Cue Cards: 1 Minute of Notes, 2 Minutes of Talk

In Part 2 the examiner gives you a cue card, paper and a pencil, and allows exactly one minute for preparation. Waiting passively after reading the card or spending too long writing full sentences can leave little time to plan. Short notes can help you select points to develop in your talk.

Remember: notes are not assessed; your speaking is assessed. The note is your map. For practice, try about 8–10 short cues or phrases; this is not an official word limit. Notes can help you move between points and pay attention to your language.

Practical advice: write words, not sentences. Brief notes can help you use the one-minute preparation time efficiently; note format is not itself a scoring criterion. Intonation is considered under Pronunciation, while hesitation to search for language is considered under Fluency and Coherence.

The template is simple: divide the paper into two columns and write one WH- anchor at the top of each column. An anchor is the big question that your talk rests on. One pair to try:

1. WHEN + WHERE — time and place. Can help set up the context in about 10 seconds.
2. WHO + WHAT — the people and the event itself. Provides the main part of the story.

Adapt the anchors to the actual cue card and plan for all the requested points, including how, how long and why. Try about 4–5 short cues or phrases for each anchor; this is not an official limit of 10 words.

A sample of notes in English — let the card be “Describe a skill you learned recently”:

WHEN / WHERE — last winter · evenings · kitchen table · YouTube tutorial WHO / WHAT — older cousin · sourdough bread · first loaf failed · third try · proud

These short cues recall the context, the people, the event and the emotional ending. The example includes multi-word phrases rather than ten words; you still need to develop them with relevant detail when speaking. The next step is to turn this skeleton into speech.

When your notes are ready, try organising the answer into five beats — a simple "story spine". The times below are adjustable practice suggestions, not official limits for each part. Do not combine all the upper ends: the whole talk must fit within one–two minutes.

1. Context — time, place, people. 15–20 seconds.
2. Moment — the central moment of the event: what happened? 30–40 seconds.
3. Detail — magnify one feeling, one image, one dialogue. 25–30 seconds.
4. Feeling — what did you feel at that moment? 15 seconds.
5. Reflection — how did this experience change you, what stayed with you until today? 20–30 seconds.

Listing the card's bullets with “and then... and then...” without developing details can make an answer end early; there is no fixed 40-second rule. Where relevant, choose one scene, for example the moment of the failed first loaf, and expand it. This is one possible method: the goal is to develop relevant details clearly in response to the actual question.