CELPIP Speaking Task 3: Describing a Scene

CELPIP Speaking Task 3 Sample Answer: Sunbathers by Turquoise Water

This picture shows a crowded white-sand beach with sunbathers, colourful umbrellas and swimmers in clear turquoise water. The tricky part is that most people are simply sitting or lying down, so you need varied verbs and specific details to keep the description from sounding repetitive.

Preparation

30 seconds

Speaking

60 seconds

Picture

A detailed illustration

The question

CELPIP Speaking Task 3 practice picture: Sunbathers by Turquoise Water

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 crowded white-sand beach: people sunbathing on towels and under colourful umbrellas, a couple sitting at the water's edge, and swimmers in the clear turquoise sea.

Plan (60 sec)

Overview: "It's a bright, sunny day at a busy beach with white sand and very clear water."
Foreground: a woman in a black bikini and a man in black swim trunks sit on a blue and purple towel, backs to us; a black backpack is next to them.
Right: a woman in a blue bikini sits in the shallow water with a little child.
Left: a man and a woman lie on the sand, propped up on their elbows.
Middle: groups sit together under striped umbrellas in blue, green, pink and rainbow colours.
Background: lots of people swimming and a light blue sky with a few clouds.

Useful vocabulary

sunbathe, beach umbrella, beach towel, shoreline
shallow water, turquoise, propped up, crystal-clear

Phrases

"Right at the water's edge,..."
"Scattered across the sand,..."
"Further out in the water,..."

Avoid

Repeating "people are relaxing"; describe sitting, lying, swimming and who is doing each.
Forgetting the umbrellas' colours; they're the easiest detail to describe.

Excellent answer (transcript): around CLB 11–12

This is a crowded beach on a gorgeous sunny day, and the water is so clear that you can see the sand right through it near the shore. In the foreground, a woman in a black bikini and a man in black swim trunks are sitting side by side on a bright blue and purple towel, right at the water's edge, with their backs to us. A black backpack is lying on the sand next to them. Off to the right, a woman in a blue bikini is sitting in the shallow water while a small child splashes beside her. On the left, a couple is stretched out on the sand, propped up on their elbows. Groups of people are scattered across the beach under striped umbrellas in blue, green, pink and rainbow colours. Further out, dozens of swimmers are bobbing in the turquoise sea under a pale blue sky.

150 words

Why it scores high

Content/Coherence: The opening observation that "you can see the sand right through it near the shore" proves the water's clarity with a visible detail.
Vocabulary: Lively verbs and phrases such as "splashes beside her," "stretched out on the sand" and "swimmers are bobbing" avoid repeating 'sitting' and 'relaxing.'
Listenability: Linking like "while a small child splashes" and "Off to the right" keeps the answer flowing, and it ends neatly on the sea and the sky.

Good answer (transcript): around CLB 7–8

This picture shows a busy beach on a sunny day. The sand is bright white, and the water is a clear turquoise colour. In the front, a woman in a black bikini and a man in black swim trunks are sitting on a blue and purple beach towel with their backs to us, and there's a black backpack beside them. On the right, a woman in a blue bikini is sitting in the shallow water with a little child. On the left, a couple is lying on the sand, leaning on their elbows. There are several colourful umbrellas, and lots of people are sitting under them. Further out, many people are swimming in the sea.

115 words

What works, and what's missing

Content/Coherence: The answer moves from "In the front" to "On the right," "On the left" and "Further out," giving a clear tour of the beach.
Vocabulary: Specific terms like "swim trunks," "shallow water" and "leaning on their elbows" describe the people accurately and naturally.
Task Fulfillment: The umbrellas are just "several colourful umbrellas"; naming their colours or stripes would turn the main background feature into a vivid detail.

Basic answer (transcript): around CLB 4–5

This picture is a beach and it is very sunny. The sand is white and the water is blue and very clean. In the front there is a woman and a man sitting on a towel, the towel is blue and purple. Next to them is a black bag. On the right a woman is sitting in the water with a small kid. There is many umbrella with different color. Many people is lying on the sand and some is swimming in the sea.

84 words

What holds it back

Vocabulary: "many umbrella with different color," "many people is lying" and "some is swimming" show plural and agreement errors, and "black bag" is vague for the backpack.
Content/Coherence: The couple on the left and the umbrellas get no location or detail, so the listener can't picture where anything is on the beach.
Listenability: A comma splice, "sitting on a towel, the towel is blue and purple," and repeated "There is" make the speech sound choppy.

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