The Official CELPIP Podcast
The Official CELPIP Podcast
#20 Top 7 Writing Tips for the CELPIP Test
In this week's episode, we invite Brandi, our in-house CELPIP expert to share her top writing tips for the CELPIP Test! Tune in as she goes over some common grammar mistakes that test takers often make, and how to improve your writing skills to score higher on the CELPIP Test!
Show Notes:
Handout:
CELPIP Podcast Handout Ep 20.pdf
Writing-related resources:
CELPIP Writing Pro webinar, offered once/month
Recordings on YouTube channel:
CELPIP Live Writing Episodes:
Improving Content with Specific Details
Response Analysis: Writing Levels 8 and 9
CELPIP Accelerate Reading & Writing
Free CELPIP Practice Tests
https://secure.paragontesting.ca/InstructionalProducts/FreeOnlineSampleTest/FOST
Youtube CELPIP Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsSYTLCLK0K2kq6hFSX476A
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Episode: #20 Top 7 Writing Tips for the CELPIP Test
CJ [00:00:00] Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Official CELPIP Podcast, where we aim to help you, our test takers, get the scores you need and supporting newcomers building a life in Canada. My name is CJ, and along with my co-host Chris, we talk to a variety of guests from test takers, language teachers, and test raters to employment counselors and immigration consultants, just to name a few. We also bring our in-house staff on the show to get their perspective too. They're the people in the company that work behind the scenes to make the CELPIP Test available to you. OK, so before we get started on today's episode, a quick reminder to our listeners that if you are enjoying the podcast so far and you don't want to miss any episodes, be sure to subscribe on whatever podcast platform you're using. And if you happen to be using the Apple podcast app, please do let us know how we're doing by leaving us a rating. All right, so let's get into it, Chris. What's new, sir?
Chris [00:01:02] Well, I was just answering an email from a test taker about how to improve the writing on the CELPIP Test.
CJ [00:01:10] Oh, well, that works well with today's episode. What did you tell them?
Chris [00:01:13] Well, I started listing all of the different resources we offer these days that build writing skills, and to be honest, I kind of started to lose track.
CJ [00:01:23] And yeah, we do have quite a large variety of things on that topic. So while we're talking about it, let's, let's get into it. Can you, can you name a few?
Chris [00:01:33] Well, I'll start with the free stuff. There's the CELPIP Writing Pro webinar, which we offer once a month. We also have a recording of it on our YouTube channel. But you know, it is nice to attend a live one where you get to ask questions. We've done a few episodes of CELPIP Live about writing. There's the writing section of CELPIP Accelerate, our online course, which is available on our online store—
CJ [00:01:59] Right, and which test takers get a part of for free when they register for a test.
Chris [00:02:03] That's absolutely right.
CJ [00:02:05] By the way, listeners, before we get too far into this, we are going to provide a list of all of these resources in the show notes. OK, so Chris, what else have you got?
Chris [00:02:14] We also include writing samples from test takers in our practice tests.
CJ [00:02:19] In all of our practice tests?
Chris [00:02:20] Well, I'm glad you asked that. Ee sell our practice tests in sets of two and are always writing and speaking samples in one of them.
CJ [00:02:29] Right. Of course. I knew that. And test takers can also buy bundles.
Chris [00:02:34] Yeah, we bundle together the sets so that the test takers who would like more tests can purchase them at a discount.
CJ [00:02:41] OK. So this is always changing. How many tests have we got now?
Chris [00:02:46] Well, as of now, which for future listeners I should mention is November 2021, we've got nine sets of practice tests, so that's 18 practice tests and there are more on the way.
CJ [00:03:00] Right, plus two more that are free.
Chris [00:03:02] Oh yeah, that's right. Two free practice tests available through a CELPIP account or via our website.
CJ [00:03:08] OK. I know you've got more. So come on, what else?
Chris [00:03:12] Well, we've got an e-book on our online store called Common CELPIP Errors and How to Avoid Them. That book tackles 30 of the most common errors.
CJ [00:03:21] OK, that also sounds useful. We must be coming near the end there. Anything else?
Chris [00:03:27] No, I actually think that's about it.
