CELPIP Speaking Task 3 · Describing a Scene · question 16 of 20
A Bottle Return Depot
A CELPIP Speaking Task 3 practice question (Describing a Scene), with a model answer below. No sign-up needed. Read the task, take 30 seconds to prepare, then speak for 60 seconds, out loud, as you would on the test.
The task
Describe some things that are happening in this scene at a bottle return depot as well as you can. The person with whom you are speaking cannot see it.
- Read the scene, prepare during the preparation time, then speak aloud for the speaking time.
The scene
On the real test you see a picture. Here the scene is described in words, so describe it as if you were looking at it.
It is a Saturday morning at a busy bottle return depot in a prairie city. The building is a large warehouse with a concrete floor and long steel counters. On the left, a man in a plaid jacket is lifting clear plastic bags full of empty cans out of the back of his pickup truck at the open loading door. In the centre, an employee in a yellow safety vest and gloves is quickly sorting bottles from a bag into different bins by colour: green, brown and clear. Across the counter from her, a girl of about eight is watching closely while her mother holds a receipt. On the right, an older couple is pushing a shopping cart piled high with empty juice boxes and milk jugs. Near them, a teenage worker is stacking full bins onto a wooden pallet. In the background, a large screen above the counter shows the number 47 in red, and three people are waiting on a bench.
- Preparation
- 30 seconds
- Speaking time
- 60 seconds
- Question
- 16 of 20
A simple way to build your answer
- Explain briefly what happens at a depot: people bring empty containers back for money.
- Describe the sorting by colour; it shows you noticed detail.
- Use the number on the screen to make a sensible guess about how the line works.
Model answer · CLB 9
158 words · no sign-upThis is a bottle depot, the kind of place where people bring back their empty cans and bottles to get their deposit money. It's a Saturday morning and it's busy. It's basically a big warehouse. On the left, at the open loading door, a man in a plaid jacket is unloading bags of empty cans from the back of his pickup truck. In the middle, a worker in a yellow vest and gloves is sorting bottles really fast into separate bins, green, brown and clear. On the other side of the counter, a girl who looks about eight is watching her very carefully, and her mom is holding a receipt. On the right, an older couple is pushing a cart piled high with empty juice boxes and milk jugs, and a teenage worker is stacking full bins onto a pallet. Up above the counter, a screen shows the number 47, so I think people wait for their number.
Why this answer works
- Briefly explains the purpose of the place, which helps a listener who may not know it.
- Uses the number on the screen to make a logical, hedged inference about the system.
- Lists the bin colours concisely, showing efficient use of detail within the time limit.
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