Halloween-themed C1 speaking

After a two-year break, I am returning with another instalment of Cambridge Halloween-themed speaking! This easy, no-prep class combines the best of both worlds: exam preparation and the fun of discussing the holiday. This type of class is typically well-received by all students, so get ready for some spooky conversations in the style of a CAE exam.

If you work at a school, you’re likely to be asked about holiday-themed classes. I’ve always loved the idea of making exam preparation classes more engaging to show students that they don’t have to be serious all the time and can be a lot of fun if done properly. All my Cambridge candidate students enjoy this type of break from stressful preparations, followed by genuine and valuable feedback.

In case you have other exam preparation groups, make sure to check out two other Halloween-themed speaking classes:

• Halloween-themed B1 speaking
• Halloween-themed B2 speaking

Or continue scrolling to find the examiner’s notes and the presentation required for this C1-level speaking exam, which can be downloaded at the end of the blog post.

Before starting the class, it’s a good idea to explain what the examiners are looking for in the CAE speaking part of the exam. Students are assessed based on six separate criteria: Grammatical Resource, Lexical Resource, Discourse Management, Pronunciation, Interactive Communication, and Global Achievement. If you feel that your students could benefit from a deeper understanding of each criterion, you can find more information on The Cambridge English website in the PDF file How is my speaking assessed? Generally, at the end of each speaking session, I give feedback and tell students under which criteria each strength or weakness falls to help them understand the assessment better.

Just like in the previous themed speaking exams, I plan to start with a vocabulary warm-up. Provide students with definitions of Halloween-related words and ask them to spell them based on the pronunciation. The purpose is to expand their vocabulary and prepare them to use these words in the rest of the examination. Some of the spooky words I’ve chosen are ominous, eerie, cackle, and ghoul. These words are intentionally difficult to spell and will test the students’ understanding of English pronunciation and spelling.

After a short warm-up, students are ready for Part 1. Similar to the real exam, candidates are asked some personal questions, this time all related to the spooky holiday. This part of the exam aims to break the ice and relax the students before the more challenging sections of the exam. Some of the questions include If you could create your perfect Halloween costume, what would it be? and What’s something about Halloween that you think other people find fun, but you don’t enjoy as much? This is a perfect opportunity for students to share their personal stories while demonstrating a wide range of grammar, such as using the second conditional.

Proceed to the second part of the exam, which involves picture comparison. You will find two sets of three pictures each, of course, all related to Halloween. The first set depicts three different Halloween activities, pumpkin carving, trick-or-treating, and a Halloween costume party. Students are required to choose two of the activities and discuss how they might appeal to different people and the emotions of those involved. After this, ask the other candidate a brief question about their favorite activity.

In the second set of pictures, there are three places that people might find either scary or fun (or perhaps both!), for example, a cemetery, an abandoned house, or a foggy forest at night. Students should choose two of them and discuss why some people might want to visit those places and the feelings that they may evoke. To finish this part, ask the other student to explain which of the three places seen in the pictures they find the scariest.

In the third part of the speaking exam, students work in pairs or groups of three. Since this class is designed for adult students, I suggest asking them to imagine a scenario in which they need to consider Halloween celebrations at their workplace or university. They should choose the most suitable option for them and their colleagues from five choices, a haunted house tour, a costume competition, pumpkin carving, a ghost story session, and a Halloween dance. Before they begin speaking for about 2-3 minutes, allow them about 15 seconds to review the question and the five options. After discussing the appropriateness of each activity, follow up by asking them to select the most memorable activity.

At the end of the exam, allow students to share their opinions and discuss their thoughts about the holiday. Each student should be given one or two questions to express their beliefs on topics such as, In what ways can Halloween be seen as educational or beneficial? and Does Halloween influence the way people feel about fear or danger? Encourage students to clearly state their opinions and support them with examples.

Finish the speaking class by providing feedback, ensuring to revisit the assessment part of the exam so that students can clearly understand their strengths and weaknesses.

Let’s make this Halloween one to remember! How are you planning to celebrate Halloween with your students?