first certificate speaking and writing sample

First Certificate Speaking and Writing

© ELTpublishing 2008 5

First Certificate

and Writing

Speaking

ELTpublishing

Communication games and activities

Jon Marks

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ELTpublishing


First Certificate

Speaking and Writing

Communication games and activities

© Jon Marks 2008 Copyright Notice This work is copyright. All rights reserved. Purchasers of a user license to are permitted to store the work on a computer hard drive or other digital storage device and print out or print out and photocopy pages for their personal use (for example teaching students). Licensees are not permitted to sell, sub-license or otherwise distribute any part of the work, whether for profit or not, nor make digital copies of the work in order to transfer it by any means to third parties with the same condition applying to any user of a computer or other electronic storage device on which the work is stored.

The author Jon Marks is an experienced ELT/ESL teacher and writer who has worked in several countries including Italy, Portugal and China. He has authored and contributed to several books for major ELT publishers, including Pearson Longman, A&C Black and Delta Publishing. He currently lives in Italy.

Acknowledgements Original artwork by the author. Additional images supplied FastTrak Software Publishing Ltd. Versions of some activities in this resource appeared in English Teaching Professional magazine.

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Activities 3 and 23 can be accessed in this sample version. Buy the complete resource from ELTpublishing.comContents.

Click on a title to go to that activity

No. Paper part Activity title Theme(s) Page

FCE Paper 2: Writing

1a Part 1 Flat to let housing, informal transactional 5 letters

1b Part 1 English course reservations, formal 9 transactional letters

2 Part 1 Formal/informal Pelmanism transactional letters 11 3 Part 1 The Hotel hotels, letters of complaint 13 4 Part 1 Half crosswords formal expressions 16 5 Part 2 The writing’s on the wall writing styles 19 6 Part 2 Memory test fixed expressions 22 7a Part 2 Group writing: report education 25 7b Part 2 Group writing: review restaurants 27 7c Part 2 Group writing: email days out 28 7d Part 2 Group writing: story parties 29 7f Part 2 Group writing: essay environment 30 8 Part 2 Letter of application work, study 31 9 Parts 1 & 2 Sentence auction grammar and style 33 10 Parts 1 & 2 Writing Paper quiz exam and writing skills 35

FCE Paper 5: Speaking 11 Part 1 Ask me about…1 (A, B & C) various 38 12 Part 1 Ask me about… 2 various 42 13 Part 1 Find out about… various 44 14 Part 1 Tell us about… various 46 15 Part 1 Truth or lies? various 48 16 Part 2 Compare-and-contrast tennis various 50 17 Part 2 Imagine various 52 18 Part 2 Picture dictations leisure 54 19 Part 3 Nothing but problems practical problems 56 20a Part 3 I disagree 1 jobs, housing, hobbies, 58

communications 20b Part 3 I disagree 2 dangerous jobs, transport, pets 60 20c Part 3 I disagree 3 holidays, gifts, education 61 21 Part 3 Hypothetical questions various 62 22 Part 3 Making plans various 64 23 Part 4 What do you think? cars, teenagers, television, 66

education, fame, smokingchildren, work, cities, pets

24 Part 4 Conversation topics various 72 25 Part 4 Don’t hesitate! (Sets 1 & 2) various 74 26 Parts 1 - 5 Writing Paper quiz exam skills 77 Theme index 80




I troduction.n First Certificate course books tend to contain plenty of material for practising the receptive skills reading and listening but for reasons of space may contain less material focusing on the productive skills (speaking and writing) than many students and teachers would like. The games and activities in this book aim to redress this balance. They are fun, motivating, and all relate directly to the exam, in many cases actually using the formats of the Speaking and Writing Papers. Organisation of the book There are activities based on the formats of each part of the Speaking and Writing Papers. Each activity is preceded by its teaching notes. Timings The approximate timings given in the teaching notes are a rough guide only: timings can vary greatly according to the size of the class, the age and level of the students, and their enthusiasm for the activity. In total, this book contains 30 to 40 hours of classroom activity plus some homework suggestions. Setting up an activity To make sure that everybody understands the format of an activity, it can be a good idea to begin with a demonstration rather than an explanation. Join one group/pair/team, and begin the activity while the rest of the class watches. Explain to the class how the activity is linked to the exam, and tell them that the skills they will use to complete it are skills they will need in the exam. Doing an activity When everybody is clear about the task in hand and has begun, visit each group/pair/team as soon as possible, just to check that everything is going well. After this initial round, visit each group/pair/team for longer. Check for language difficulties, and help any students who are having problems. While you are doing the things listed above, make a mental or written note of any problems with pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary. After an activity Use the information you gathered while monitoring to practise problem areas and/or to plan future lessons which address the problems you encountered. Elicit feedback from the class. How did they think the activity was useful? What did they learn? What aspects of it were difficult? Follow-up task and activities The Teacher’s notes to several of the activities include optional follow-up tasks and activities. These can be used directly after the activity, in the next lesson or, in some cases, as homework tasks.



