CELPIP® Speaking Task 3 sample: Birthday Picnic at a Park Shelter
Describing a Scene · Preparation: 30 seconds · Response: 60 seconds · Published
Original practice questions in CELPIP® task formats, created independently by CELPIP Study.
Practice question
You're on a voice call with a friend who cannot view this picture. Describe the park scene so your friend can imagine the people and their activities. You have 30 seconds to prepare and 60 seconds to speak.
Model answers
These are transcripts of a model response, provided for comparison with your own recording.
Level 7 sample answer
131 words
This is a birthday picnic in a Calgary park, and the weather looks windy. Um, only one end of the table is under a shelter. In the left, Layla is wearing yellow and holding an open cake box while its lid lifts. Marcus, in blue near the centre, is reaching toward three cups, with a ball rolling their way. A little girl in purple is happily pulling a ribbon on her gift on the right. Behind them, a boy in red chases napkins toward a puddle. An older woman in green holds some folded chairs beside the shelter. An older man in grey watches dark clouds with a blanket in his hands. A teenager in orange have a dog on a tight leash, and it's watching a sandwich on a bench.
Why this answer is at level 7
This level 7 answer gives a clear tour of the picnic and covers the main activities. Compared with the higher-level answers, it relies more on simple descriptions, includes fewer emotional details, and has some awkward phrasing and grammar.
Behind them, a boy in red chases napkins toward a puddle.
— Content/Coherence: The location phrase moves the listener clearly from the foreground to the people behind it. However, the description largely lists separate activities; a higher-level answer would connect more of them to the wind and cramped picnic space.A little girl in purple is happily pulling a ribbon on her gift on the right.
— Vocabulary: The colour, action, and feeling are easy to understand, but the wording is basic. A higher-level answer would identify her as the birthday girl and describe her delight or absorption more precisely.A teenager in orange have a dog on a tight leash
— Listenability: The subject–verb agreement error interrupts an otherwise understandable description. A higher-level answer would use consistent agreement and smoother phrasing so the listener can concentrate on imagining the scene.Marcus, in blue near the centre, is reaching toward three cups, with a ball rolling their way.
— Task Fulfillment: This gives the friend useful information about Marcus's position, clothing, and action, including the approaching ball. A higher-level answer would also convey his alarm and specify that the cups are empty, making the moment easier to picture.
Level 9 sample answer
160 words
You're looking at a birthday picnic in a Calgary park on a windy June day. The table has only one end beneath a small shelter, so the gathering looks a little cramped. In the left foreground, Layla, who's wearing yellow, is anxiously holding an open cake box as the wind lifts its lid. Beside her, Marcus in blue looks alarmed as he reaches toward three empty cups, with a ball rolling toward them. The birthday girl in purple on the right seems delighted with her wrapped gift and is pulling its ribbon. Further back, a boy in red is chasing napkins toward a puddle, looking frustrated. An older woman in green stands with folded chairs beside the limited covered space. To her right, an older man in grey watches dark clouds while holding a partly spread blanket. In the background, a teenager in orange has her hands full with a dog that's staring at a sandwich on a low bench.
Why this answer is at level 9
This level 9 answer develops the scene more fully through clear positioning, emotional descriptions, and an explanation of the cramped gathering. Compared with level 11, some wording is less visually precise, and the sequence of similarly structured descriptions offers less variety.
The table has only one end beneath a small shelter, so the gathering looks a little cramped.
— Content/Coherence: The word “so” connects the shelter's limited coverage with the crowded arrangement, helping the friend understand the setting. The level 11 answer extends this explanatory approach to individual actions, such as Layla bracing the cake box.is anxiously holding an open cake box as the wind lifts its lid.
— Vocabulary: “Anxiously” adds emotion, while “as” connects Layla's reaction with the wind. The level 11 answer uses the more precise action “braces” and identifies the cake inside, producing a sharper visual description.To her right, an older man in grey watches dark clouds while holding a partly spread blanket.
— Listenability: The location cue and “while” make the simultaneous actions easy to follow. Across the answer, however, similar person-and-action sentences recur; level 11 varies its sentence structures more while maintaining the spatial route.a teenager in orange has her hands full with a dog that's staring at a sandwich on a low bench.
— Task Fulfillment: The background interaction gives the friend a memorable detail and locates the sandwich clearly. However, “has her hands full” leaves the teenager's posture and expression less explicit; the level 11 answer specifies her taut leash and amused expression.
Level 11 sample answer
170 words
A birthday celebration fills this Calgary park, although the June breeze is making the picnic increasingly awkward. From the grassy rise, you can see that the shelter covers just one end of the table, leaving little protected space. On the left, Layla, dressed in yellow, braces a box containing a round iced cake; its wind-lifted lid explains her worried expression. Near the centre, an alarmed Marcus in blue stretches toward three empty cups directly in a rolling ball's path. The birthday girl, six years old and wearing purple, seems absorbed in her present, delightedly tugging its ribbon on the right. Behind them, a frustrated boy in red pursues napkins drifting toward a puddle. Beside the shelter, a woman in green hesitates with folded chairs, while an older man in grey studies the dark clouds, his blanket still partly spread. Completing the scene, a teenager in orange looks amused as she holds a taut leash in the background. Her dog's attention is fixed on a sandwich resting on a low bench.
Why this answer is at level 11
This level 11 answer combines a clear spatial route with precise actions, varied sentence structures, and connections between people's expressions and the picnic's difficulties. It gives the friend a detailed mental picture while keeping the birthday celebration central.
From the grassy rise, you can see that the shelter covers just one end of the table, leaving little protected space.
— Content/Coherence: This establishes the viewpoint and explains the shelter's limitation in a connected sentence. It gives the listener a useful framework for understanding the chairs, blanket, and exposed picnic items described afterward.braces a box containing a round iced cake
— Vocabulary: “Braces” precisely conveys Layla's effort to steady the box against the wind. Identifying the round iced cake also adds concrete visual information beyond the simpler descriptions of holding a cake box.while an older man in grey studies the dark clouds, his blanket still partly spread.
— Listenability: The trailing blanket detail varies the sentence rhythm and integrates another visible action without starting a separate sentence. This gives the written response a more flowing spoken shape, though clear delivery would still depend on pacing.The birthday girl, six years old and wearing purple, seems absorbed in her present, delightedly tugging its ribbon on the right.
— Task Fulfillment: This identifies the central birthday participant through her age, clothing, location, action, and emotion. “Seems absorbed” also captures how her enjoyment continues amid the surrounding picnic problems, helping the friend imagine the scene as a whole.
What moves an answer from 7 to 9 to 11
These are model answers written to show each level. The labels are practice estimates, not examiner scores.
Orient the listener to the scene, then group visible details by location or activity. Use precise descriptions and spatial connections rather than an unconnected inventory.
- Content/Coherence: Level 7 models communicate the main ideas; level 9 models develop relevant details with clear connections; level 11 models sustain precise, well-integrated development.
- Vocabulary: Compare adequate everyday wording with more varied, accurate choices at level 9 and flexible, precise expression at level 11.
- Listenability: Higher-level delivery needs clear pronunciation, rhythm, intonation and controlled pauses. Transcripts suggest phrasing and organisation, but cannot demonstrate these audio features; a recording is needed.
- Task Fulfillment: Compare how fully the response addresses the request, develops enough relevant detail and maintains an appropriate tone for the audience within the task limits.
Assess the criteria together. A longer answer or rarer words alone do not establish a higher level.
Answer this question and get your level
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All speaking Task 3 sample questions · Read the Task 3 guide