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Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab Speaking Lab Part 1: Q1 Can we talk about your hometown? What kinds of activities most people in their free time in your hometown? A1 Well, my hometown is a small town located in a place called Palmer which in Alaska, in the USA In the summer time, people often go to the tennis courts and play tennis Baseball is also very popular in my hometown - a lot of students play it Younger grade or primary school children join little league baseball and the bigger kids play for the junior baseball team - sometimes, we’d go and cheer them on A lot of people like to go for a bike ride to the corner shop for an ice cream or go fishing, but the most popular summer activity is going swimming at Lake Wasilla In winter, well that’s another story There’s much more to in the winter! Skiing - cross country or downhill; sledding – in your back yard or down a mountain; ice-skating; riding on a snow machine – as younger kids, we would take adventures in the woods just riding around for hours Um, ice hockey, ice-fishing that’s about it for the winter! Q2 What you like doing best in your free time and why? A2 I love to go swimming at the lake because it’s just my favourite activity Um, my friends are there, it’s good exercise, you get suntanned…um, and I like to look at all the interesting creatures in the water – crayfish, leeches and minnows um, I like going fishing because I love catching fish and seeing the different kinds of fish I can catch, it’s a real challenge! I really enjoy eating the fish after I’ve caught it I have to gut it and then I can cook it for dinner Sometimes we’d find gold specks in Montanna River which was my favourite fishing spot We go there with Dad in the summer and I’m really looking forward to our next fishing trip! Q3 How important is free time to people in your country? A3 Well, in the summer, it’s very important because we only have months of summer, to spend outdoors If people are busy working, then they don’t get much time to enjoy the great outdoors You see, for seven months out of the year, we have extreme cold and darkness so a lot of people work hard during the winter People only have the weekends to activities In the summer the sun doesn’t set until around 11pm so people make the most of the extra daylight hours and enjoy their free time Q4 Ok Can we talk a little about your childhood? Tell me about the place where you grew up Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab A4 The place where I grew up was a small town with a population of about um…5,000 people I lived in a small valley with lots of mountains and snow It is situated in the Matanuska-Susitna valley The name of the town is Palmer The valley has its own glacier…it is about a 1-hour drive from Palmer Ok, what else…um, the first colony arrived in 1930 so it’s a very historical town – they have the original train depot from the 1940s, in fact, my uncle was a child of one of the first colonists Um, my house My house was at the foot of a mountain called Lazy Mountain and my Dad built our house – it was made of timber, because timber keeps the house warmer than brick or concrete Q5 When you were a child, where did you usually play? A5 I played on the gravel road just outside my house…’cause our roads weren’t paved… we played in the puddles, across from our house There was a big mountain of dirt that my sister and I always played on with the neighbourhood kids We’d play ‘king of the mountain’ Sometimes we’d try and climb Lazy Mountain… actually it was a stream at the base of the mountain that we used to play in There was a huge field across from my house and in the winter we used to go cross-country skiing across it, it was great fun My skis were red and about half a metre long! Q6 Was your hometown a good place for children? A6 Oh yes, definitely There was lots of space, lots of wooded areas…the forest My house was in the forest and we always used to go exploring there We’d look for wild berries We’d walk to the Matanuska River and sink our toes into the glacial silt There was lots of glacial silt which is very, very fine dirt, almost like mud It was like quicksand, you’d sink in it Actually it could be quite dangerous Some people actually died visiting the Matanuska River They’d get stuck in the mud when the tide was out and then the tide would come in and they couldn’t get free from the mud, they’d end up drowning This happens almost every year to this day It’s very sad when you hear of it on the news So it was good but also dangerous for children in my hometown Q7 Is childhood today different from when you were a child? A7 Yes When I was a child we didn’t have computers or mobile phones, the Internet, Playstation, Nintendo…far less TV We did more outdoor activities We’d be gone for a couple of hours away from home playing in the woods and Mom didn’t even care! The environment I grew up in was much safer than it is in the world today I think it was much healthier the way I grew up…safer and healthier I want the same for my own children Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab Speaking Lab Part 2: Transcript Q1 I’m now going to give you a topic that you will need to speak about for 1-2 minutes You can take notes if you want You have minute to prepare what you want to say I want you to describe the best present you ever received Ok You have a maximum of minutes to speak so if you go over minutes, I will ask you to stop Can you please begin speaking now? A1 The best present I received - which is one I remember distinctly - was when I was girl of Of course, I’ve received more expensive presents over the years but I remember this one most clearly! In fact, I’ll never forget it It was a BIG surprise…our family was celebrating a festival and it was the custom to give gifts to each other I remember we were feasting in a 6-bed R.V…um that’s Recreational Vehicle…at the famous Alaska State Fairgrounds We had just come home from a session during the festival and I