CELPIP Speaking Task 3: Describing a Scene

CELPIP Speaking Task 3 Sample Answer: Sunny Patio Cookout with Family

This picture shows a big family cooking and eating together on a sunny backyard patio. The tricky part is keeping track of more than ten people, so you need to group them by place: at the grill, around the table, and out on the grass.

Preparation

30 seconds

Speaking

60 seconds

Picture

A detailed illustration

The question

CELPIP Speaking Task 3 practice picture: Sunny Patio Cookout with Family

Describe some things that are happening in the picture below as well as you can. The person with whom you are speaking cannot see the picture.

How to plan your answer

What they want

Describe a family cookout on a sunny patio: a black grill with meat on it, adults and kids gathered around a wooden table of food, and children running around the yard.

Plan (60 sec)

Overview: "It's a sunny afternoon, and a big family is having a cookout on a covered patio."
Front left: a black grill on wheels with a big piece of steak on it; a man in an orange T-shirt stands beside it.
Middle: a wooden table with plates, a bowl of food and ketchup and mustard bottles; a woman sits there and a girl in blue carries a plate.
Right: a young man in a white T-shirt reaches across the table; a girl in denim shorts runs on the grass.
Front right: a toddler in a grey T-shirt walks toward a metal folding chair.
Background: tall trees, bushes with red leaves, long shadows from the sun.

Useful vocabulary

cookout, grill, patio, wooden beams
condiments, toddler, folding chair, shade

Phrases

"Standing next to the grill,..."
"Around the table,..."
"In the bottom right corner,..."

Avoid

Saying only "people are eating"; say who is doing what (grilling, carrying, reaching, running).
Forgetting the children; they are a big part of the scene.

Excellent answer (transcript): around CLB 11–12

This is a lively family cookout on a covered patio, and it's clearly a hot, sunny afternoon, because there are long shadows all over the ground. In the foreground on the left, there's a black barbecue on wheels with a big slab of steak sizzling on the grill, and a man in a rust-coloured T-shirt is standing beside it, keeping an eye on the meat. Behind him, a wooden table is set with plates, a bowl of food and bottles of ketchup and mustard. A woman in a white shirt is sitting there, while a young girl in blue is carrying over a plate piled with food. On the right, a guy in a white T-shirt and sandals is leaning across the table, and a girl in denim shorts is dashing across the lawn. Meanwhile, a toddler in a grey T-shirt is wandering toward a metal folding chair. The whole yard is surrounded by leafy trees and bushes with bright red leaves.

162 words

Why it scores high

Content/Coherence: The speaker uses visual evidence, "because there are long shadows all over the ground," to explain why it's a sunny afternoon, which shows careful observation.
Vocabulary: Precise, lively choices such as "slab of steak sizzling," "keeping an eye on the meat" and "dashing across the lawn" bring the scene to life.
Listenability: Transitions like "Behind him," "while" and "Meanwhile" link the people together smoothly, so the answer sounds like one connected picture.

Good answer (transcript): around CLB 7–8

This picture shows a big family having a cookout on a sunny patio. On the left, there's a black grill on wheels with a large piece of meat cooking on it, and a man in an orange T-shirt is standing right next to it. In the middle, there's a wooden table covered with plates, a bowl of food and some ketchup and mustard. A woman is sitting at the table, and a girl in a blue top is carrying a plate of food. On the right, a young man in a white T-shirt is reaching across the table, and a girl in denim shorts is running on the grass. In the front, a little boy is walking toward a metal chair. It looks like a relaxed summer afternoon.

128 words

What works, and what's missing

Content/Coherence: The answer moves cleanly from "On the left" to "In the middle," "On the right" and "In the front," covering the grill, the table and the kids.
Vocabulary: Accurate phrases like "a black grill on wheels" and "covered with plates" help the listener see the setting clearly.
Task Fulfillment: The background is left out; mentioning the tall trees, red-leafed bushes or long shadows would complete the picture for a listener.

Basic answer (transcript): around CLB 4–5

This picture is about family party outside. There is a black grill and a big meat on it. One man with orange t-shirt is standing next the grill. In the middle there is a table, and some people is around the table. There is plates and food and ketchup. One girl carry a plate. On the right, one little boy is walking to a chair, and other girl is running. There is many trees and the sun is shining. Everybody looks happy.

82 words

What holds it back

Vocabulary: "a big meat" and "next the grill" are inaccurate, and "some people is" and "one girl carry" show repeated subject-verb errors.
Content/Coherence: The table is described only as "plates and food and ketchup," and nobody at it is identified except "one girl carry a plate."
Listenability: Four sentences begin with "There is" or "One," so the answer sounds like a flat list with few linking words between details.

The CLBs are estimates of the level each sample was written at, not official CELPIP scores. How we estimate CLB