What’s in the Listening paper?
A2 Flyers Listening test has five parts. Each part begins with one or two examples. Children will hear each recording twice.
Summary
| Time allowed: |
About 25 minutes |
| Number of parts: |
5 |
| Number of questions: |
25 |
| Marks: |
a maximum of five shields
|
Part 1
| What's in Part 1? |
A big picture which shows people doing different things. Above and below the picture, there are some names. Children have to listen carefully to a conversation between an adult and a child and draw a line from each name to the correct person on the big picture.
|
| What should children practise? |
Listening for names and descriptions.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5
|
Part 2
| What's in Part 2? |
A short conversation between two people. There is a form or a page of a notebook with some missing words (gaps). Children have to listen to the recording and write a missing word or number in each gap.
|
| What should children practise? |
Listening for names, spellings and other information.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5
|
Part 3
| What's in Part 3? |
Two sets of pictures. On the left, there are some pictures of people and their names, or other named places or objects. On the right, there is a set of pictures with letters but no words. Children have to listen to a conversation between two people and match each of the pictures on the right to one of the named pictures on the left. |
| What should children practise? |
Listening for words, names and detailed information.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5
|
Part 4
| What's in Part 4? |
Five short conversations. There is a question and three pictures for each conversation. Children have to decide which picture shows the right answer to the question and put a tick in the box under it.
|
| What should children practise? |
Listening for specific information.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5 |
Part 5
| What's in Part 5? |
A big picture. Children have to listen carefully to a conversation between an adult and a child and colour different objects for three of the questions and write a single word for two of the questions in the picture.
|
| What should children practise? |
Listening for words, colours and specific information.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5 |
What’s in the Reading and Writing paper?
A2 Flyers Reading and Writing test has seven parts. Each part begins with one or two examples. For all parts of the Reading and Writing test, children must spell their answers correctly.
Summary
| Time allowed: |
40 minutes
|
| Number of parts: |
7
|
| Number of questions: |
44 questions
|
| Marks: |
a maximum of five shields
|
Part 1
| What's in Part 1? |
Fifteen words and ten definitions (sentences that describe or explain ten of the fifteen words). Children have to write the correct word next to each definition.
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| What should children practise? |
Reading definitions and matching to words. Copying words.
|
| How many questions are there? |
10
|
Part 2
| What's in Part 2? |
A short conversation between two people. Everything that the first speaker says is printed on the question paper, with gaps for the second speaker's answers. For each gap, children have to choose the correct answer from a list (A–H).
|
| What should children practise? |
Reading and completing a continuous dialogue. Writing letters.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5
|
Part 3
| What's in Part 3? |
A text with some missing words (gaps) in it (a noun, adjective or verb). Next to the text there is a box with words in it. Children have to choose the correct word from the box for each gap and copy it. For the last question, children have to choose the best title for the text from a choice of three possible titles.
|
| What should children practise? |
Reading for specific information and gist. Copying words.
|
| How many questions are there? |
6
|
Part 4
| What's in Part 4? |
A text with some missing words (gaps). Next to the line where each word is missing, there is a choice of three possible answers. Children have to decide which answer is correct and copy the word into the gap.
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| What should children practise? |
Reading and understanding a factual text. Copying words. Simple grammar.
|
| How many questions are there? |
10
|
Part 5
| What's in Part 5? |
A complete story, and seven sentences about the story. Each sentence has a gap which children have to complete using one, two, three or four words.
|
| What should children practise? |
Reading a story. Completing sentences.
|
| How many questions are there? |
7
|
Part 6
| What's in Part 6? |
A text from a letter or diary with five gaps. Children have to write the missing word in each of the five gaps. There is no list of words to choose from.
|
| What should children practise? |
Reading and understanding a short text.
|
| How many questions are there? |
5
|
Part 7
| What's in Part 7? |
Children write a story based on three pictures.
|
| What should children practise? |
Writing short stories.
|
| How many questions are there? |
1 |
What’s in the Speaking paper?
A2 Flyers Speaking test has four parts. Children take the test alone with the examiner, but someone they know who speaks their language (like their teacher) will introduce them to the examiner and explain what to do in their own language.
Summary
| Time allowed: |
7–9 minutes |
| Number of parts: |
4
|
| Marks: |
a maximum of five shields
|
Part 1
| What's in Part 1? |
The examiner will greet the child and ask their name, family name and age. Then they look at two pictures. The pictures are similar but they have some differences. The examiner asks the child to describe four differences in the pictures.
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| What should children practise? |
Understanding and talking about differences between pictures. Talking about colour, size, number, position, how people/things look, what people are doing, etc.
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Part 2
| What's in Part 2? |
The child and the examiner each have two similar pictures (for example, pictures of two different classrooms). The examiner has information about one picture, and the child has information about the other picture. First, the examiner asks the child questions about one picture, and then the child asks similar questions about the other picture.
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| What should children practise? |
Answering questions with short answers. Asking questions to get information.
|
Part 3
| What's in Part 3? |
The examiner shows four pictures which tell a story and tells the child about the first picture. The child has to continue the story and describe the other three pictures. The title of the story and the name(s) of the main character(s) are provided.
|
| What should children practise? |
Understanding the beginning of a story and then continuing it. Describing pictures.
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Part 4
| What's in Part 4? |
The examiner asks the child some questions about him/herself (for example, school, hobbies, birthday, family or holidays).
|
| What should children practise? |
Understanding and responding to personal questions. |
What’s in the Speaking paper?
The B2 First for Schools Speaking test has four parts and the student takes it together with another candidate.
There are two examiners. One of the examiners conducts the test (asks questions, gives the student a booklet with things to talk about, and so on). The other examiner listens to what the student says.
Summary
| Time allowed: |
14 minutes per pair of candidates |
| Number of parts: |
4 |
| The student has to talk: |
with the examiner
with the other candidate
on their own |
Part 1 (Interview)
| What’s in Part 1? |
Conversation with the examiner. The examiner asks questions and students may have to give information about themselves, talk about past experiences, present circumstances and future plans. |
| What do students have to practise? |
Giving information about themselves and expressing opinions about various topics. |
| How long does each student have to speak? |
2 minutes |
Part 2 (Long turn)
| What’s in Part 2? |
The examiner gives the student a pair of photographs to talk about and they have to speak for 1 minute without interruption. The questions about the photographs are written at the top of the page to remind the student what they should talk about. When they have finished speaking, the student’s partner then has to answer a short question from the examiner about their photographs. |
| What do students have to practise? |
Talking on their own about something: comparing, describing, expressing opinions. |
| How long does each student have to speak? |
1 minute per candidate, plus a 30-second response |
Part 3 (Collaborative task)
| What’s in Part 3? |
Conversation with the other candidate. The examiner gives the students a question and some written prompts. The students discuss these together for two minutes. The examiner will then ask them to make a decision together about the topic they have been discussing. |
| What do students have to practise? |
Exchanging ideas, expressing and justifying opinions, agreeing and/or disagreeing, suggesting, speculating, evaluating, reaching a decision through negotiation, etc. |
| How long does each student have to speak? |
A 2-minute discussion followed by a 1-minute decision-making task |
Part 4 (Discussion)
| What’s in Part 4? |
Further discussion with the other candidate, guided by questions from the examiner, about the same topic as the task in Part 3. |
| What do students have to practise? |
Expressing and justifying opinions, agreeing and/or disagreeing. |
| How long does each student have to speak? |
The discussion should last 4 minutes |
