Speaking: Conversation questions

Printable ESL conversation cards. Grammar conversation questions

• past simple – childhood
• past simple – recent events
• present perfect – have you ever?
• present perfect – life history

Tell a story or personal anecdote

Instructions: 

In some speaking exams you may have to tell a story that you make up or a true story about something that happened to you. This is sometimes called a personal anecdote.

Here are our top tips for telling a good story or anecdote.

Do:

• Take time to think about the question and the story before you start talking. 
• Use narrative tenses – past simple, past continuous and past perfect.
• Use adjectives and adverbs to make the story interesting.
• Use sequencing words: first of all, then, after that, later on, finally, in the end ...
• Give your story an introduction. Say briefly what your story is about.
• Give the background to your story. Say when and where it took place and what you were doing at that time.
• Say what happened step by step. Use words like so, because and although to connect the actions until you reach the end of the story.
• Keep the action moving!
• Finish your story or anecdote by saying why it is important to you or why you remember it.
• Look at your listeners.

Don’t:

• Take too long telling the story or your listeners will get bored.
• Use a flat or bored voice.
• Look down or look around the room.

Examples of storytelling tasks

• Tell me about a holiday you had.
• Tell me about a difficult journey you had.
• Tell me about a perfect day you’ve had.
• Tell me about a special event in your life.
• Tell me about a birthday you remember.
• Tell me about a time when you lost something important.
• Tell me about a time when you gave someone a surprise
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