CJ [00:03:30] OK. That was a test. Are you sure there's nothing else?
Chris [00:03:35] Oh, and of course, today's podcast episode.
CJ [00:03:39] There we go. I knew you'd get there eventually.
Chris [00:03:42] Yeah, I knew there was a good reason that we have Brandi in the studio today.
CJ [00:03:46] Yes. And of course, Brandi is well known to many of our listeners. She delivers a lot of the monthly webinars, and she's often on CELPIP Live, and she's a frequent guest on this podcast. So hello Brandi, and welcome back to the show.
Brandi [00:04:00] Hello, CJ and Chris. It's really great to be back.
CJ [00:04:02] Okay, so today's episode is all about helping test takers improve their skills on the writing part of the CELPIP Test. Learning English can be challenging because there are so many rules and then exceptions to the rules to remember. So what can test takers do to improve their writing? Are there any grammar skills that they can focus on that will help them write more clearly? We're just going to jump right in today.
Brandi [00:04:28] You're right, CJ. Learning any language takes time and practice. So much practice. We can't learn it all in one day. So sometimes it helps to practice one specific language point at a time.
CJ [00:04:39] OK, so what would you say is one of the most common language errors that test takers make when they are learning English?
Brandi [00:04:46] A common problem is when writers shift between different verb tenses in the same sentence or paragraph. For example, they might start off by telling a story in the present tense and then halfway through, they switch to past tense. They might even finish in present tense again, so as you can imagine, this confuses the reader because they don't clearly understand when the action is happening.
Chris [00:05:09] Yeah, keeping verb tenses consistent is so important.
Brandi [00:05:13] Definitely. Sometimes there might be a reason to use different verb tenses in the same sentence. But if all the action is happening in the present time, there's no need to insert past tense verbs and vice versa.
CJ [00:05:26] Right. So can you give us a short example of a confusing story that shifts between verb tenses?
Brandi [00:05:31] Sure. So here is what not to do. I travel to Iceland in August of 2015. I want to see the northern lights and saw so many beautiful waterfalls while I am there. I will eat moss soup and minke whale steaks for the first time.
Chris [00:05:49] I see you visited Iceland six years ago. So you should be telling the whole story in the past tense. I heard you use present and even future tense is mixed in with the past, so I did find it difficult to understand the details.
Brandi [00:06:04] Exactly. Let me retell the story correctly now, using only past tense verbs. I traveled to Iceland in August of 2015. I wanted to see the northern lights and saw so many beautiful waterfalls while I was there. I ate moss soup and minke whale steaks for the first time.
Chris [00:06:23] Yes, that story's much easier to follow, but I really want to ask now: did you actually travel to Iceland?
Brandi [00:06:31] Yes, I did. It's one of the most memorable vacations I've ever taken, although I never did see the northern lights. Hopefully, I'll see them someday.
CJ [00:06:41] Aw hopefully. So what's another then common error?
Brandi [00:06:46] Well, sometimes a writer simply has so many ideas that they're trying to get down on the page that they forget to end a sentence before they continue with the next idea. When this happens, the ideas just keep going and going and going. All of the ideas run into each other, which is why they're called run-on sentences. Run-ons are one of the biggest mistakes a writer can make because they overwhelm the reader. It's really difficult to make sense of the ideas when there are so many details crammed into one gigantic sentence.
Chris [00:07:19] So if I start writing and forget to end the sentence with a period and the next idea is added the reader doesn't understand how the ideas are organized so many ideas are crammed into such a long sentence the reader will be so confused when they reach the bottom of the paragraph they won’t understand what they've just read?
Brandi [00:07:32] That's a perfect example of a run-on sentence, Chris. That's a monster run-on. You probably had about four sentences there, but because you read them all together, it was difficult for us to grasp the details. It's so important to put a period or end punctuation mark at the end of each sentence that we write. This helps to organize the ideas on the page for the reader so they understand what they're reading more clearly.
CJ [00:07:56] So I guess inserting a period at the end of the sentence is the easiest way.
Brandi [00:08:01] Yes, ending a sentence with the period is most common, but we would use a question mark if a question was asked. Or even an exclamation mark if the idea was exciting. Sometimes we can even use a semicolon to separate sentences that are closely related in meaning.
