SPEAKING TEST

When you get the cue card you will be given one minute to write down some ideas. You are going to use this time wisely by using the following structure. On the piece of paper provided write down five headings with a little space between each one.

Now you will start to write keywords beside each of these headings. Let's look at each in a little more detail.

Introduction:

Start off by saying 'I'd like to talk about (X).' Then say 'I chose this topic because,' and you will be able to say why you choose this topic. If you can't think of a reason just make one up, although it's always better to talk about real experiences.

Past:

Now pause and use a linking word like 'anyway' or 'anyhow' to transition into talking about the past. This will allow you to demonstrate that you are confident using a range of past structures. Past simple to talk about things you did in the past that you no longer do or are no longer true.

Past continuous to talk about the background of a story or how you felt at a particular time. Past perfect to say something happened before something else in the past.

Description:

Now pause and say 'So let me tell you about (X) in a little more detail.' This is your opportunity to impress the examiner with specific vocabulary. Get to know the common topics and have some specific adjectives ready. If you use an adjective to describe something, make sure you expand on it or explain it with examples. Again, if you can't think of specific examples, it is fine to make these up. Make sure your examples match the adjective and you will be fine.

Opinion:

Now you can pause and say 'If you ask me/In my view/I would say + (opinion on topic). This gives you a chance to express how you feel about the topic. It could be your personal opinion or it could be a comparative or superlative. Using a wide range of phrases to express your opinion will help you get a higher mark. If you want to give a stronger opinion you could say:

I strongly believe that,
As far as I'm concerned,
I'm strongly against,
I'm strongly in favour of,.
I'm skeptical of the idea that,
I must admit, I think,.

Future:

Finally you can display your ability to use future tenses. Start off by saying 'With regards to the future,.' A range of tenses will help you gain extra marks.

For example you could use:

Present continuous to talk about fixed arrangements.
Be going + to + infinitive to talk about future plans.
Will or won't + infinitive is used with predictions based on opinions or experiences. It can also be used to talk about hopes and assumptions.
The future perfect- will have + past participle- is used to say something will have happened or will have been completed by a certain point in the future.

That's it! The above mentioned five simple headings that will allow you to speak for at least two minutes without any difficulty.