Part 2 cue cardFamily and upbringing

Describe a time a member of your family helped you

The marks are in "what they did": specific actions in order, not "she supported me a lot". "How you felt afterwards" asks for reflection after the event, so move from what you felt then to what it means to you now.

1 minute to prepare
Up to 2 minutes
Samples at Band 6, 7 and 8
Updated 20 October 2026

Describe a time a member of your family helped you.

You should say:

who helped you
what the situation was
what they did
and explain how you felt afterwards

Rehearse the long turn

1 minute to prepare · 2 minutes to speak

Sit this card with the AI examinerThen the Part 3 discussion, and a full report

A 60-second plan

who helped youolder sister Salma, English teacher, Rabat
what the situation waslaptop died, statement lost, deadline close
what they didweekend in Casablanca, interviewed me, mint tea
and explain how you felt afterwardsgrateful, slightly guilty, much closer

Sample answers

225 words · about 1:57 spoken at a Band 6 pace

I want to talk about my older sister Salma, who helped me a lot last year. She is five years older than me and she works as an English teacher in a secondary school in Rabat.

The situation was like this. I was applying for a scholarship to do a master's degree in the Netherlands, and the deadline was in only two weeks. Suddenly my laptop stopped working and all my documents was lost, including my personal statement, which I was writing for nearly one month. I hadn't backed anything up, so I was completely desperate.

When I called Salma, she didn't hesitate. She took the train from Rabat to Casablanca on Friday evening and she brought her own laptop. During all the weekend we sat together at the kitchen table. She asked me many questions about why I wanted to study this subject and she write notes, and then we rewrote the statement together. She also corrected my grammar mistakes, because she is a teacher. At two o'clock in the night she made mint tea for both of us so we can continue.

Afterwards I felt very grateful, and also a little guilty because she went to work on Monday without sleep. Finally I got the scholarship, and I think without her help it was impossible. Since then we are much closer than before.

The mistakes that keep it at Band 6

all my documents was lost should be all my documents were lost
which I was writing for nearly one month should be which I'd been writing for nearly a month
During all the weekend should be All weekend
she write notes should be she wrote notes
two o'clock in the night should be two o'clock in the morning
so we can continue should be so we could carry on
without her help it was impossible should be without her help it would have been impossible
Since then we are much closer should be Since then we've been much closer

Why this is Band 6, not Band 7

Fluency and coherence: Willing to talk at length and signals the second bullet clearly ("The situation was like this"). It stays at Band 6 because the actions in the third paragraph are listed with "and" and "also", and the final paragraph adds feelings one after another without reflecting on them.
Vocabulary: Enough vocabulary to tell the story ("scholarship", "personal statement", "desperate", "grateful"), but some phrasing is unnatural: "two o'clock in the night" is not how the time is said, and "During all the weekend" is an awkward way to describe the period. Band 7 would choose words more precisely.
Grammar: Complex sentences are attempted, but errors cluster in the tenses: "which I was writing for nearly one month" needs the past perfect continuous, "it was impossible" needs a past conditional, and "we are much closer" needs the present perfect after since.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

246 words · about 1:54 spoken at a Band 7 pace

The person I'd like to talk about is my older sister, Salma. She's five years older than me and teaches English at a secondary school in Rabat, and she's always been the calm, organised one in our family.

Last spring I was applying for a scholarship to do a master's in the Netherlands, and with about two weeks to go before the deadline, my laptop suddenly died. I hadn't backed anything up, so I lost everything, including the personal statement I'd been working on for almost a month. I honestly thought I'd have to give up on the whole thing.

When I rang Salma in panic, she just said, "I'll be there tomorrow." She caught the train down to Casablanca after work on Friday, laptop in her bag, and we spent the entire weekend at my kitchen table. Instead of letting me just rewrite from memory, she made me explain out loud why I wanted to do the course, typed up what I said, and then helped me shape it into something much stronger than the original. She went through every line for grammar, and at about two in the morning she made a pot of mint tea to keep us going.

Afterwards I felt incredibly grateful, but also a bit guilty, because she went straight to work on Monday on about three hours of sleep. I ended up getting the scholarship, and I'm convinced I wouldn't have without her. It's brought us much closer, too.

The slips

in panic should be in a panic

Why this is Band 7, not Band 8

Fluency and coherence: Speaks at length easily, with the story moving from crisis to rescue in a clear order ("Last spring", "When I rang Salma", "Afterwards"). Not Band 8 because the last paragraph is brief and ends with a rather flat afterthought ("It's brought us much closer, too").
Vocabulary: Some less common, natural items: "backed anything up", "laptop in her bag", "shape it into something much stronger", "to keep us going". Band 8 would show a wider idiomatic range; "incredibly grateful" and "a bit guilty" are common choices.
Grammar: Frequent error-free complex sentences: the past perfect continuous ("I'd been working on for almost a month"), a gerund after a preposition ("Instead of letting me"), an implied past conditional ("I wouldn't have without her"). One slip, "in panic", which is missing its article.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

264 words · about 1:49 spoken at a Band 8 pace

I'd like to talk about my older sister, Salma, who's five years my senior and teaches English at a secondary school in Rabat. She's always been the level-headed one in our family, and last year she more or less rescued my future.

I was applying for a fully funded master's scholarship in the Netherlands, and with a fortnight to go before the deadline, my laptop gave up on me without warning. Like an idiot, I hadn't backed anything up, so the personal statement I'd spent a month agonising over was simply gone. I was ready to throw in the towel.

I rang Salma that evening, barely able to get the words out, and she cut me off with, "I'm coming on Friday." She came straight from school on the train, and we basically camped at my kitchen table all weekend. What was clever was that she didn't let me try to recreate the old version. Instead, she interviewed me, asking why this course and why now, typed up my answers word for word, and then helped me carve them into a statement that sounded far more like me. She combed through every sentence, and at two in the morning, when I was flagging, she brewed a pot of mint tea and refused to let me stop.

Afterwards, once the relief wore off, what I mostly felt was a slightly uncomfortable gratitude, because she'd gone back to work on Monday on next to no sleep. I did get the scholarship, and I'm in no doubt whose it really is. We've been far closer ever since.

Why this is Band 8, not Band 9

Fluency and coherence: Fluent and coherent, with the help described as a method rather than a list ("What was clever was that she didn't let me try to recreate the old version"). Short of Band 9 only because "Instead" and "Afterwards" are fairly conventional links between the main stages.
Vocabulary: Wide and idiomatic: "five years my senior", "level-headed", "throw in the towel", "agonising over", "when I was flagging", "next to no sleep". Band 9 would sustain this precision in every sentence, including the brief opening description.
Grammar: Flexible and accurate: a cleft ("What was clever was that"), the past perfect for an earlier event ("she'd gone back to work"), a participle phrase ("barely able to get the words out"), and emphatic do ("I did get the scholarship"). No errors.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

Rounding-off questions

How much should families help each other?: As much as they reasonably can, I think, especially in a crisis. But help works best when it doesn't come with conditions, and when both sides know they can say no without starting a family argument.
Are families as close as they used to be?: Physically, often not, because people move to other cities or abroad for work. But many stay emotionally close through video calls and family group chats, even if it isn't quite the same as living nearby.