CELPIP Speaking Samples: Model Answers & Practice Topics

This page gives you three things: a model answer annotated against the four official rater dimensions, a CLB 7 vs CLB 9 comparison of the same prompt, and 24 fresh practice topics grouped by task type, each with its official prep and speaking times.

Plenty of CELPIP speaking test samples float around. Very few explain why they'd score what they claim. That's the gap this page closes, using the same standards the raters apply.

The prompt below is new, written for this page. The answer runs about 120 words, which is what a steady pace fills in 60 seconds.

Prompt · Task 2, Personal Experience · 30s prep, 60s speaking

Talk about a time you helped someone you didn't know well.

Model answer, CLB 9+

Last winter, my neighbour's car got stuck at the end of our street during a snowstorm. I barely knew him then; we'd maybe nodded twice in the hallway. But I grabbed the shovel from my trunk and spent about twenty minutes digging out his wheels while he rocked the car. What made it memorable wasn't the digging, honestly. It was the conversation after. He'd just moved from Nigeria, it was his first snow, and he had no idea the city wouldn't plow our street until morning. We ended up swapping numbers, and now he's the person I call when I need a hand. Helping him cost me twenty minutes and gave me a friend.

CELPIP raters score speaking on four dimensions, published on the official results page. Here's where this answer earns each one:

The structure behind this answer is the standard Task 2 shape. Our Task 2 guide breaks it into a reusable template, and the speaking score chart shows what each level means in CLB terms.

The same prompt at CLB 7

I helped my neighbour one time in winter. His car was stuck in the snow. I took my shovel and I helped him to dig the car. He was very happy and he said thank you so much. We are friends now. That's why I think helping people is very important.

Notice what changed? The 7-level answer is accurate English. It loses points on everything around the language: it stops well short of the minute, every sentence follows the same subject-verb shape, and it ends on a generic lesson instead of the story itself.

We see this pattern constantly in scored speaking attempts on Celpify. Responses that stop 15 or more seconds early and close on a moral cluster around 7 and 8. The 9-plus responses use the full time, add one specific detail per sentence, and end inside the story. Same grammar level, two-band gap.

CELPIP publishes free Speaking Pro study packs with real rated responses: transcripts at every level from M to 12, with analysis of each response's strengths. If you want a CELPIP speaking samples PDF, those packs are the legitimate download, straight from the test maker. All three are linked in the sources at the end of this page.

What a transcript can't do is hear you back. Reading a level-12 sample tells you what the target sounds like; it doesn't tell you how far your own answer is from it. The loop that moves scores is record, get rated, fix one thing, repeat. You can run that loop on the Celpify speaking practice bank, where answers are scored like the real CELPIP test, or with a study partner and a stopwatch.

And when a sample raises a how-do-I-do-that question (structure, timing, openers), that's template territory: the speaking tips hub covers strategy for the whole section.

Giving advice · Task 1 (30s prep, 90s speaking)

• A friend wants to buy a used car with 200,000 km on it because the price is low.

• Your cousin has two job offers: higher pay downtown, or lower pay ten minutes from home.

• A coworker keeps missing deadlines because they say yes to every request.

Structure for this task: the Task 1 guide.

Personal experience · Task 2 (30s prep, 60s speaking)

• A time you had to change your plans at the last minute.

• A purchase you hesitated over and were glad you made.

• A time you misunderstood someone because of language or culture.

Structure for this task: the Task 2 guide.

Describing a scene · Task 3 (30s prep, 60s speaking)

• A community pool on a hot Saturday afternoon.

• A small airport waiting area during a long delay.

• A street festival an hour before it opens.

Structure for this task: the Task 3 guide.

Making predictions · Task 4 (30s prep, 60s speaking)

On the real test, Task 4 continues the Task 3 scene, so practise them as pairs:

• Storm clouds are rolling toward that community pool. What happens next?

• The delayed flight finally boards. What do the passengers do?

• The festival has been open for two hours. What does the street look like now?

Structure for this task: the Task 4 guide.

Comparing and persuading · Task 5 (60s prep, 60s speaking)

• Two apartments: a furnished basement suite near transit, or a bright third-floor walk-up 40 minutes out.

• Two gifts for a ten-year-old: a tablet, or a season of swimming lessons.

• Two options for a team lunch: a fixed-menu buffet, or a build-your-own sandwich bar.

Structure for this task: the Task 5 guide.

Dealing with a difficult situation · Task 6 (60s prep, 60s speaking)

• Your landlord scheduled repairs for the week your in-laws are visiting. Ask to move the date.

• A friend keeps borrowing small amounts of money and forgetting. Raise it without ending the friendship.

• The courier marked your package delivered, but it went to the wrong address. Sort it out.

Structure for this task: the Task 6 guide.

Expressing opinions · Task 7 (30s prep, 90s speaking)

• Should employers be allowed to contact staff after work hours?

• Is it better for kids to get cash allowances or their own bank cards?

• Should cities charge more for downtown parking?

Structure for this task: the Task 7 guide.

Describing an unusual situation · Task 8 (30s prep, 60s speaking)

• A kitchen gadget from a garage sale that you can't identify. Describe it to a friend who might know.

• A chair shaped like a giant open hand. Describe it to a friend who's thinking of buying it.

• A park statue that combines a moose and a bicycle. Describe it to the city's information line.

Structure for this task: the Task 8 guide.

To use the bank: set a 30-second prep timer (60 for Tasks 5 and 6), speak to the full time, then hold your recording against the model answer above. One topic done properly beats five read silently. When you're ready to feel the pacing of the whole section, a timed speaking mock test strings all eight tasks together the way the real sitting does.

One caution on hunting for recent CELPIP speaking topics. Prompts rotate; task types don't. A leaked list from last month prepares you for last month's test. Practising the eight task shapes above prepares you for whichever prompts you actually get.