My FCE blog

FCE Speaking – Tips and Practice 🗣️ FCE Speaking – Be Confident and Natural! The Speaking test is about 14 minutes long and has four parts. You will do it with another student and two examiners (one asks questions, one listens). 👋 Part 1 – Interview (2 minutes) The examiner asks you questions about yourself: hobbies, school, family, free time, etc. TIP: Give complete answers. Don’t just say “yes” or “no” – explain more! EXAMPLE: Q: What do you like doing in your free time? A: I enjoy listening to music, especially pop. I also like playing football with my friends at the weekend. 🖼️ Part 2 – Long Turn (1 minute each) You get two photos and must compare them. Use linking words and describe feelings, actions, and places. TIP: Use phrases like: “In the first photo…”, “Both photos show…”, “I think…”, “Maybe…” EXAMPLE TASK: “Compare two pictures show...

FCE Listening – Tips and Practice 🎧 FCE Listening – Understand and Succeed! The Listening paper is about understanding different English accents and contexts. You hear each recording twice. There are 4 parts and 30 questions in total. 🔊 Part 1 – Multiple Choice (8 questions) You listen to short conversations and choose the correct picture or answer (A, B, or C). TIP: Focus on the situation: who is speaking? Where are they? What are they talking about? 🎤 Part 2 – Sentence Completion (10 questions) Listen to one person talking and fill in the missing words in the notes. TIP: Before listening, read all the sentences. Predict what kind of word is missing (noun, number, verb, etc.). 👥 Part 3 – Multiple Matching (5 questions) You hear five short extracts. Match each speaker to a sentence or opinion. TIP: Focus on the speaker’s opinion and attitude. Listen for feeli...

FCE Writing – Tips and Practice 📝 FCE Writing – Boost Your Score! The Writing paper is 1 hour 20 minutes long. You must write two texts: Part 1: Essay (mandatory) Part 2: Choose one: article, story, review, email/letter 📄 Part 1 – Essay You must write an essay about a topic (for example: the environment, education, technology). You are given two ideas and must add one more. TIP: Always plan before writing. Write 4–5 paragraphs: introduction, 2–3 body paragraphs, and a conclusion. EXAMPLE QUESTION: “In your English class, you have been talking about the environment. Now your teacher has asked you to write an essay. Write about: recycling, public transport and your own idea.” Useful expressions: In my opinion, … It is important to mention that … On the one hand / On the other hand To sum up, … ✏️ Part 2 – Choose One Option You...

FCE Reading – Tips and Tricks 📖 FCE Reading – How to Get a Great Score! The Reading section tests your ability to understand texts like magazine articles, ads, reviews and opinion pieces. You need to find the correct information fast! 🧠 Reading Has 7 Parts! 🔹 Part 1 – Multiple Choice You read a text and answer 8 questions with 4 options (A–D). TIP: Read the questions before the text to know what to look for. 🔹 Part 2 – Gapped Text You are given a text with missing paragraphs. Choose the correct one from 7 options. TIP: Look for linking words and ideas to help match the paragraph. 🔹 Part 3 – Multiple Matching Match 5–10 questions with the right parts of the text. TIP: Focus on key words like names, dates, and opinions. 🎬 Video: How to Pass the FCE Reading 📌 Vocabulary You Should Know Opinion words: believe, agree, support, ...

Use of English - FCE Tips 🎓 FCE Use of English – Master This Section! The Use of English section tests your grammar and vocabulary. It has 4 parts: 📘 Part 1 – Multiple Choice Cloze In this task, you choose the best word (A, B, C, or D) to complete a sentence in a short text. It tests your knowledge of collocations, phrasal verbs, and fixed expressions. 🎯 TIP: Read the full sentence and the whole paragraph before answering. Context helps! EXAMPLE: I couldn’t ________ the chance to travel abroad. A) miss B) lose C) fail D) pass ✅ Correct answer: A) miss the chance 📗 Part 2 – Open Cloze This task is similar to Part 1, but you must write the missing word. It usually focuses on grammar words: articles, prepositions, auxiliary verbs, etc. 🎯 TIP: Watch out for conditionals, modals, and linking words like "although", "even though", "beca...