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Aptis Speaking Part Two Activities

A LESSON PLAN FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS

Practising Part Two of APTIS Speaking activities.

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Lesson Plan Content:


Aptis Speaking Part Two activities

Personalised practice for Aptis Speaking Part Two

Describe a photo that is on your smartphone/ mobile phone, computer, or social media, trying to remember it or imagine it if it’s not in front of you now. Your partner will listen, suggest more things to say, and ask (personal and/ or opinion) questions about the photo.

Do the same for a (real or imaginary) photo of one thing on this list of Aptis topics:

  • Your desk
  • Your house or flat
  • The building in which you work or study (office, school, uni, etc)
  • A stadium you have been to
  • A night out with friends, classmates or colleagues
  • Somewhere you visited on holiday
  • A meeting you attended
  • Inside a museum that you visited
  • Someone making something that you saw
  • Yourself making something
  • A presentation or speech that you gave or listened to

 

Aptis Speaking Part Two speaking longer games

Work together to use as many of the useful words and phrases on the next page below as you can to describe a photo, ticking them off as you use them.

Look at a photo that your teacher shows you. Speak about it for as long as you can, in as much detail as possible. When you stop, your partner will get a point for each extra (new true) sentence that they say. However, you can dismiss sentences which can’t be true about that photo, you already said, etc.  

 

Aptis Speaking Part Two speaking longer and longer

Look at a photo that your teacher gives you. With your partner, take turns describing the picture in more and more detail, starting with quite a short, basic description, and getting longer and longer each time. You can repeat what you and your partner said before and/ or say different things. The other person should time the speaking, taking time off for silence. Stop when the next description is shorter than the previous one, then work together to make a perfect description of about 45 seconds.

 

Aptis speaking part two meeting criteria game

Describe a photo for exactly 45 seconds. Your partner will listen and give you one point for each of these things that you do during that time:

  • start straightaway
  • describe the person
  • describe the background/ setting
  • guess/ speculate
  • not repeat/ use a wide range of different language
  • speak right up to or past the time limit

You will then get one extra photo for each point that you scored (so you have more choice of photos to speak about the next time that it is your turn to speak).

 

Useful language for Aptis speaking part two

Use as many phrases below as you can while you describe real or imaginary photos.

  • a girl/ a boy
  • a woman/ a man
  • above – under/ below/ beneath
  • almost certainly
  • at the top/ near the top – at the bottom/ near the bottom
  • behind
  • big/ large – small/ little
  • busy/ crowded – quiet/ empty
  • clearly
  • could (possibly)
  • (almost) everyone
  • face/ expression
  • I can see…
  • I can’t see… clearly but…
  • I guess (the location/ setting)…
  • I imagine (they feel)…
  • I’m not sure what the name is in English, but…
  • I’m sure
  • in front of
  • in the background – in the foreground
  • in the countryside – in the city
  • in the middle
  • in the top right (hand) corner – in the bottom left (hand) corner
  • in/ inside
  • is wearing/ is holding/ is carrying/ is sitting/ is standing/ is…ing (…)
  • It includes…
  • long – short
  • looks (as if/ like)
  • may/ might (well)
  • maybe/ perhaps
  • most people
  • must
  • near/ close to
  • next to
  • obviously
  • old – (brand) new/ modern
  • on the left – on the right
  • on/ on top of
  • probably
  • seems (to)
  • some kind of
  • some people
  • someone/ somebody
  • something like
  • somewhere…
  • square/ rectangular – round/ circular
  • The setting…
  • the woman/ she/ the man/ he
  • There are two/ a couple of/ a few/ some/ a lot of… (as well).
  • There is (also) a/ an/ one/ a little/ some/ a lot of…
  • This is a picture of…
  • This photo shows…
  • We can see…
  • wooden – metal
  • young – middle-aged – old

Ask about language above which you couldn’t use, are not sure you used correctly, etc.

 

Brainstorming useful language for Aptis speaking part two

Without looking above, brainstorm phrases for describing photos into these categories.

Starting the description

 

 

 

 

Location

 

 

 

 

Describing people

 

 

 

 

Describing objects

 

 

 

 

Speculating/ Guessing/ Unsure language

 

 

 

 

Positions (in the photo and/ or compared to other things)

 

 

 

 

Look at the mixed list above to help, brainstorm more, then compare your answers as a class or with the suggested answers.


Suggested answers

Many other answers are possible, so please check with your teacher if you wrote something different.

Starting the description

  • This is a picture of…
  • This photo shows…
  • I can see…
  • We can see…
  • There is (also) a/ an/ one/ a little/ some/ a lot of…
  • There are two/ a couple of/ a few/ some/ a lot of… (as well).
  • It includes

Location

  • The setting…
  • somewhere…
  • in the countryside – in the city
  • busy/ crowded – quiet/ empty

Describing people

  • someone/ somebody
  • some people
  • a woman/ a man
  • the woman/ she/ the man/ he
  • (almost) everyone
  • most people
  • a girl/ a boy
  • is wearing/ is holding/ is carrying/ is sitting/ is standing/ is…ing (…)
  • face/ expression
  • young – middle-aged – old

Describing objects

  • I’m not sure what the name is in English, but…
  • some kind of
  • something like
  • big/ large – small/ little
  • square/ rectangular – round/ circular
  • long – short
  • wooden – metal
  • old – (brand) new/ modern

Speculating/ Guessing/ Unsure language

  • I can’t see… clearly but…
  • clearly
  • obviously
  • must
  • I’m sure
  • almost certainly
  • probably
  • I guess (the location/ setting)…
  • I imagine (they feel)…
  • looks (as if/ like)
  • seems (to)
  • may/ might (well)
  • maybe/ perhaps
  • could (possibly)

Positions (in the photo and/ or compared to other things)

  • in the background – in the foreground
  • in the top right (hand) corner – in the bottom left (hand) corner
  • on the left – on the right
  • at the top/ near the top – at the bottom/ near the bottom
  • in the middle
  • next to
  • in front of
  • behind
  • near/ close to
  • on/ on top of
  • above – under/ below/ beneath
  • in/ inside

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