CELPIP Speaking Task 3: Describing a Scene

CELPIP Speaking Task 3 Sample Answer: Newlyweds Dancing at Sunset

This picture shows a bride and groom dancing at an evening wedding reception, surrounded by guests, candlelit tables and a tiered cake. The tricky part is separating the couple from the people standing right next to them, so the listener knows exactly who is who.

Preparation

30 seconds

Speaking

60 seconds

Picture

A detailed illustration

The question

CELPIP Speaking Task 3 practice picture: Newlyweds Dancing at Sunset

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 wedding reception at sunset: the bride and groom dancing in the middle of the room, guests at round tables with flowers and candles, a tiered cake, and big windows showing the sea.

Plan (60 sec)

Overview: "This is a wedding reception in a big hall, and the bride and groom are dancing."
Centre: the bride in a white lace gown with her hair up; the groom in a grey vest and pants, with his back to us.
Left: a man in a navy suit and tie stands close by; a woman with long brown hair smiles behind the bride.
Background: guests sitting at round tables with white tablecloths, peach flowers and candles, watching.
Right: a four-tier white cake decorated with peach flowers; a woman in a peach outfit sits nearby.
Setting: big windows with a pink and orange sky over the water.

Useful vocabulary

reception, newlyweds, first dance, lace gown
centrepiece, tiered cake, dusk, guests

Phrases

"In the centre of the dance floor,..."
"Behind them,..."
"Through the windows, you can see..."

Avoid

Only saying "it's a beautiful wedding"; describe the clothes, cake, tables and sky.
Mixing up who's who; the groom is the man in grey, not the one in the suit.

Excellent answer (transcript): around CLB 11–12

This is a wedding reception in a spacious hall, and it looks like it's just after sunset, because the sky outside the tall windows is glowing pink and orange over the water. Right in the centre, the newlyweds are sharing a dance. The bride is in a fitted white lace gown with a long train, and her hair is swept up, while the groom, in a grey vest and matching trousers, has his back to the camera. Standing just beside them, a man in a navy suit and tie is watching closely, and a woman with long brown hair is beaming over the bride's shoulder. In the background, guests are seated at round tables draped in white, each with a centrepiece of peach and pink flowers and some flickering candles. Off to the right, there's a four-tier white cake decorated with peach roses, and a woman in a peach outfit is sitting near it, smiling at the couple.

158 words

Why it scores high

Content/Coherence: Opening with evidence, "because the sky outside the tall windows is glowing pink and orange," explains the time of day before describing people.
Vocabulary: Phrases such as "sharing a dance," "swept up," "beaming over the bride's shoulder" and "tables draped in white" sound polished and precise.
Listenability: "Right in the centre," "Standing just beside them," "In the background" and "Off to the right" guide the listener through the room effortlessly.

Good answer (transcript): around CLB 7–8

This picture shows a wedding reception in a large hall, probably in the evening. In the middle of the room, the bride and groom are dancing together. The bride is wearing a long white lace dress, and her hair is pinned up. The groom is wearing a grey vest and grey pants, and he has his back to us. Next to them, a man in a navy suit and tie is standing and watching. Behind them, lots of guests are sitting at round tables with white tablecloths, flowers and candles. On the right, there's a tall white wedding cake decorated with peach flowers. Through the big windows, you can see a pink and orange sky over the water.

118 words

What works, and what's missing

Content/Coherence: The answer covers the couple, the man beside them, the tables, the cake and the windows in a clear centre-to-edges order.
Vocabulary: Accurate words like "reception," "lace dress" and "hair is pinned up" describe the bride and setting naturally.
Task Fulfillment: "probably in the evening" is a guess without support; tying it to the glowing sky in the windows would make the reasoning clear.

Basic answer (transcript): around CLB 4–5

This picture is a wedding party. In the middle the bride and groom is dancing. The bride have a white long dress and the groom have grey vest. Next to them one man with dark suit is standing. Behind them many guests is sitting at the table and watching. The tables have white cloth and flowers and candles. On the right there is a big white cake with flowers. Out the window I can see the sky, it is orange. Everybody is happy.

83 words

What holds it back

Vocabulary: "the bride and groom is dancing," "the bride have" and "many guests is" show agreement errors, and "white cloth" replaces 'tablecloth.'
Content/Coherence: The groom's position and the woman behind the bride are missing, and the windows get only "it is orange" with no mention of the water.
Listenability: "I can see the sky, it is orange" is a comma splice, and the answer ends on a vague "Everybody is happy" instead of a detail.

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