CELPIP® Speaking Task 3 sample: Charity car wash in a parking lot

Level 7 sample answer

137 words

Nasser, this photo is a car wash for a youth soccer team in a parking lot. It's a sunny summer day. On the left, a teenage girl in a lime-green jersey is spraying a red pickup, but the window is open, and the driver look worried. Behind her, two boys are flicking soapy sponges at each other and laughing. In the middle, a woman in a blue and white striped top is counting money, but the wind is blowing it, so she is frowning. In the back, um, a young woman in a yellow dress is complaining to the coach because the line of cars is long. On the right, a teenage boy is carrying a bucket that's too full. And a small white dog is walking to a puddle, but the owner is talking on phone.

Why this answer is at level 7

This level 7 answer covers the main activities and follows a clear route around the parking lot. Its mostly basic descriptions, occasional grammatical errors, and reduced visual precision make it less polished than the higher-level answers.

• Behind her, two boys are flicking soapy sponges at each other and laughing. — Content/Coherence: The location phrase connects the boys to the girl already described, helping Nasser follow the scene. A higher-level answer adds identifying details, such as their matching jerseys, while maintaining this clear spatial progression.
• On the right, a teenage boy is carrying a bucket that's too full. — Vocabulary: The wording communicates the basic action clearly, but 'too full' leaves the effect largely undescribed. The higher-level answers use more precise language for the overflowing bucket and its spilling water.
• the driver look worried — Listenability: The missing verb ending interrupts an otherwise understandable description. The higher-level answers maintain subject–verb agreement and describe the driver's alarm more precisely, making the relationship between the open window and his reaction easier to grasp.
• And a small white dog is walking to a puddle — Task Fulfillment: This includes the dog and its movement, helping cover the right foreground. A higher-level description specifies that the dog is off its leash and approaching soapy water, giving Nasser a fuller picture of this unattended activity.

Level 9 sample answer

175 words

Nasser, this is a youth soccer team's charity car wash in a Prince Albert parking lot. It's a hot, breezy June day.

On the left, a teenage girl in a lime-green jersey is cheerfully hosing down a red pickup, but the driver's window is half open, and the driver, an older man in a beige cap, looks alarmed. Behind her, two younger boys in the same jerseys are giggling and flicking soapy sponges at each other.

In the middle, a woman in a blue-and-white striped tank top is counting cash at a folding table, and she's frowning because a gust of wind is lifting the bills.

Further back, a young woman in a yellow sundress is tapping her watch and complaining to a grey-haired coach about the long line of cars, and he looks apologetic.

On the right, a teenage boy in white shorts has his hands full with an overfilled bucket that's sloshing water, while a little white dog off its leash trots toward a soapy puddle. Its owner is chatting on his phone.

Why this answer is at level 9

This level 9 answer gives Nasser a detailed, well-organized picture through precise actions, clothing, and reactions. Compared with the level 11 answer, some explanations are wordier and some spatial and movement details are less sharply drawn.

• On the left, a teenage girl in a lime-green jersey is cheerfully hosing down a red pickup — Content/Coherence: The location, person, clothing, action, and vehicle form an easy-to-follow visual unit. The higher-level answer sharpens the positioning by identifying the foreground, making the arrangement of people across the lot more explicit.
• has his hands full with an overfilled bucket that's sloshing water — Vocabulary: The idiom naturally conveys difficulty, while 'overfilled' and 'sloshing' describe the bucket precisely. The higher-level answer adds a specific manner of movement across the wet asphalt, making the boy's careful progress more visible.
• and she's frowning because a gust of wind is lifting the bills. — Listenability: The cause of the woman's expression is immediately understandable. However, the added explanatory clause makes the sentence longer; the higher-level answer connects her expression and the lifting bills more compactly.
• Nasser, this is a youth soccer team's charity car wash in a Prince Albert parking lot. — Task Fulfillment: The opening directly addresses Nasser and establishes the event, fundraising purpose, and location. The higher-level opening also places him in the strip-mall setting and establishes the conditions before moving through the individual activities.

Level 11 sample answer

190 words

Nasser, picture a strip-mall parking lot in Prince Albert on a hot, breezy June Saturday, where a youth soccer team is running a charity car wash.

In the left foreground, a teenage girl in a lime-green jersey is gleefully hosing down a red pickup, even though the driver's window has been left half open, and the man behind the wheel, in his sixties and wearing a beige cap, looks alarmed. Behind her, two boys of about twelve in the same jerseys are giggling as they flick soapy sponges at each other.

In the middle, a woman in a blue-and-white striped tank top is counting cash at a folding table, frowning as a gust lifts the bills. In the background, an impatient young woman in a yellow sundress is tapping her watch and grumbling to a grey-haired coach about the long line of cars, and he looks apologetic.

On the right, a teenage boy in white shorts is inching across the wet asphalt with an overfilled bucket that's sloshing over, while a small white dog off its leash trots toward a soapy puddle as its owner chats obliviously on his phone.

Why this answer is at level 11

This level 11 answer combines comprehensive coverage with precise spatial references, vivid verbs, and economical descriptions of simultaneous actions. It gives Nasser a strongly visual account, although its dense sentences would require careful pacing during delivery.

• In the left foreground, a teenage girl in a lime-green jersey — Content/Coherence: The precise foreground reference establishes depth before the description moves behind the girl, into the middle, and toward the background. This gives Nasser a coherent mental map rather than simply a collection of activities.
• is inching across the wet asphalt with an overfilled bucket that's sloshing over — Vocabulary: The verb 'inching' conveys slow, careful movement, while the wet surface and spilling bucket make the action concrete. These details communicate the boy's concentration through an observable movement instead of merely naming his emotional state.
• frowning as a gust lifts the bills. — Listenability: This compact clause connects the woman's reaction with the movement of the money without a lengthy explanation. Such economical phrasing supports the answer's rich detail, though the overall response still needs controlled pacing.
• Nasser, picture a strip-mall parking lot in Prince Albert on a hot, breezy June Saturday — Task Fulfillment: The invitation to picture the setting suits a neighbour who cannot see the photo. The location, weather, and occasion establish a useful frame for understanding the washing activity and the wind lifting the cash.