remember the gift was sitting on the kitchen table in the R.V all wrapped up with a bow on top My present was larger than my sister’s and I wondered what it could be! I was so excited! My sister opened her small gift and it was a Mickey Mouse watch with a red watch band I began to open mine and to my surprise, it was a brand new, shiny, little red cash register I was so happy! You see, I loved cash registers I’m not really sure why Maybe it was because I loved money! Anyway, it was made of red metal, with all the neat little buttons on it It actually opened when you pushed a particular button and all the fake money was sitting in the little compartments inside the register I used to play ‘cash register’ all the time I’ve done a lot of jobs with cash registers over the years - which is probably as a result of my love for cash registers as a little child As a child, that little red cash register was certainly the best present I ever got! Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab Speaking Lab Part 3: Transcript Q1 We’ve been talking about the best present you have ever received and I’d like to discuss one or two more questions that are related to this Firstly, let’s consider giving presents and gift-giving When people typically give gifts in your country? A1 Well, the most popular time to give gifts is when a person has a birthday There are other times such as weddings, anniversaries…a lot of people in my country give presents at Christmas time too Other less popular times are for bridal showers, baby showers and bar-mitzvahs Of course, the gifts vary depending upon the budget…me, I usually give less-expensive gifts For example CDs or chocolates…those kinds of things Q2 OK Can you comment on popular gifts children receive these days? A2 Children’s gifts…um…well…these days, children often receive more expensive gifts such as video games - either Playstation or Ninetendo or Xbox Also, they tend to receive a bike or computer games or expensive toys Smaller children often receive popular action figures (superman, batman, those kinds of things) or stuffed animals that are popular TV characters — Thomas the Tank Engine, Winnie The Pooh, Mickey Mouse Actually, my little niece recently had a birthday and she got all kinds of gifts…I bought her a small doll and some clothes for her to dress the doll…it wasn’t expensive but she was so happy to get this gift! Q3 How have gifts given to children changed since you were a child? Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab A3 When I was a child, I didn’t have video games or computers I remember receiving gifts that were more practical and that made me physically active or think and use my imagination Gifts such as a kite, baseball glove, or ice skates, and then crafty things like a children’s sewing machine, crocheting, artist sketch book with markers…a kind of gift where you learned to draw and paint I suppose you’d find these gifts given nowadays but back when I was a girl, there were definitely not computer or video games given Q4 Let’s talk about charitable gift-giving organisations Describe some of the charitable organisations that give gifts in your country? I can really only think of a few gift-giving organisations…the ‘Make-a-Wish’ A4 foundation, for one This organisation, I believe, grants seriously ill children their greatest wish…for instance, the Foundation will send children to Disneyland if they have never been, and are desperately wanting to go…you know, if that’s their greatest wish The other one I can think of is the Ronald McDonald House…which is a place where parents can stay to be near the hospital when their children are hospitalised for a serious illness I’m not sure if this is totally correct or not but I’ve heard that the McDonald’s hospital or Ronald McDonald house…it subsidises the cost of medical expenses, it saves people money so that they don’t have to spend a fortune on accommodation if a child is hospitalised for a few weeks or more…I might be wrong on some of the details but I know it’s a good service for people who don’t have much money Q5 Can you comment on how effective charitable organisations are? A5 Oh that’s a difficult question…I don’t have much of an idea really…umm… well, I’m not so sure I guess it depends on those that are receiving the charity and I would ask their opinion if they were effective or not I have concerns that giving money to a specific organisation would actually reach the needy person at the end I often wonder just how much of that money goes to the organisation or the people they are supporting This worries me Yes, to be honest, I worry about - when I give my money to charities - I worry about whether or not they actually end up receiving the money I donate to them There are some crooks around and they like to take money that doesn’t belong to them…it is concerning Q6 Ok Lastly, can you suggest some new ways that money might be able to be raised for charities in the future? Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab A6 Sorry mean new ways to raise money for charity…in the future? [Examiner: yes] Um, well…I think if I came up with a new and better way to raise money for charities, I would be a millionaire by now! I think the ways to raise money for charities have been exhausted and there really isn’t anything new under the sun I’m afraid I’m not really full of ideas, here Perhaps donating money from online auctions…but that’s probably already been done…um…sorry I’m really out of ideas Texas Academy ... up…safer and healthier I want the same for my own children Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab Speaking Lab Part 2: Transcript Q1 I’m now going to give you a topic that you will need... cash register was certainly the best present I ever got! Texas Academy Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab Speaking Lab Part 3: Transcript Q1 We’ve been talking about the best present you have ever...Sample Speaking Test Speaking Lab A4 The place where I grew up was a small town with a population of about um…5,000