What if my speaking partner is shy/nervous/aggressive? By hitting the ball to them (asking them questions/letting them talk) you will both win.Ĥ. The difference between you and Federer is that you aren't trying to 'beat' your partner. Include them in every step of the process The angriest person of all would be the umpire, who would announce that Federer had lost the match. Now imagine that Nadal hits the ball to Federer, and Federer catches it, holds it in the air, and runs around the stadium saying 'Look at me! Look at me!' It would be entertaining for a short time, but then everyone would get angry and begin to hate the Swiss superstar. What will the other person do with the ball now? That's the excitement of tennis. It's fascinating because they keep hitting the ball back to each other. Imagine you're watching Roger Federer playing tennis against Rafael Nadal. If you were following these tips, you looked at your speaking test partner and listened to what they said. (Listen to the audio file below to hear Heidi attempt this task.)Ĭollaboration means team work. That's useful - she'll have to do presentations when she gets a job or give a speech when she gets married! What else? Well, it's beneficial for the second girl to practice this - but I think doing the research will have more benefit in the future, because you have to prepare before you can give a good presentation." I'm sure she has a lot of tests and homework still ahead of her! While the first student is doing her homework for tomorrow, this one has already done her homework and now she's presenting it to the whole class. I think she might be studying for a test or - oh! Probably she's just doing her homework. She has to learn to study on her own, and that's not bad. She has the support of a teacher, but this student doesn't have that. Her answer: "They're both young students, girls, and both in a traditional school setting. This picture shows a student on her own, whereas this student is in her whole class. It's hard because you have to look at the pictures, but strong candidates don't talk to the photos - they talk about the photos. While you are comparing the photos, try to look at the examiner and the other candidate from time to time. Refer to that page to make sure you talk about both bullet points. The examiner tells you what to do, but the task is also printed on the page with the photos. Use all of it! When your time is up the examiner will stop you. is still a crime! You get 60 seconds to do this task. Just start comparing the pictures! (If you feel you have to make it clear, you can point to the pictures you have chosen.)ĭead air.
![the examination mind your language the examination mind your language](http://les-series-tv.fr/pic/tvdb/2648/banner.jpg)
Strong candidates compare the pictures - that's explained more below.ĭon't waste the first five seconds by explaining which pictures you have chosen. There is a tree." You aren't asked to describe them. Weak candidates simply describe the pictures: "I can see a car. Choose two and say nothing about the third one. You are asked to talk about TWO pictures. If no-one is smiling at you and you think you are doing badly - KEEP TALKING!
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![the examination mind your language the examination mind your language](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GtKhm7rDfbc/maxresdefault.jpg)
If you realise you just made a big grammar mistake, keep talking. So the absolute number 1 most important lesson to learn about the speaking test is never leave dead air. Not much time to show all the vocabulary and grammar he learned! In parts 2, 3, and 4 he spoke for 84 seconds, 64 seconds, and 98 seconds. Did you watch the video with Raphael and Maude? I timed how long Raphael spoke. Half of the time the other candidate will be talking. Some of that time will be the examiner telling you what to do. If there is dead air, listeners will switch to another station.ĭead air is just as bad in the speaking exam. There should always, always be music or chat.
![the examination mind your language the examination mind your language](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91BlNRZarCL._RI_.jpg)
Here at CAE Exam Tips we love the radio, and we know that the worst thing a Disc Jockey or radio presenter can do is leave 'dead air'.