Underground is the oldest subway network in the world. (superlative)

Again, use photos or videos and try to write down as much vocabulary as possible for the two choices. It's actually a good idea to pick something you wouldn't like or wouldn't be interested in.
You may get options from the computer that are difficult to choose from. This is a good way to prepare for that.

You should also make sure you use the right intonation. To persuade people, you have to have some enthusiasm for what you're trying to sell.


Watch this video about a man who got rich selling potato peelers. Listen to his intonation and tone of voice (this isn't a listening task); note his body language.

This section is all about role playing. So, it requires some acting. You'll have about 30 seconds to prepare. Use that time to write down the vocabulary you might need for the situation. The situations you'll be given may be things you have no experience with.

It's important to remember that you're not being evaluated on how good your advice is; it's how well you communicate your advice.

Practice Situation

 Your younger brother wants to leave high school to become a full-time rock and roll singer. Your parents are against this idea and believe he must stay in school. They tell your brother that if he quits school, he will be asked to leave move out.

Choose One:

A) Talk to your brother and tell him why he should finish school before trying to build a career as a   
      rock musician;

OR

B) Support your brother, and try to persuade your parents that they should help him achieve his
     dreams.

You can also use modal verbs of obligation here, but remember your intonation is equally important. 

 Expressing Opinions

This can be the easiest part of the test. There's no right or wrong answer: it's all about how well you express your opinion. It does not matter if the teacher agrees with you or not. The question will be fairly basic, safe topic (you won't be asked about your political views, for example). 

Of course you must explain the reason behind your opinions. For example:

Question: Do you think school children should wear uniforms?

Answer: Yes, I believe all children should be given a school uniform.

You can use regular sentences to explain your reasons:

There are children who come from poor families who don't have high quality clothing. Uniforms would make these children feel more comfortable.

The words to and so are also useful for explain your reasons.

Children should wear uniforms to help children from poor families to feel comfortable.

School uniforms should be required so poor children feel more comfortable in class.

Below is a useful video lesson on giving your opinions in English test situations.

 Finally, do the practice the speaking test. Be sure to record yourself (or ask a friend to do it for you) so you can check your pronunciation and intonation.