Speaking for a minute can feel surprisingly long when you are put on the spot. These topic cards give B1–B2 learners a little help with organising their ideas and keeping going. Give your students some planning time, then let them try a one-minute turn with a partner.
Below, you’ll find some tips and tricks along with a set of topic cards to use individually or in your classroom.
Contents
Topics for one-minute speaking
Short speaking turns can cover lots of familiar topics. For example, learners can describe a shopping experience or discuss whether they prefer high-street shops or online shopping. Choose a starting point that suits your group and let them use a real or imagined example.
Here are some topics you can use for short speaking turns. The download includes ten cards, and you can use this list to create more.
- Your hobbies and interests
- Your town / city
- Work
- Learning (including learning languages)
- Technology, the internet and future innovations
- Sports and leisure activities
- Nature and the environment
- Food and healthy living
- Talents and creativity
- Family and friends
- Your childhood
- Travel and tourism
- Art and culture
- Shopping and fashion
- Daily life
- Entertainment (music, TV and film)
- Relationships and community
Here’s an example topic card talking about technology.
How to prepare to speak
Give yourself a little time to prepare. Take quick notes on a mini mind map rather than writing a script. Choose the main points you want to make and an example to explain them.
- Make a note of your answer for the points you want to cover.
- Make a note of any useful vocabulary that you can think of related to the topic.
Here’s an example of a mind map for the above topic.
Tips for one-minute speaking
Speaking for a minute can feel longer than you expect. A simple plan and a clear example can help you keep going. Your partner listens, asks a follow-up question and summarises one point afterwards.
Practise a range of topics, then repeat a card with a new partner and aim for a clearer answer. Try these simple tips.
- Plan your answer – Take a little time to choose your main points and an example.
- Use your best vocabulary – Choose words and phrases that help you express your ideas accurately. Use familiar phrasal verbs when they fit.
- Connect your ideas logically – Use linkers and structure your speaking turn like a presentation with a clear beginning, middle and end. Use the prompts on the card to help you create a structure.
- Capture your audience – Give an example that your listener can follow. An ordinary experience can be interesting when you explain why it matters.
- Use a range of grammar – Choose forms that fit your meaning, such as past tenses for an experience or conditionals for an imagined situation.
- Try not to repeat yourself – If you’ve run out of things to say, don’t repeat yourself. Instead, try talking about how you feel about the topic or tell a personal anecdote about yourself or someone you know.
- Enjoy it! – You may be a bundle of nerves, but if you try to keep it natural, like you are talking to a friend, it will sound so much better.
The materials
Use these ten topic cards in class or by yourself to practise speaking fluency. If you’re working alone, time yourself and record your answer on your phone. A day later, listen and decide what you could explain more clearly.
LEVEL: B1–B2 speaking fluency
SKILLS: Speaking at length and organising ideas coherently
TOPIC: Various
TIME: 45-60 minutes + extension
PREPARATION: One set of topic cards per pair of students
PROCEDURE:
- Introduce the activity by brainstorming different possible topics.
- Explain the format and timing or elicit from students.
- Choose a card and do a sample plan as a class on the board.
- Model speaking for about one minute and tell your students to say what you did well or badly. (It’s not as easy as you think! If you can’t do it, why should you expect your students to?)
- Split the group into pairs with one set of cards each.
- Students work through the cards, taking turns to speak.
- The listener asks a follow-up question and summarises one point.
- Repeat a card with a new partner, aiming for a clearer answer.
Download