First Certificate Writing tasks The Paper 2 Writing section of this book contains several writing tasks similar to those appearing in this part of the exam. In the exam, scripts receive an impression mark which puts them into one of six bands. These may be summarised as follows:

0: too little language for assessment 1: entirely or almost entirely fails to communicate the message to the target reader 2: does not clearly communicate the message to the target reader 3: mostly achieves the desired affect on the target reader 4: adequately achieves the desired affect on the target reader 5: fully achieves the desired affect on the target reader

The criteria for grading scripts are complex, and examiners receive extensive training. The following is a summary of the standard candidates should aim for in order to gain a pass grade in this paper (band 3). • All the major points of the task should be included (although one or two minor omissions may be

acceptable). • There should be an adequate range of grammar and vocabulary to fulfil the requirements of the task. • Communication should be clear throughout, but a number of minor errors will be acceptable. • The ideas should be reasonably well organised, and there should be some evidence of simple linking

devices. • The register (eg, formal or informal) should be reasonably appropriate to purpose of the task and its

target reader or readers, but this need not be totally successful throughout. • The script should, generally speaking, achieve the desired effect on the target reader. • Poor handwriting is likely to be penalised. First Certificate course books and exam practice books usually contain more detailed guidelines for assessing compositions. Further information For more information concerning the exam contact:

ESOL Helpdesk University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations 1 Hills Road Cambridge CB1 2EU United Kingdom Tel. +44 1223 553997 Fax +44 1223 553621.

The FCE Handbook for Teachers containing detailed information and exam practice material can be downloaded free from:

www.CambridgeESOL.org This resource is based on the revised 2008 format of the Cambridge First Certificate Examination Buy the complete version from ELTpublishing.com.




The Hotel FCE focus Practice for writing formal transactional letters Time 1 hour 20 minutes (approx. 2 hours with follow-up task). The activity may be divided over two lessons. Format: pair work Preparation Print out/photocopy one copy of Part A and Part B per pair of students. Method 1. Draw attention to the format of this part of the

exam: the task is usually to write a transactional letter. Brainstorm the class on the various types of transactional letter (information request, making a complaint etc.). Which are usually in a formal style, and which in an informal style? Can the class think of any formal and informal ways of saying the same thing?

2. Organise the class into pairs, and hand out

copies of part A. The task is self-explanatory. Student A writes the letter, with Student B assisting verbally. Monitor, and help pairs choose the correct style/register (neutral/formal).

3. When the task is complete, hand out copies of

Part B. This time, Student B writes the letter, with Student A assisting verbally.

4. You may like to get the pairs to draft their

letters, improve them, and then write “final” versions.

Notes Ensure students are aware that this is language practice for the exam, but not a precise reflection of the format of Part 1 of the Writing Paper. It may be useful to explain that in Britain and the USA it is common to have a hot, cooked breakfast, especially when staying in a hotel. Follow-up task Tell the class to imagine that they are the manager of the hotel. The task is to write a letter to a friend or close relative telling the story of the two guests who behaved really badly, then complained about the service. The style should be informal, and the length should be 120 –180 words, as in Part 2 of the Writing Paper. Write the first line on the board:

Dear Sam, You won’t believe what happened here the other day.

For guidelines on assessing First Certificate Writing paper scripts, see page 4 Did you find this useful?

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3. Paper 2 Writing (Part 1). BACK TO CONTENTS



CONTENTS


The Hotel Student A

Alan and Jean Grumbell had a terrible night in a hotel. Write their letter of complaint to the hotel. Describe what went wrong, and ask for a refund.

Language ideas

• You don’t know the name of the manager, so begin Dear Sir/Madam,

• When you begin a letter with Dear Sir/Madam, end it with Yours faithfully, followed by your signature.

• Don’t use contractions (for example, write would not instead of wouldn’t).

• Avoid words like terrible, awful and horrible. Instead, use “less dramatic” words like unsatisfactory, inadequate, and unacceptable.

