Speaking Skill Focus: Presenting Clear, Detailed Descriptions (B2 Level)
At B2 level, you can go beyond simple descriptions and provide clear, detailed accounts on a wide range of subjects related to your interests, studies, work, or experiences. This involves structuring your description logically, using appropriate vocabulary, and linking ideas coherently.
Key Abilities for B2 Descriptions:
- Clarity and Detail:
- Providing specific details, examples, and elaborations, not just general statements.
- Describing people, places, objects, events, processes, or abstract concepts with sufficient detail for the listener to form a good picture.
- Example: Instead of "I went on holiday," describing where you went, what you did, who you were with, what it looked like, how you felt.
- Structure and Cohesion:
- Organizing the description logically (e.g., chronologically for an event, spatially for a place, by aspects for an object or person).
- Using linking words and discourse markers effectively to connect points (
en,ook,verder,bovendien,ten eerste... ten tweede...,daarna,uiteindelijk,bijvoorbeeld,namelijk). - Having a clear beginning, middle, and end to the description.
- Vocabulary and Grammar:
- Using a good range of vocabulary relevant to the subject matter, including descriptive adjectives and adverbs.
- Employing appropriate grammatical structures, including different tenses (past, present, future) and complex sentences where needed (e.g., relative clauses to add detail).
- Maintaining generally good grammatical accuracy, so errors do not impede understanding.
- Fluency:
- Speaking relatively smoothly, though some pauses for thought or self-correction are normal.
- Maintaining a flow that is easy for the listener to follow.
Examples of Description Tasks at B2:
- Describing a memorable holiday or trip.
- Describing your hometown or a place you know well.
- Describing a person you admire (appearance, personality, why you admire them).
- Describing your job or field of study.
- Describing a process (e.g., how to cook a dish, how something works).
- Describing a film you saw or a book you read (plot, characters, opinion).
- Describing your hopes or plans for the future.
Importance for B2:
- Essential for sharing experiences and information in social conversations.
- Needed for presentations or explanations at work or study.
- Allows for richer and more engaging communication.
Learning Strategy:
- Practice Describing: Regularly practice describing things around you, photos, past events, future plans.
- Plan Briefly: Before speaking, quickly outline the main points you want to cover and the order.
- Expand Vocabulary: Actively learn descriptive words (adjectives, adverbs) related to common topics.
- Use Linking Words: Make a conscious effort to use conjunctions and discourse markers to structure your description.
- Record and Review: Listen to yourself to check for clarity, detail, flow, and recurring errors.
- Seek Feedback: Ask teachers or native speakers for feedback on your descriptions.