Chris [00:08:16] But we can't use a comma.
Brandi [00:08:18] No, placing a comma between two complete sentences is still a run-on sentence. We call it a comma splice.
Chris [00:08:25] There are many comma rules for writers to learn. But can we discuss a few major ones?
Brandi [00:08:31] Sure. One of the easiest to remember is to place a comma between words or ideas in a list. The comma reminds us to pause briefly between ideas. So if I was writing about plans for the weekend, I could write: "This weekend, I'm going to call my mom, visit my nephew, and see a movie with friends.” Did you hear me pause between ideas there?
CJ [00:08:54] Yeah, really clearly, I could tell you paused each time you saw a comma in the writing.
Chris [00:09:00] Right? If I were writing about my plans for the weekend, I could write: “This weekend I will take a walk on the seawall, clean my apartment, and catch up on my sleep.”
Brandi [00:09:11] Well, two out of three of those plans sound very exciting. You read those perfectly, Chris, pausing between ideas. Whenever we pause, we insert a comma into the sentence. That rule is one of the easier comma rules to remember.
Chris [00:09:25] OK, I think we might be ready for a more difficult rule. Do you have one you can share with us?
Brandi [00:09:31] Sure. This one has to do with compound sentence structure.
CJ [00:09:35] Yeah, of course you had another complicated rule for us. This is great. Let's hear it.
Brandi [00:09:39] Well, once writers are comfortable writing short, simple sentences, they should start looking for ways to connect these short sentences together to make longer sentences. One type of longer sentence structure is the compound sentence.
Chris [00:09:52] Yes, understanding how to create a variety of sentences on the CELPIP Test is one way that our test takers can strengthen their score.
Brandi [00:09:59] Very true. There are seven connecting words, or conjunctions, that we can use to connect two simple sentences together. These are called coordinating conjunctions or the FANBOYS words. FANBOYS is an acronym, so each letter begins one of the special connecting words.
Chris [00:10:18] Using acronyms is such a helpful tool to use when studying to help us remember important details.
Brandi [00:10:23] Oh, for sure. In Fanboys, the F stands for “for,” the A stands for “and,” then we have “nor,” “but,” “for,” “yet,” “so.” These words will connect two simple sentences together. For example, we can say “Good writers follow grammar rules, and they know how to write compound sentences correctly.”
Chris [00:10:47] “But” is another common conjunction like: “We've learned about some common writing errors today, but there are so many other grammar rules to learn.”
Brandi [00:10:54] Great example once writers can connect the two simple ideas together using one of these FANBOYS words, the one rule they need to remember is to place a comma before the conjunction. Remember, the comma reminds the reader to pause briefly, and since for connecting to simple sentences together, it makes sense to pause between them to make it easier for the reader to understand.
CJ [00:11:17] That is such a good tip. Commas are tiny, but they're so important in our writing. OK, so what other writing errors can you share with us today?
Brandi [00:11:29] Hmm. Well, let's see. So far, we've talked about verb tenses, run-on sentences and some comma rules. Another major writing error that comes to mind is the sentence fragment. Fragments are the opposite of run-on sentences. Remember that run ons keep going and going and going. Well, fragments are only part of a sentence. They don't include a complete idea. Here's an example. If I said “Listening to music,” would you understand exactly what I'm talking about?
CJ [00:12:02] Well, like, I have a general idea about the topic I guess? Maybe someone is listening to music, but I don't really know who?
Brandi [00:12:10] Exactly. When we're writing. We always need to identify who or what is doing the action in the sentence. The person or thing is called the subject. Instead of saying “Listening to music,” I might say “She is listening to music” or “Yumi is listening to music.” If we have a complete subject and a complete verb in the sentence, then the sentence is complete.
CJ [00:12:36] I think another way to improve writing skills is to add interesting, specific details to the sentence. So if we start with “She is listening to music,” we have a grammatically correct sentence, but it's quite simple. To make it more interesting, we could say “The young girl is listening to jazz with her friends.”