• Use passive verbs whenever possible: instead of You had not made the bed, write The bed had not been made and The reception desk was unattended.

• A good final paragraph is We look forward to hearing from you. • Other useful phrases:

Under the circumstances, we feel that…

We would be grateful if you would…

Practice for FCE Paper 2: Writing Part 1© ELTpublishing 2008 11

CONTENTS


The Hotel Student B

You are the manager of the hotel. The strip cartoon below shows what really happened. Reply to the Grumbell’s letter. Refuse a refund, and explain why.

Language ideas

• You know their names, so begin Dear Mr and Mrs Grumbell,

• When you begin with a name, end with Yours sincerely, followed by your signature.

• When you reply to a letter, it’s usual to start with something like Thank you for your letter of 4th September.

• Next, it’s often a good idea to put the most important idea of the letter. In this case, the most import thing is that you are refusing a refund: I regret that I will be unable to…

• Then give the reasons. Don’t be rude, be formal or neutral. It would be difficult to use many passive verbs, but try not to use you more than necessary.

• It’s often a good idea to sum up the letter in the final paragraph. For example, I am sorry you did not enjoy your stay here, but we cannot accept responsibility for the inconveniences you experienced.

Practice for FCE Paper 2: Writing Part 1© ELTpublishing 2008 12



23. Paper 5 Speaking (Part 4). BACK TO CONTENTS

What do you think? FCE focus Role-play/fluency practice for this part of the exam Time: 20 – 30 minutes each time the activity is used (there are enough cards to use it three times) Format: groups of three Preparation Choose three of the cards. Prepare one copy of each of the three cards for each group of three students. Method 1. Draw attention to the format of this part of the

exam: the examiner often uses the issues raised in Part 3 to lead into a more general discussion.

2. Organise the class into threes (and a four if

necessary). Give each three a face-down pile of cards. Student A takes a card, and follows the instructions on it, playing the role of the examiner. When the role-play is complete, it is Student B’s turn to take a card and play the part of the examiner. When that role-play is complete, Student C is the examiner.

3. As there are ten different cards, the activity

can be conducted again in later lessons.

Notes Although this part of the exam lasts only about 4 minutes, you may prefer to allow the students to continue each of the three conversations for longer if they wish to – but make sure they appreciate that they will only have four minutes in the exam. To reduce photocopying, choose three cards as described above, but instead of copying all three for each group, copy one set of three cards for each three groups. When each “interview” is finished, rotate the cards to other groups (ie, group A sends Card 1 to group B, group B sends Card 2 to group C, and so on). Did you find this useful?

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CONTENTS


What do you think?

CARD 8: WORK

In Part 4 of the Speaking section, the examiner has a conversation with the two candidates. You are the examiner. Ask the questions. • Make sure the candidates share the

speaking equally.

• Keep the conversation going for about 4 minutes.

• Ask extra questions if necessary (use the questions below or think of your own).

What makes people happy in their work?

What kind of jobs tend to have the happiest workers? Is pay the most important factor?

What other factors make worker happy?

How long should the working day be?

Is it possible to have a successful career and a good family life? What kind of person is most suited to being a manager? What are the advantages and the disadvantages of working for yourself? 8: TEENAGERS

CARD 7:CHILDREN


speaking equally.



Would you like to work with young children?

What kind of person do you need to be to work with children?

What is the best age to start school?

Is it a good idea for children to go to nursery school or kindergarten before starting school? What should schools teach young children?

What should parents teach their children?

Can you remember what is it like being a young child?


CONTENTS


What do you think?


CARD 9: CITIES


speaking equally.



What makes a city pleasant to live in?

How important is good public transport in a city? What makes a city an interesting place for young people to live?

Why are some cities dirty and dangerous?

How could such cities be improved?

What are the advantages of living in a small town rather than a city? What are the advantages of living in the countryside?

CARD 10:PETS

In Part 4 of the Speaking section, the examiner has a conversation with the two candidates.

You are the examiner. Ask the questions. • Make sure the candidates share the

speaking equally.



Why do so many people like to keep pets?

Why are dogs the most popular pet?

What problems can be caused by dogs?

In what ways is having a cat different to having a dog?

What responsibilities do pet-owners have?

Is it fair to keep a cat or dog in an apartment?

What is the attraction of keeping exotic pets, such as snakes or spiders? Why are some animals more suitable as pets than others?

first certificate speaking and writing sample

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