Home > Talking about Family: Speaking Practice

Talking about Family: Speaking Practice

Share this
3.4
(5)

talking about familyWelcome to our free lesson talking about family to give you practise for the IGCSE ESL exam. This is just one of the many lessons available to reinforce your learning so you feel confident when the IGCSE ESL exam day arrives. Our lessons are centred around common themes featured in the reading, writing, speaking and listening parts of the exam.

Talking about Family: Speaking Practice

speaking practiceIn this lesson, we will practice our speaking skills by talking about family. Watch our video that will guide you through the lesson. You will be asked to pause the video to complete the activities in the tabs below.

Exercise 1Exercise 2Exercise 3Word List

You are going to watch teenagers talking about their siblings. Answer the questions when prompted. 

Click here to view transcript

Girl: I’m blessed to have really really nice parents, and they’re always looking out for me that being said though you do quarrel sometimes.

Boy: My relationship with my parents I think relatively is pretty good obviously they’re at the moments where being a teenager I don’t really feel like talking to them don’t really feel like letting them into my life.

Girl: When something’s on my mind I usually go to my friends about it I don’t really talk to my brother

Boy: I do you find it difficult to talk to my parents because they put a lot of pressure on me saying I can tell them anything, but that just makes me feel like maybe they just want to know and I’m not so sure if I want to tell them about some of my problems

Girl: I have a little brother who’s about one years old, one year old and my mom and I always argue because I have to watch him a lot and it’s part of my job as you know a member of the family they do have to look after my siblings, so I always think I should not have to look after them for very long.

Boy: Every weekend, we have like a little family movie night where we just um kick back and relax watch a fun little movie those most of our arguments are over what movie.

Girl: We watch we don’t exactly get along all that well I mean we argue a lot and kind of everything turned into an argument and it’s kind of hard to get along with him sometimes.

Boy: Ya know let’s watch rainbow pony unicorn saves happy clown land and I’m like no let’s watch this awesome Terminator death movie.

Boy: Well being an only child is it has its pros and cons um the pros are your parents kind of become your brothers and sisters and they become your friends

Boy: And the best thing about having a little sister or somebody to pick on.

Boy: The cons are sometimes I do get lonely when my friends are away and I have nothing to do except sit and think.

Boy: The best thing honestly is that you always have somebody to talk to or hang out with.

Boy: She dances in the living room all the time and she sings really loudly in a room so that the whole house in here.

Girl: He makes irritating noises and I tell him to stop more than once very nicely and he doesn’t stop.

Girl: I have a big sister who I can really talk to about a lot of stuff especially when you know I just I feel my in my inhibitions hold me back from talking to my mom and dad about it.

Boy: She also always dances around the house a lot so that gets in the way of just going to do things like you have to wait for her to like to finish her plie or something before you can move.

Girl: And I danced in public too.

Boy: That’s how sometimes I just walk away.

Girl: He calls me a loser and I like snap and I don’t like it like at all.

Boy: I call everybody loser yourself.

Girl: Did you call me a loser more than anyone else.

Boy: Being an only child is fun to me because I don’t really have to worry about some other kid running around the house or sharing something because I’m an only child and I get a lot of attention which I like.

Boy: So it’s always nice just to have a sibling who’s pretty much always there for you.

It is often said that the family is at the heart of society. Listen to Emma talking about her family and what she enjoys doing together with them.

Here are the prompts from the speaking test that Emma is using:

  • the different members of your family, and how big your family is
  • what you enjoy doing together with your family, and why

Click here to view transcript

I wouldn’t say that I have a big family, just four people. My mum and dad of course, and my big sister and me. Oh yes! I also have a dog called Ben, who’s part of our family, too. My mum and dad work hard every day, but when I come back from school, we eat dinner together and get a chance for a chat. My parents are easy to talk to, and when I have a problem they give me good advice.

My sister was always around for me when I was young, so I feel very close to her. She’s studying in England now, but we still talk online. If I need to talk to her about teenager issues, she’s always there to help me out.

On Sunday, we always have a video call with all four of us plus Ben. So, we can catch up on what we have been doing during the week. I really like that.

When my sister comes back during the holidays, we get the chance to visit some interesting places together. I really enjoy going on a camp trip, as we sleep in a tent, and get the chance to sing songs and chat with each other. My dad tells us to switch off our phones on holiday, which can be challenging at first, but I think it brings us together as a family.

Funny enough using technology brings us together more, when we are living away from home. This year, I’m off to university, so we will have to rely on technology, to keep in touch on a regular basis.

Choose one of the prompts below and discuss it with your friend.

  • the different members of your family, and how big your family is
  • what you enjoy doing together with your family, and why
  • the pros and cons of being an only child

Here are the keywords and phrases covered in this lesson:

  • a chance for a chat
  • arguments
  • around for me
  • attention
  • brings us together
  • catch up
  • challenging
  • get along with
  • heart of society
  • keep in touch
  • someone to pick on
  • pros and cons
  • quarrel
  • siblings
We add activities and exercises regularly on various themes, so why not bookmark our site, so you can come back to practice anywhere or at any time of the day.

Explore the way we use technology and science in the modern world

Here you will find exercise to practice for the reading and writing section of IGCSE ESL examination for either the core or extended papers.

Exercise 1 - Read a text and answer a series of questions.

Exercise 2 - Read a text and answer a series of questions testing more detailed comprehension.

Exercise 1 (Questions 1 -4) - Short answer exercises

Exercise 2 - (Question 5) Gap-filled exercises

Exercise 3 - Matching

Exercise 4 - Multiple Choice

The more words you encounter and understand, the broader your day-to-day vocabulary will become. So, our IGCSE ESL Word searches are an excellent way to help to reinforce spellings. Word puzzles require not just a good vocabulary and a knack for spelling, but the ability to think logically and strategically. In the case of puzzles like our IGCSE Crosswords, it’s crucial to spell linked words correctly to be able to complete the task.
Learning English requires not just a good vocabulary, but a strong foundation of all skills to communicate well. Here we provide activities for the IGCSE ESL for all the skills required to be successful in this examination.
Levels Links:
Learn English with our free material for different levels of English. We add exercises on grammar and vocabulary as well as whole text activities on a regular basis. In addition, we provide test practise activities for students who are preparing for the Cambridge Assessment English Main Suite as well as the English Language B for the IB Diploma. The material will also support students studying for the Cambridge Advanced courses.

We provide free resources across the full range of levels to provide the tools to communicate in English well.

Elementary | Pre-Intermediate | Intermediate | Upper-Intermediate | Advanced

 

How useful were these activities?

Click on a trophy to rate them!

Average rating 3.4 / 5. Vote count: 5

No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.