Module 5 · Mock Exam 1 & Writing Genres I · Lesson 17
Mock Exam 1 Full Sitting
Reading & Use of English · Listening · Writing · Speaking
Warm-up · Section 1
4 minGet talking
Before we start: take ONE breath in for 4, hold for 4, out for 6. Then say one sentence out loud — anything — to hear your voice. We are warming up the instrument before the recital.
If you could choose which paper to do first, which would it be and why? (There is no right answer — but knowing why tells you something about your stress map.)
Today's only rule: when you don't know an answer, MARK IT and MOVE ON. We come back. We never freeze. Repeat that out loud now.
Grammar focus · Section 2
8 minExam-day strategy language — talking yourself through pressure
Quick rule
Under pressure, your internal language matters as much as your English. Replace 'I don't know this' with 'I'll come back to this' or 'My best guess is X — moving on.'
Examples
Pacing aloud: 'I've spent 10 minutes on P1 — that's my limit. Moving to P2.'
Recovery aloud: 'I can't see this one. Best guess is C — flagged. Next.'
Decision aloud: 'I'll do P4 before P3 because transformations are quicker for me today.'
Reassurance aloud: 'Three down, four to go. On pace.'
Quick check
Question 1.You're stuck on item 4 of R&UoE P1. What does a Band 5 candidate say to themselves?
Question 2.You realise halfway through Listening P1 that you missed the first extract. What's the strongest move?
Question 3.Which is a PACING sentence, not a hope sentence?
Question 4.Best internal language when Speaking P2 starts and your mind blanks:
Vocabulary · Section 3
6 minWords & phrases to own
to pace yourself
to control speed across a long task so you don't burn out
e.g. Pace yourself on R&UoE — Part 1 is fast, Part 4 needs thinking time.
Use it now
Say aloud: 'I'll pace myself by spending no more than X minutes on Part Y.'
↻ Recycled in exam-skills · debrief
best guess
the most plausible answer when you're not sure — chosen and moved on from
e.g. I went with my best guess on item 6 and moved straight to item 7.
Use it now
Reframe 'I don't know' as 'best guess is ___'.
↻ Recycled in exam-skills · homework
flag (an item)
mark a question to return to later
e.g. I flagged three transformations and came back with 4 minutes to spare.
Use it now
Say: 'If I flag now, I'll have ___ minutes to come back at the end.'
↻ Recycled in exam-skills
to settle into (the paper)
to get comfortable / find your rhythm
e.g. Give yourself two items to settle into the paper — speed picks up after that.
Use it now
What helps YOU settle into a long task? Name one habit.
↻ Recycled in warm-up · debrief
stamina
the energy to maintain performance over time
e.g. Stamina, not speed, is the real CPE skill — it's a three-hour day.
Use it now
What's one way you'll build stamina between now and the real exam?
↻ Recycled in debrief · homework
on pace
matching the time plan
e.g. Two papers done, two to go — on pace.
Use it now
Use 'on pace' during today's mock — out loud or whispered.
↻ Recycled in exam-skills · homework
Pair / group discussion
- Which of today's six items feels most useful for YOUR exam-day stress profile?
- Whisper 'best guess' and 'on pace' to yourself once before each section starts today.
Complete each stem about yourself
- I'll pace myself today by ______.…
- If I get stuck, my best guess move is ______.…
- To build stamina between now and the real exam, I'll ______.…
Quick write (60 seconds)
In one sentence, write the script you'll say out loud if you blank during Speaking P2.
Pronunciation · Section 4
3 minStay clear under stress — slow the consonants, not the vowels
Under pressure most candidates speed up and swallow consonants — Cambridge marks suffer. The fix is counter-intuitive: keep VOWELS at normal speed but lengthen final consonants slightly. It buys clarity without sounding slow.
- I'M ON PACE — t — moving to PART TWO.
- Best GUESS is C — flagged — NEXT.
- What STRIKES me about BOTH photos —
- I have TWELVE minutes LEFT — that's NINETY seconds each.
Reading · Section 5
8 minCPE Mock Exam 1 · Cover sheet & instructions
Escape Campus · CPE Mock 1
CPE Mock Exam 1 · Cover sheet & instructions
The cover sheet you'd see on the day. Read it as a CPE Reading task — every word matters.
Examination cover sheet · Time allowed: full mock 3h 50m · compressed slot 60 min
PAPER 1 — Reading & Use of English (1h 30m). 8 parts. Answer ALL questions. Transfer answers in pencil to the answer sheet. Marks are NOT deducted for wrong answers — leave nothing blank.
PAPER 2 — Writing (1h 30m). 2 parts. Part 1 (compulsory): an essay of 220–260 words based on a printed input. Part 2: choose ONE task from three options (proposal, report, review or email/letter). Write in pen.
PAPER 3 — Listening (~40m). 4 parts. Each part is heard TWICE. Transfer answers to the answer sheet during the 5 minutes at the end.
PAPER 4 — Speaking (~15m, in pairs). 4 parts: interview, individual long turn (1 min), collaborative task (~2 min) and discussion (~4 min). You are assessed on grammatical range, lexical resource, discourse management, pronunciation and interactive communication.
FINAL RULE: Mark every question. Leave nothing blank. Manage your time. Today, we are practising the FEEL of those rules, not the full duration.
Question 1.How many parts does Paper 1 (R&UoE) contain?
Question 2.Are marks deducted for wrong answers in Paper 1?
Question 3.What is Writing Part 1?
Question 4.How many times is each Listening part played?
Question 5.Which is NOT a Speaking assessment criterion?
