CELPIP® Speaking Task 6 sample: The Delayed Cooler Order

Dealing with a Difficult Situation · Preparation: 60 seconds · Response: 60 seconds · Published 23 October 2026

Original practice questions in CELPIP® task formats, created independently by CELPIP Study.

Practice question

You and your friend Keegan paid $160 for a cooler for a weekend camping trip near Nanaimo. The online order will arrive after the trip. Mahina, the shop manager, offers to exchange it for a larger model available now, but it costs $45 more. You have only $50 set aside for extra trip costs. Alternatively, you can cancel for a full refund and borrow a smaller cooler, which would require daily grocery trips. Decide whether to tell Keegan you favour cancelling and borrowing or tell Mahina you accept the more expensive replacement. Explain your decision directly to the person you choose.

Talk to Keegan and explain why you want to cancel the order and borrow the smaller cooler.
Talk to Mahina and accept the larger replacement cooler despite the extra $45 cost.

Model answers

These are transcripts of a model response, provided for comparison with your own recording.

Level 7 sample answer

124 words

Keegan, I think we should cancel the cooler order and borrow the smaller one. We'd get our $160 back and wouldn't need to pay another $45. Um, I know the smaller cooler means going for groceries every day. That will take time away from camping, and I'm sorry about changing our plan. But buying the larger one would leave just $5 for other extra costs. I'd feel more comfortable keeping some money available. We will need to spend money for gas, so borrowing isn't completely free. Could we make a shopping list together and take turns doing the grocery trips? I can help plan meals that fits the smaller cooler. It will take more organizing, but I think we can still enjoy the weekend.

Why this answer is at level 7

This illustrates level 7 through a clear choice, relevant budget reasoning, and a workable suggestion for sharing grocery trips. Compared with the stronger answers, its wording is simpler, its grammar is less consistent, and its consideration of borrowing costs is less developed.

But buying the larger one would leave just $5 for other extra costs. — Content/Coherence: This gives a concrete reason for cancelling and connects the decision to the limited budget. The higher-level response develops the comparison further by checking whether daily driving costs could cancel out the savings.
I'd feel more comfortable keeping some money available. — Vocabulary: The language communicates budget caution clearly, but the expression is broad. The higher-level answers use more precise or flexible wording to discuss the financial trade-off, including the remaining budget and whether fuel costs would consume the savings.
I can help plan meals that fits the smaller cooler. — Listenability: The practical offer is easy to understand, but 'meals that fits' has a subject–verb agreement error. The higher-level response expresses the same idea smoothly by proposing meals suited to the smaller cooler's capacity.
Could we make a shopping list together and take turns doing the grocery trips? — Task Fulfillment: This addresses Keegan directly and makes borrowing more acceptable by sharing the extra work. The higher-level response also checks the grocery store's distance before committing, making the proposed solution more convincing.

Level 9 sample answer

153 words

Mahina, we'd like to exchange our delayed order for the larger cooler and pay the additional $45. Thanks for finding something we can collect before our camping trip. The timing is the deciding factor for us: the cooler we ordered won't arrive until we're back, while borrowing a smaller one would mean shopping for groceries every day. Those trips would take time and cost money for gas, so borrowing has a price too. I recognize that the replacement leaves just $5 of our extra trip budget, which is cutting it close. Still, we'd own a cooler we can use this weekend and on future trips. Before we complete the exchange, could you show me its dimensions so I can check that it will fit in our vehicle? Please also confirm in writing that the replacement cancels the original delivery. That would help us avoid a duplicate order and keep the final cost clear.

Why this answer is at level 9

This illustrates level 9 through clear organization, precise explanations, and practical requests tailored to Mahina. Its main limitation compared with level 11 is that it acknowledges the very small remaining budget without developing a condition or plan for managing that concern.

I recognize that the replacement leaves just $5 of our extra trip budget, which is cutting it close. — Content/Coherence: This acknowledges the strongest objection to accepting the replacement, making the reasoning balanced. However, it does not explain how that remaining budget would cover other needs. The higher-level response makes its preferred option conditional on checking the competing costs.
The timing is the deciding factor for us: — Vocabulary: The phrase 'deciding factor' precisely identifies why immediate availability outweighs other concerns. Compared with the simpler answer, the wording is more focused. The top response adds flexible expressions that communicate financial caution and pressure from the delivery delay.
Those trips would take time and cost money for gas, so borrowing has a price too. — Listenability: The sentence connects grocery trips, lost time, and fuel costs in an easy-to-follow sequence. The higher-level response extends this clear reasoning with a conditional explanation of when the driving costs would justify reconsidering the choice.
Please also confirm in writing that the replacement cancels the original delivery. — Task Fulfillment: This is a specific, useful request to the shop manager and supports completing the exchange without a duplicate delivery. The higher-level response gives similarly practical support to its chosen option while investigating the financial uncertainty behind the decision.

Level 11 sample answer

171 words

Keegan, I'd like to cancel the delayed order, get our $160 back, and borrow the smaller cooler. The larger replacement would solve the timing problem, but its additional $45 would leave only $5 of the money we've set aside for extra trip costs. I'd rather keep some breathing room in our budget, even though borrowing means daily grocery trips. I know those errands will interrupt the weekend, and I don't want you to feel that saving money automatically creates more work for you. Could we plan meals around the smaller cooler's capacity and share responsibility for shopping? Before we commit, I'd check how far the grocery store is from the campsite and estimate the gas cost. If the driving would swallow the savings, we'd need to reconsider. The larger cooler would be ours to keep, which is a real advantage, but we don't have to make that purchase under pressure from this delivery delay. I'm happy to organize the meal plan so the cheaper option is manageable for both of us.

Why this answer is at level 11

This illustrates level 11 through a persuasive decision that integrates budget limits, Keegan's workload, and the replacement's lasting value. Flexible language and a clear condition for reconsidering make the reasoning balanced, practical, and responsive to the situation.

If the driving would swallow the savings, we'd need to reconsider. — Content/Coherence: This establishes a clear condition that could change the decision. It develops the fuel-cost concern beyond simply mentioning it and shows that cancelling only makes sense if borrowing remains economical.
I'd rather keep some breathing room in our budget, even though borrowing means daily grocery trips. — Vocabulary: The expression 'breathing room' naturally communicates the value of keeping money available for unexpected trip costs. The concession also acknowledges the inconvenience of borrowing within the same sentence.
The larger replacement would solve the timing problem, but its additional $45 would leave only $5 — Listenability: The clear contrast makes the central trade-off easy to follow: immediate availability comes at the cost of almost all the extra trip money. The sentence structure carries both the benefit and the drawback without losing the main point.
I don't want you to feel that saving money automatically creates more work for you. — Task Fulfillment: This anticipates Keegan's likely concern about the daily grocery trips and makes the persuasion personal. The later offers to share shopping and organize meals support this reassurance with concrete responsibility.

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.

Make a clear decision, explain it tactfully to the person addressed and develop the reasons. Acknowledge the other person’s needs and offer a practical way forward.

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