CELPIP® Speaking Task 4 sample: Community garden on harvest day

Level 7 sample answer

138 words

I think a few things will happen soon. First, the old man's wheelbarrow will probably fall over, because it is already tipping on the loose board. The zucchini will roll out, and the teenage girl will probably help him. Also, the little boy with the hose is going to spray water on the crates and maybe on the woman in red apron too. She will be surprised and take the hose. On the right, I think the young man will climb down from ladder, because it is wobbling and he looks scared. In the back, the woman is holding the garlic, so I think she will just plant it where she wants. And the dog is going to eat a muffin, um, because the owner is not watching. When she see it, she will be a bit embarrassed.

Why this answer is at level 7

This answer makes clear, relevant predictions about several people and explains some visible causes. Compared with level 9, its vocabulary is simpler, its connections between events are less developed, and occasional grammar errors interrupt the otherwise understandable wording.

• because it is already tipping on the loose board. — Task Fulfillment: This directly links the predicted wheelbarrow accident to visible evidence. A higher-level answer would maintain this clear evidence-to-prediction link when discussing the helper, the couple and the dog's owner.
• The zucchini will roll out, and the teenage girl will probably help him. — Content/Coherence: The spill and the girl's response form a logical sequence. However, her involvement is only briefly explained; level 9 connects her likely help to her position right behind the man.
• She will be surprised and take the hose. — Vocabulary: The everyday verbs communicate the prediction clearly but give little detail about her reaction or action. Level 9 uses more expressive wording about laughing off the accident and turning the hose away.
• When she see it, she will be a bit embarrassed. — Listenability: The meaning is easy to recover, but the verb agreement error interrupts the grammatical flow. Compared with level 9, this wording is less controlled, even though the predicted reaction remains understandable.

Level 9 sample answer

166 words

Colette, I'd say a few small things are about to go wrong.

First, the older man's wheelbarrow is already tipping on the loose board, so I'm pretty sure it'll topple over and spill zucchini everywhere. The teenage girl pulling carrots is right behind him, so she'll probably jump up to help.

Next, the boy with the hose. Since it's spraying toward the crates, the woman in the red apron is about to get her vegetables, and maybe herself, soaked. I can picture her laughing it off and turning the hose away.

On the right, the stepladder is wobbling in the soft soil, so I think the young man will climb down and ask someone to hold it steady.

In the background, the woman in the sun hat is holding the garlic, so she'll probably win the argument and start planting it her way. Finally, that dog has its eye on the muffins. As soon as its owner looks up from her phone, she'll find one missing.

Why this answer is at level 9

This answer develops the garden's likely mishaps through clear evidence, natural expressions and easy-to-follow signposting. Compared with level 11, its transitions and action descriptions are less varied, and the prediction about who wins the planting argument relies on a weaker connection.

• The teenage girl pulling carrots is right behind him, so she'll probably jump up to help. — Content/Coherence: Her position explains why she would respond to the spill, making the sequence more connected than in level 7. Level 11 develops the immediate action further by having her drop her carrots and rush over.
• I can picture her laughing it off and turning the hose away. — Vocabulary: The idiom naturally describes a relaxed response to the spraying hose. This is more expressive than level 7's basic reaction; level 11 adds more precise physical action and a destination for the water.
• Next, the boy with the hose. — Listenability: This short spoken signpost makes the change of focus easy to follow. Level 11 varies these links more, using transitions that also communicate simultaneous events and shifts between groups.
• the woman in the sun hat is holding the garlic, so she'll probably win the argument — Task Fulfillment: The prediction uses a visible detail, but holding the garlic offers limited support for winning the disagreement. A stronger explanation would also connect her likely planting action to where she is pointing, as level 11 does.

Level 11 sample answer

178 words

Well, Colette, if I had to bet, I'd say that garden is about to get a lot busier than anyone planned.

The most obvious thing is the wheelbarrow. It's already tilting off that loose board, so any second now it'll tip over and send zucchini rolling between the beds. I'd expect the teenage girl to drop her carrots and rush over to help.

Meanwhile, the boy who's grabbed the hose is about to give those crates a thorough soaking, and quite possibly the woman in the red apron. Given how cheerful she looks, she'll probably laugh, wrestle the hose away and turn it on the tomatoes instead.

The young man on the stepladder will almost certainly climb down, since it's wobbling in the soft soil, and wait for someone to steady it. As for the couple, since she's holding the bulbs, I suspect she'll simply start planting them wherever she's pointing, leaving him to give in gracefully.

And unless the dog's owner looks up from her phone soon, one of those muffins will have disappeared before she notices.

Why this answer is at level 11

This answer combines detailed predictions, varied sentence structures and precise, natural vocabulary into a connected account of the garden's next few minutes. Its strongest passages make the visible clue, likely event and immediate consequence easy to follow while expressing different degrees of confidence.

• It's already tilting off that loose board, so any second now it'll tip over and send zucchini rolling between the beds. — Task Fulfillment: The unstable wheelbarrow directly supports an imminent spill, and the rolling zucchini supplies a concrete consequence. This fully develops the requested prediction and its visual justification within a connected sentence.
• Meanwhile, the boy who's grabbed the hose is about to give those crates a thorough soaking — Content/Coherence: The transition presents the hose incident as happening alongside the wheelbarrow accident. Identifying the boy through his action keeps the reference clear and helps build a connected scene involving several people.
• she'll probably laugh, wrestle the hose away and turn it on the tomatoes instead. — Vocabulary: The precise verb 'wrestle' makes the response vivid, while the sequence explains how she might redirect the boy's spraying into useful watering. The language adds detail without becoming difficult to understand.
• And unless the dog's owner looks up from her phone soon, — Listenability: This conditional opening clearly establishes what could prevent the muffin theft before delivering the consequence. It adds grammatical variety and gives the final prediction a natural spoken setup.