Describe a day that did not go as planned.
A strong long turn names the subject in the first sentence, spends most of the two minutes on the last bullet — the why — and arrives at a prepared final line rather than trailing off.
The question, as the examiner gives it
Describe a day that did not go as planned.
You should say
- what you had planned
- what actually happened
- how you reacted
- and explain how it turned out
60 seconds to prepare, up to 2 minutes to speak
A band 7 to 8 answer
About 198 words at a natural pace — roughly what 120 seconds holds.
Answer it yourself first
Record your own answer first. A model you have read three times comes out with a flattened rhythm, and examiners are trained to hear exactly that. Read it afterwards for the vocabulary and the shape, not to memorise the sentences.I had planned, about a year ago, to spend a Saturday doing absolutely nothing, which I had been looking forward to for weeks. What actually happened is that at about eight in the morning the water tank in the flat above mine started leaking through my ceiling, and by nine there was a genuine puddle in the middle of my living room. The owner of that flat was not in the city. Finding out who to call, getting somebody to come, and then persuading a plumber that this was urgent took most of the morning. How I reacted was badly for the first hour, in that I stood there and did nothing useful, and then reasonably well once there was something to actually do. How it turned out was better than it sounds. The ceiling was repaired within a week and the landlord paid, and I met four neighbours that morning I had never spoken to in three years of living there. I have since had two genuinely empty Saturdays and I did not enjoy either of them as much as I had expected to. Whatever I had been looking forward to, it was apparently not the emptiness.
The words that earn marks
Each one links to how it is pronounced.
How a strong answer is built
- 1Say what the plan was, briefly.
- 2Tell what happened, in sequence and with times.
- 3Be honest about your own reaction.
- 4Answer how it turned out, including one good thing.
Sounds to watch
The ones this answer leans on most.
Straight answers
How long should my answer to “Describe a day that did not go as planned.” be?
You get 60 seconds to make notes and then speak for up to two minutes without interruption. Aim to still be talking at ninety seconds: finishing at forty is the commonest way to lose marks on this part.
Should I memorise the model answer?
No. Record your own version first, then read the model for the shape and the vocabulary. A memorised answer changes rhythm and pace noticeably, and examiners are trained to hear it — it usually costs more than the better wording gains.
Does sayit score this answer?
It scores what a microphone can observe: an estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.
What the band on your result means
An estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.One question a day until your test
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