Tests / Speaking_and_Writing / Speaking and Writing Activities

Speaking and Writing Tasks (Optional)

Units 1–3

1 Speaking

A Presentation

Prepare and give a short presentation (up to two minutes) to your partner, answering the following question:

Who is/was the best actor/actress in history and why?

Remember to use adjectives and adverbs of emphasis in your presentation.

When you have finished your presentations discuss and decide whose presentation you would like to present to the class together.

B Roleplay

Work in groups of four (or three). You are going to have a meeting on the following proposal:

Whether or not to replace the funfair in the centre of town with a new shopping centre.

Read your cards carefully and then hold the meeting. Use language to:

1. ask polite questions

2. put your points forcefully

3. be diplomatic

STUDENT A:

You are supporting the shopping centre. You believe the funfair is old and makes the town centre look ugly. The new shopping centre will bring many jobs and provide a service to the whole city. It will also make you a lot of money as you own part of the land.

STUDENT B:

You are supporting the funfair. All of your children love going to the funfair in the summer and there is nowhere else for children to go. The only other option is a shopping centre where they waste their money and get bored. You think money should be spent to improve the funfair. You agree the town needs another shopping centre but it should be outside of the town.

STUDENT C:

You do not believe there should be a shopping centre or a funfair in the town, The funfair is too noisy and causes a lot of problems in the summer with crowds. The funfair is also old and ugly. A shopping centre will mean traffic problems. You think the land should be used to build a park as there are not enough quiet green places in the town.

STUDENT D:

You think that any project will be wasting the government’s money. You think the land should be sold to a private developer and then the developer can decide what to build there. The funfair must go but anything else could be built there. You think the government should spend the money on public transport which is very bad in the town right now.

2 Writing

Write emails for the following:

1) Your company have asked you to send an email to Dr Giles Smith, a business consultant, asking him to come and do some workshops on teamwork at the Company International Conference on January 15^th next year in Barcelona. Your manager, Brian Jones, attended one of his courses last year and thought it was fantastic.

2) You want to invite your friend from university, Allie Graham, to take part in a charity race next weekend. Allie was the best runner at school and is also a well-known radio presenter and she could certainly help with the giving of prizes as well.

(100–130 words TOTAL)

Units 4–6

1 Speaking

A Role-play

Work in pairs. Read your cards carefully and then have a meeting to negotiate a contract. Remember to use language for:

a) proposing,

b) bargaining

c) talking about needs and expectations

STUDENT A:

You are the manager of the athlete Sarah Smith. Last year you were sponsored by Kool Cola During that year, Sarah came second in the European Championships and broke the European Record, although she was injured for three months of the year. Sarah is only 21 so she has a lot of potential. You are expecting Kool Cola to sponsor Sarah again this year and increase their sponsorship by 15 percent and offer a contact for three years. Sportex have offered a contract for one year which is 20 percent more than Kool Cola gave last year.

STUDENT B:

You are a manager of Kool Cola. Last year you sponsored the athlete Sarah Smith. During that year, Sarah could have won the European Championships but only came second. She broke the European Record but was injured for three months of the year. Sarah is only 21 so it is still not clear how good she is or if she can stay injury-free. However you are prepared to offer a four year sponsorship but only for the same money she received last year.

B Problem-solving

The town which you live in has had a lot of problems with teenagers recently. There has been an increase in the number of teenagers missing school. At the same time there has been an increase in vandalism and graffiti. Recently there have been more cases of theft from shops in the shopping centre. Video cameras have not helped because teenagers are wearing hoods.

Have a meeting to discuss what can be done to deal with this situation and make an action plan. Remember, in your discussion to use the language of persuading and recommending action.

2 Writing

Write a short report on the best place to stay for a weekend break. Use the table to help you.

Remember to divide your report with an introduction, facts and findings and a conclusion. Use different ways to make recommendations.

	COST	THINGS TO DO (Marks out of ten, ten being best)	PLACES TO STAY (Marks out of ten, ten being best)	COMMENTS
Reykjavik, Iceland	Expensive	6	9	Good choice of restaurants and bars. Very good night clubs. Limited choice of accommodation but all good quality. Very expensive. Limited things to do but possibly best nightlife in Europe
Riga, Latvia	Cheap	7	7	Wide range of accommodation. Some good, some bad. Very touristy. Transport could be better. Lots of historical places to visit but nightlife not as good as others. Good choice of restaurants
Tallin, Estonia	Average	8	7	Very historical. Excellent restaurants. Nightlife OK but could be more. Accommodation OK.

(120–150 words)

Units 7–9

1 Speaking

A Problem-solving

You are planning a new university for your city. You have been asked to make a plan of the Students’ Union / Student Facilities. Have a meeting to make a plan of the Students’ Union and be prepared to present it to the rest of the class. Remember to use language for talking about requirements.

B Information gap

Prepare and give a talk about someone you admire. Descibe this person and explain why he/she should be admired. Be prepared to speak for at least two minutes. Remember to use the following:

a) ordering information in a talk

b) signalling the end of one topic

c) changing to a new topic

d) summarising and concluding

2 Writing

Write a review of one of the following:

• a book you have read recently

• a place you have visited

• a CD you have listened to

(120–150 words)

Units 10–12

1 Speaking

A Presentation

Prepare and give a presentation (to last between 2 and 5 minutes) on a topic related to one of the following areas:

• art

• city life

• health

• technology

• the environment

• university

Remember to consider the following areas:

1. starting

2. signalling structure

3. moving on

4. summarising

5. inviting questions

B Role-play

Together with your partner, take it in turns to be the manager and the person with the problem and hold two problem-solving meetings. Make sure each meeting lasts a minimum of five minutes.

PROBLEM 1

You have just come back from a sales visit to a very important customer and have just sold them 500 new AK7 computers and told them that they will be delivered next week. Unfortunately, you have just discovered that there are no more AK7 computers in the warehouse and the company is not planning to sell any more. You feel very guilty about this and you are thinking of resigning.

PROBLEM 2

You have a problem with another teacher in the school. You have spent three months teaching your students good habits and following the rules. Suddenly the students have become very difficult. You found out that this is because of the other teacher who has no rules in his classroom. He is very popular with the students and the parents. When you asked him about this he told you that it was your problem and he wasn’t going to change his style for you. You feel that you cannot continue in this situation.

2 Writing

Write a discursive essay on the following topic:

Computers are damaging us.

Make sure you use the following phrases in your essay:

a) This essay presents …

b) A major advantage of …

c) On the other hand, some people argue …

d) However …

e) As far as I can see / In my opinion …

You can use the following table to help you or use your own ideas.

FOR	AGAINST
- make people anti-social - make people unhealthy	- save time - give you access to more knowledge

(120–150 words)

PHOTOCOPIABLE © 2008 Pearson Longman ELT

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