Practice Task 24 — A lobby full of parcels

Task 8 · Describing an Unusual Situation — describe an unusual or hard-to-explain object or scene

Speaking Task 8Describing an Unusual SituationSPK-T8-24Intermediate

30s prepare · 60s speak

You have 30 seconds to prepare and 60 seconds to speak. Describe the unusual thing to someone who cannot see it, and explain what you think is going on.

Listen to the task prompt. Two fixed voices: a female examiner and a male situation narrator.

Describe this unusual situation in your building lobby to a friend who cannot see it.

A lobby full of parcels.

CELPIP Speaking Task 8 scene: an apartment building lobby at night

Points to cover

• the enormous pile of parcels
• the resident squeezing past them
• the courier checking a tablet

You get 30 seconds to prepare, then 60 seconds to speak. Everything here works offline — no AI needed.

1. Describe the unusual situation
2. Explain what is happening
3. Describe a possible cause
4. Explain the consequences
5. Suggest what should happen
6. Conclude

Sentence template

You won't believe what I've just seen. There's ___ right in front of me. It looks like ___, and ___. I'm not completely sure, but my guess is that ___. If that's true, it could mean ___. I think someone should ___. Anyway, I'll let you know if anything changes.