CELPIP Speaking Task 8: Describing an Unusual Situation

Model Response (CLB 9-10):

“Hi Katia, can you hear this music behind me? I’m in a park somewhere downtown, at this tourist spot, and these street performers are putting on the most amazing show. They’ve set up all these unusual instruments, and the sound is actually incredible.

One of them is playing melodies on a row of wine glasses, each one filled with different amounts of water, and it sounds like a piano almost. Another person is drumming on a bunch of upturned plastic buckets and metal garbage cans, and I know that sounds weird, but the rhythm is fantastic, really tight and professional. And then there’s a guy playing a guitar that looks like it’s made out of a wooden box, like something homemade, but it sounds so warm and full.

There’s a big crowd gathering around, and everyone looks pretty amazed. People are filming on their phones and tapping their feet. I’ve been standing here for about ten minutes and I could stay all afternoon, honestly.

You should really come check this out. Are you free right now? I think they’ll be playing for a while. Call me back and I’ll tell you exactly where I am!”

यह क्यों प्रभावी है:

• स्वाभाविक, उत्साहपूर्ण फ़ोन अभिवादन और तुरंत ध्वनि का प्रसंग (“can you hear this music?”)
• तीन अलग-अलग असामान्य वाद्य यंत्रों का सुलभ शब्दावली से वर्णन
• श्रोता को अपरिचित चीज़ें समझाने के लिए तुलनाएँ (“sounds like a piano”)
• माहौल बनाने के लिए भीड़ की प्रतिक्रियाएँ शामिल की गईं
• स्वाभाविक निमंत्रण से फ़ोन कॉल का उचित समापन
• पूरे उत्तर में उत्साहपूर्ण, सक्रिय स्वर

Model Response (CLB 9-10):

“Hey Mark, you need to hear this. I’m in the park downtown on my lunch break, and there’s this enormous house just sitting here, except it’s completely upside down. I’m serious, the roof is on the ground and the foundation is sticking straight up into the air. It’s like somebody picked up a two-storey house, flipped it over, and dropped it right in the middle of the park.

The whole thing looks totally real, like actual bricks and windows and a front door, but everything is reversed. There are kids running around it trying to look through the windows, which are now at ground level, and you can kind of see furniture inside that’s bolted to what used to be the ceiling. There’s even a chandelier pointing upward, which looks so bizarre.

People are crowding around taking photos, and the funniest part is there are pigeons sitting on top, on the foundation edges, like they’ve just accepted that this is normal. It must be some kind of art installation that went up overnight because it definitely was not here yesterday.

You should come check it out after work, it’s right by the fountain. You’ll spot it immediately. See you later!”

यह क्यों प्रभावी है:

• स्वाभाविक, उत्साहपूर्ण फ़ोन अभिवादन से तुरंत माहौल बनता है
• सजीव वर्णन श्रोता को वह दृश्य कल्पना करने में मदद करता है जो वह देख नहीं सकता
• विशिष्ट विवरण (छत से बँधा फ़र्नीचर, झूमर, कबूतर) स्पष्ट तस्वीर बनाते हैं
• जटिल दृश्य तत्वों को सरल भाषा में समझाया गया
• कबूतरों के बारे में हलका हास्य बातचीत का स्वर बनाए रखता है
• स्वाभाविक निमंत्रण से फ़ोन कॉल का समापन

Model Response (CLB 9-10):

“Hi Sarah, okay, I’m at the mall and I just walked past this shoe store that has the wildest display I’ve ever seen. These are not regular shoes. The first pair in the window looks like it’s made entirely out of real flowers, like roses and little white blossoms all woven together into the shape of sneakers. They actually look fresh, like someone just picked them from a garden this morning.

But that’s not even the craziest part. There’s another pair that has completely see-through soles, and I swear there are tiny goldfish swimming around inside them, like little portable fish tanks on your feet. I have no idea how that even works, but the fish are definitely alive and moving around.

And then there’s a pair with actual working clocks built right into the heels. I can see the second hands ticking. It’s the most creative thing I’ve ever seen, but I can’t imagine anyone actually wearing these outside.

The best part is the sales associate standing next to the display with a totally straight face, like this is completely normal. Meanwhile, everyone walking by has just stopped and is staring with their mouths open. You have to come see this. Are you still at work? Call me when you’re done!”

यह क्यों प्रभावी है:

• उत्साहपूर्ण, स्वाभाविक शुरुआत जो श्रोता का ध्यान खींचती है
• तीन अलग-अलग असामान्य वस्तुओं का सजीव, सुलभ शब्दावली से वर्णन
• रचनात्मक तुलनाएँ (“like little portable fish tanks”) अपरिचित वस्तुओं को समझाती हैं
• गहराई जोड़ने के लिए दर्शकों और बिक्री सहायक की प्रतिक्रियाएँ शामिल
• उत्साह क्रमशः बढ़ता है, सबसे मज़ेदार विवरण अंत के लिए रखा गया
• मित्र को निमंत्रण देकर फ़ोन कॉल का स्वाभाविक समापन