Brandi [00:12:55] Yes, great point, Chris. Adding specific details to our writing is another way to improve our skills and strengthen her score on the CELPIP Test. Let's add even more detail to your sentence. You said “The young girl is listening to jazz with her friends.” Let's use our imaginations. How old is the girl? You said she's young, but is she a toddler, a child, a teenager, a young adult? Let's be specific.
Chris [00:13:22] Let's say young teenager.
Brandi [00:13:25] OK, sounds good. Can we give her her name? CJ, what's the first one that comes to mind?
CJ [00:13:31] Uh...Carla?
Brandi [00:13:31] Sure. So the young teenager Carla is listening to jazz with her friends. Where are they listening? Any ideas?
CJ [00:13:40] Uh...in the park?
Chris [00:13:43] In Stanley Park.
Brandi [00:13:44] Let's give the park a name so the idea is more detailed. So now we have “The young teenager, Carla, is listening to jazz with her friends in Stanley Park.” There are one or two more details I think we can add to make this sentence even more descriptive and interesting. First, can we describe how Carla is listening? Is she happily listening? Attentively listening? Distractedly listening? What kind of mood is Carla in here? How should we finish our idea?
CJ [00:14:15] I feel like Carla's happy, happily listening.
Brandi [00:14:19] Perfect. So we started with “She is listening to music.” Now we are saying, “The young teenager, Carla, is happily listening to jazz with her friends in Stanley Park.” That's so much more interesting. I can picture the scene in my mind now. The more specific and detailed our ideas are in our writing, the better.
CJ [00:14:39] Yeah, I really saw that super differently, too. What a beautiful example. So thank you. That was a really great point. So what else can our test takers do to improve their writing skills?
Brandi [00:14:52] Hmm. Well, another point that comes to mind is to vary the language so we don't end up using the same word or phrase repeatedly. I'll give you an example. I'm going to read aloud a short story that is based on a real CELPIP Test response from a past test taker. I've changed some of the words for time, but many of these ideas came from the test taker themself, although there are some strengths in the writing here. See if you can identify the most obvious weakness. Here we go. “A couple of years ago, I taught my friend Craig how to ski because I'm an avid and experienced skier. So he asked me to teach him. So first I explained the basics how to mount the skis onto your boots and strap them down. So obviously I didn't take him up to the highest peak. I picked a moderate slope instead. So I showed him how to brake and how to make the turns. So he followed me after that.”
Chris [00:15:52] I think that writer has some strong vocabulary, like “avid skier” and “moderate slope,” but I noticed they started almost every sentence with the word “so.”
Brandi [00:16:04] I agree on both counts, Chris. Although this person did showcase some descriptive language, which we've learned to date is ideal in our writing, our test taker used the word “so” repeatedly to connect ideas together. It's important to demonstrate a wide range of vocabulary and sentence structure on the CELPIP Test.
Chris [00:16:24] So important.
Brandi [00:16:26] Very funny. Do we have time for one more writing tip?
CJ [00:16:30] For you Brandi? Always. What do you have for us?
Brandi [00:16:34] Well, let's talk about using transitions in our writing to help organize our details. One way we should use transitions is when we're introducing the next main idea. For example, we might use single words like “first,” “second,” “third,” and so on to number off our main points in a paragraph. If we're adding a similar idea to the one we just discussed, we might start that idea with “Additionally,” “Similarly,” “Furthermore.” We can also use phrases, like “in addition to,” “another reason is.” There are also transitions we can use when the idea that follows is different from the one we've just finished writing about. In this case, we might start the new different idea with transitions like “In contrast,” “Alternatively,” “On the other hand.”
Chris [00:17:23] Hmm. So if our test taker who wrote about teaching a friend to ski used a variety of these transitions in the writing instead of relying on “so,” the writing would have been much more interesting and of a higher level.
Brandi [00:17:36] You've read my mind, Chris. I'd like to read aloud the test taker’s skiing story again, but this time I've exchanged some of the “so”s for different transitions to show a better variety. Here's the revised version. “A couple of years ago, I taught my friend Craig how to ski because I'm an avid and experienced skier. First, I explained the basics: how to mount the skis onto your boots and strap them down. Because he was a novice skier, I didn't take him up to the highest peak. Instead, I picked a moderate slope to show him how to brake and how to make the turns. As a result, his skills improved. He followed my instruction closely after that day.”
