CELPIP® Speaking Task 8 sample: The Boot-Shaped Seed Sorter

Describing an Unusual Situation · Preparation: 30 seconds · Response: 60 seconds · Published 23 October 2026

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

Practice question

You are at a makers’ market in Owen Sound when you notice an unusual seed-sorting device for $45. Your community garden has $50 left for its outdoor seed exchange, where tiny seeds can blow away. Call Yuki, who coordinates the exchange. Explain the device’s appearance in detail, using your own words, and ask whether you should buy it for the event.

Model answers

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

Level 7 sample answer

121 words

Hi Yuki, I'm at the makers’ market in Owen Sound. I've found a strange seed sorter for $45, and I wanted your opinion. It looks like a purple boot, about 35 centimetres long, with a thick white sole. The toe is round, and there's three green drawers along the side. Each drawer has a little wooden knob. Also, a silver funnel sits above the ankle, connected by a clear tube. There's a round window in ankle, too. Um, I guess you pour seeds in and collect them from the drawers. It might help outside because the seeds would be covered, but it would leave us only $5. Should I buy it for our seed exchange? Thanks, I'll wait for your answer.

Why this answer is at level 7

This level 7 example communicates the main appearance, price, budget concern, and purchase question clearly. Compared with the higher examples, its description is less precise, its explanation of wind protection is less developed, and small grammatical slips interrupt the flow.

Um, I guess you pour seeds in and collect them from the drawers. — Content/Coherence: The answer moves logically from appearance to possible operation, but gives only a broad guess. A higher-level answer would connect the funnel to the drawers and explain that the actual sorting process remains unclear.
It looks like a purple boot, about 35 centimetres long, with a thick white sole. — Vocabulary: Familiar descriptive words establish the device's shape, colour, size, and base. The higher examples add more precise details about material, surface finish, and the positions of individual parts.
The toe is round, and there's three green drawers along the side. — Listenability: The short sentence is easy to follow, but 'there's three' introduces a grammatical distraction. A higher-level answer would use accurate agreement and describe the drawers' arrangement more smoothly.
It might help outside because the seeds would be covered, but it would leave us only $5. — Task Fulfillment: This connects the device to the outdoor exchange and recognises the budget trade-off. A higher-level answer would also identify the open funnel as a possible weakness when tiny seeds could blow away.

Level 9 sample answer

150 words

Hey Yuki, have you got a minute? I'm at the makers’ market in Owen Sound, and a seed sorter has caught my eye. It's $45, so we'd have just $5 left from our exchange budget. Picture a purple plastic boot, roughly 35 centimetres long and 20 high, resting on a thick white sole. Along the side are three lime-green drawers with round wooden knobs. Above the ankle, a shallow silver funnel feeds into a short clear tube, while a round window lets you look into the ankle section. I'm guessing the seeds go through the funnel and end up in those drawers, although I can't tell how they're separated. Having them enclosed could help when it's windy, but the funnel itself is open. Since you're coordinating the outdoor exchange, do you think it's worth buying, or should we save the money? Let me know, and I'll follow your lead. Thanks!

Why this answer is at level 9

This level 9 example combines a detailed description with sensible uncertainty about operation and a balanced assessment of outdoor use. Compared with level 11, it gives slightly less exact spatial detail, and some phrasing could be more compact for a listener.

I'm guessing the seeds go through the funnel and end up in those drawers, although I can't tell how they're separated. — Content/Coherence: The explanation follows the seeds through the device and clearly separates inference from certainty. The higher example makes the remaining uncertainty more specific by asking whether sorting happens automatically.
Along the side are three lime-green drawers with round wooden knobs. — Vocabulary: The specific colour and knob material help Yuki picture the drawers more accurately than the simpler description at level 7. The higher example adds their exact arrangement along the foot.
Above the ankle, a shallow silver funnel feeds into a short clear tube, while a round window lets you look into the ankle section. — Listenability: The sentence connects related features clearly, but combines several details and repeats 'ankle.' The higher example describes the window and funnel in separate sentences, giving the listener smaller units of information.
Having them enclosed could help when it's windy, but the funnel itself is open. — Task Fulfillment: This weighs a practical benefit against a specific weakness, making the purchase discussion useful for an outdoor event. The higher example explicitly connects that weakness to tiny seeds blowing away.

Level 11 sample answer

168 words

Hi Yuki, I'm calling from the makers’ market in Owen Sound about a rather unexpected seed sorter. Before I spend $45 of our remaining $50, I'd like your take on whether it would actually suit the outdoor exchange. Imagine a matte purple plastic boot, 35 centimetres long and 20 high, with its rounded toe pointing left. A thick, flat white sole supports it. Three lime-green drawers run side by side along the foot, each fitted with a round wooden knob. The upright ankle has a circular transparent window, and a shallow silver funnel above it connects through a short clear tube. Presumably, seeds enter through the funnel and collect in the drawers; whether they're sorted automatically isn't obvious. The enclosed compartments could keep tiny seeds from blowing away, although the exposed funnel might still be a weak point. Given that we'd have only $5 left, would you like me to buy it, or would you prefer to keep our budget available? I'll wait to hear from you. Thanks!

Why this answer is at level 11

This level 11 example creates a precise, organised picture while keeping the purchase decision central. Its careful distinction between visible features and assumed operation, together with its treatment of wind exposure and the remaining budget, makes the call particularly strong.

Three lime-green drawers run side by side along the foot, each fitted with a round wooden knob. — Content/Coherence: The description locates the drawers within the boot shape and explains their arrangement before adding the knobs. This gives Yuki a clearer mental picture than simply placing drawers along the side.
Imagine a matte purple plastic boot, 35 centimetres long and 20 high, with its rounded toe pointing left. — Vocabulary: Precise language covers surface finish, material, dimensions, shape, and orientation within a coherent description. These details distinguish the device more fully than the broader wording in the lower examples.
Presumably, seeds enter through the funnel and collect in the drawers; whether they're sorted automatically isn't obvious. — Listenability: The balanced phrasing presents a likely process and then its limitation. The listener can follow the explanation while recognising which part is an assumption, without a lengthy technical detour.
Given that we'd have only $5 left, would you like me to buy it, or would you prefer to keep our budget available? — Task Fulfillment: The closing question directly ties the purchase to its budget consequence and gives Yuki clear alternatives. It completes the requested consultation while respecting Yuki's responsibility for coordinating the exchange.

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.

Help the listener picture the unusual object through its shape, material, size and arrangement. Use comparisons and spatial language, then complete the requested interaction.

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