CELPIP Speaking Task 3 · Describing a Scene · question 13 of 20
A Laundromat on a Weeknight
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 in a laundromat 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 about eight o'clock on a weeknight in a small laundromat on a city street. Outside the front window, the streetlights are on and a few cars are passing. On the left, a row of white washing machines lines the wall. A young man in a grey sweatshirt is pouring detergent into one of them while reading his phone in his other hand. In the centre, there is a long wooden folding table, where an older woman is folding small children's clothes into neat piles. A little boy beside her is sitting on a plastic chair, colouring in a book. On the right, a stack of round dryer windows shows clothes spinning inside, and a woman with headphones is pulling warm towels out of one dryer into a blue basket. In the background, a man is putting coins into a change machine, and a bulletin board is covered with notices and business cards.
- Preparation
- 30 seconds
- Speaking time
- 60 seconds
- Question
- 13 of 20
A simple way to build your answer
- Describe what the machines are doing, washing and spinning, not only the people.
- Point out that the young man is doing two things at once.
- Use the bulletin board and change machine to finish with background details.
Model answer · CLB 9
157 words · no sign-upWhat we have here is a small laundromat on a city street, around eight at night. Outside, the streetlights are on. Along the left wall, there's a row of white washing machines, and a young guy in a grey sweatshirt is pouring detergent into one of them, but he's reading his phone at the same time with his other hand. In the centre, there's a long wooden table for folding, and an older woman is folding kids' clothes into neat little piles. A small boy next to her, maybe her grandson, is sitting on a plastic chair and colouring in a book. On the right, there's a stack of dryers, and you can see the clothes spinning through the round windows. A woman wearing headphones is pulling warm towels out of one and into a blue basket. At the back, a man is feeding coins into a change machine, and there's a bulletin board covered with notices.
Why this answer works
- Notices a detail that shows two simultaneous actions and expresses it with 'at the same time'.
- Hedges a relationship ('maybe her grandson') instead of stating it as fact.
- Describes the machines as well as the people, giving a fuller picture of the room.
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