CJ [00:18:19] Wow. That revised version is so much better. The basic story is the same, but it's amazing how adding just a few of those transitions here and there improved the writing.
Chris [00:18:29] Yes, transitions connect the ideas together smoothly, so the writing is much better organized.
CJ [00:18:35] Thanks for all the writing tips today, Brandi. I think we've covered like seven common errors.
Brandi [00:18:40] We have. To sum up, writers need to keep their verb tenses consistent: tell the story in the past or in the present, but don't mix and match the tenses together.
Chris [00:18:50] And writers should insert a comma when a pause is needed.
CJ [00:18:54] Like between words in a list.
Brandi [00:18:57] And before a FANBOYS word like “and,” “but,” or “so” that will connect to simple sentences together.
Chris [00:19:04] We can't put a comma between two complete sentences, though, or we’ll create a run on sentence.
Brandi [00:19:10] And we need to make sure that every sentence has a subject and a verb so the sentence is complete.
Chris [00:19:16] When a sentence is missing the subject or verb, it's a fragment, which is a pretty major writing error.
Chris [00:19:23] Writers should add descriptive details to make the ideas more interesting.
CJ [00:19:27] And they should vary their vocabulary so they don't end up repeating the same words over and over again.
Brandi [00:19:33] Lastly, strong writers will connect their ideas together using transitions.
CJ [00:19:38] Thanks Brandi. These are really useful tips, and I think our listeners are really going to get a solid sense of how to avoid some of the most common errors in the Writing Test. So, Chris, what have we got coming up next week?
Chris [00:19:52] Well, actually, we're going to take a little break for the rest of the year, but we'll be back in the new year with more ways to help our listeners on their test preparation journey.
CJ [00:20:01] Right, of course. Wow. Well, these first 20 episodes have certainly been an adventure, and I can't wait to see what we come up with next year. But before we go, I got to ask you, Chris, what was your favorite part of getting this podcast off the ground after wanting to start a podcast for so long?
CJ [00:20:21] Oh gosh. Good question. We had a lot of great episodes, and you know, I think for me, it was just being able to help test takers in a new way. You know, like we've done so many of the, the presentations via YouTube and live and, you know, through our webinars, through all of our practice tests and our online courses and all of that. But having this, you know, podcast series, one of the things that I really enjoyed was the, whatever it was, four episodes that we did where we had recommendations on different types of books and video games and TV shows and movies, because that's something we haven't done before, like that was a kind of a new thing that we were offering. And then we also were having guests on. I mean, we know them, we know the people who came on, but I don't know if I had really heard about their favorite movies or favorite video games. So it was also a really interesting way of getting to know people that we've worked with for quite a while.
CJ [00:21:28] Yeah, and that's kind of related to my favorite part about this whole thing, is I really love the way the team came together. Our listeners, you know, will have heard a few people, but there were also other people working behind the scenes to bring this podcast together and getting to feature some of them on that episode was really good, and I love that, I think my favourite part is that like that team put together a series of episodes that, it really doesn't matter where you are in time, right? Like, if this is the first episode you're listening to, like, don't worry about it, listener. You can go back and listen to pretty much any one of those 20 episodes and take something from it. And so it was a really sort of intentional set of content to really kick it off. And so I think that was my favorite part. I'm going to really love to hear from our listeners what your favorite part of the first 20 episodes are. So I think there's a there's a survey in the episode notes, but we definitely love to hear feedback from our listeners.
CJ [00:22:32] Yeah. And you know, we want to hear what you liked and maybe what you didn't like, if there’s—we always want to improve. If any of our listeners have any particular requests for what they'd like to hear in the next season, now is the perfect time to let us know by filling out the survey that CJ has already mentioned.
CJ [00:22:49] Well, I guess, thanks, Brandi, for being with us today.
Brandi [00:22:53] Thanks for having me on this very last episode of the year. It was very much fun to see both of you again.
CJ [00:22:58] And until next year, all the best to our listeners getting ready for the CELPIP Test.
Chris [00:23:03] See you next year.
CJ [00:23:04] Bye everybody.