Listening · Section 6
8 minListening Part 1 (sample mock extract) — one short conversation
Notes
Pre-listen brief (Listening P1 sample)
- ▸You will hear two friends talking after a job interview.
- ▸Question 1 — How does the speaker FEEL about how the interview went?
- ▸Question 2 — What does she imply about the panel?
- ▸You will hear the extract twice. Do NOT write during the first listen.
Listening audio
Tap play to listen. Scrub the bar or use ± 5 s to jump.
Show transcript
Layla (Australian, f):Honestly, I came out of it thinking I'd absolutely blown it. They asked one question that just floored me — about how I'd handle a team member who'd been there twice as long as me — and I waffled. I could hear myself waffling. But then I got home and replayed it, and… actually? I think the rest was fine. More than fine. The panel was sharp, you could tell they'd done the prep, but they weren't out to catch you. They wanted you to do well.
Tomás (Mexican, m, international):So they were tough, but fair?
Layla:Yeah. The kind of tough you actually want. I'll know by Friday.
Question 1.Q1 — How does Layla feel about the interview, on reflection?
Question 2.Q2 — What does Layla imply about the panel?
Visual stimulus · Section 7
3 minToday's mock paper layout (what you'll see on screen / on the page)
The cover sheet, the answer-sheet layout and the section timings. Knowing the FURNITURE of the paper removes a layer of stress on the day.
Programme
Today's 60-min compressed mock
| 0:00–0:08 | Warm-up + cover sheet + pacing plan |
| 0:08–0:14 | R&UoE P1 sample (6 items, 6 min) |
| 0:14–0:20 | Listening P1 (1 extract, 2 questions) |
| 0:20–0:32 | Writing P1 — Essay (compressed: 12 min) |
| 0:32–0:42 | Speaking mock — P1 + P2 + P3 compressed |
| 0:42–0:60 | Hand in. NO marking today — debrief in L18. |
Notes
Answer-sheet rules (always)
- ▸PENCIL for R&UoE, Reading and Listening.
- ▸PEN for Writing.
- ▸Mark every question — no blanks.
- ▸Transfer answers neatly; ambiguous marks are read as wrong.
Discuss in pairs
Look at the schedule and the cover sheet. In one sentence, name the moment in the mock you expect to find hardest — and the move you'll make to handle it.
Exam skills · Section 8
3 minPacing & decision-making across a full mock
Strategy
- 1.Plan time BEFORE you start each paper. Write the section minutes on your scratch sheet.
- 2.Mark every question. Leave nothing blank — no marks are deducted for wrong answers.
- 3.If you spend more than 90 seconds on an R&UoE item, FLAG it and move.
- 4.On Listening, never write during the first play — listen. Write on the second.
- 5.On Writing, spend 5 minutes planning. Don't write until you have a 4-point plan.
- 6.On Speaking, READ the printed question before you open your mouth.
Example
Strong pacing aloud during the mock: 'P1 in 10. P2 in 12. P3 in 12. P4 in 10. P5 in 18. P6 in 16. P7 in 16. P8 in 14. I'm at 7 minutes, on item 5 of P1 — on pace.'
Practice · Section 9
7 minFill in the blank
Question 1.The committee finally ____ doubt on the witness's testimony.
Question 2.Her argument ____ entirely on a single, unverified source.
Question 3.After the scandal the minister had little choice but to ____ down.
Question 4.The new policy was met with ____ enthusiasm from staff.
Question 5.Few of his predictions have actually ____ true over the years.
Question 6.Despite the setbacks, she ____ her resolve and pressed on.
Writing · Section 10
4 minPut it in writing
School magazine · The Forum
Should the school day start later for teenagers?
Two short opinions appeared in the magazine. Respond in an essay.
OPINION A — 'The science is clear: teenage brains are wired to sleep later. An 09:30 start would lift grades and mental health overnight.'
OPINION B — 'A later start punishes families: working parents leave before 08:00. The schedule, not the science, has to come first.'
Your task
WRITING P1 — ESSAY (compressed: 12 minutes). Read the input below. Then write 220–260 words. Use a clear stance, balance both viewpoints, and end with your own argued conclusion. Plan for 3 minutes before you write.
- • Compulsory essay: stance + balance + cohesion.
- • 220–260 words.
- • Plan first. Three paragraphs minimum. Discourse markers between them.
Before you submit
- ☐ Both input points addressed.
- ☐ Clear stance stated, not just implied.
- ☐ At least two C1 cohesion markers (whereas, by contrast, that said, granted that…).
- ☐ Word count within range.
Show model answer
Few school-system debates polarise families as quickly as the proposed later start. Both opinions printed in The Forum reflect a real tension, and both deserve a hearing. Opinion A draws on solid sleep research. Adolescent circadian rhythms genuinely do shift, and a 09:30 start would, on the evidence, lift attendance, mood and arguably outcomes. That said, no policy lives in a laboratory; it lives in households. Opinion B is right to flag this. Working parents whose own day starts before 08:00 cannot simply absorb a later school run, and the children of those families would, paradoxically, be the ones who suffered most from the very policy designed to help them. The honest synthesis is therefore not binary. A staggered model — Year 7–9 starting at 08:30, Year 10–13 at 09:30 — would respect the science where it most applies while protecting families whose mornings cannot be rebuilt. Pilot one term, measure attendance, grades and parental impact, and review. My own stance, on balance, is that a partial, evidence-driven shift is overdue. Whereas a full 09:30 start risks being read as a perk for older students, a staggered version turns research into something a community can actually live with. The science matters. So does the school run. (244 words)
Speaking · Section 11
6 minMake it a real conversation
Speaking mock — compressed P1 + P2 + P3 (10 min total). In 1:1: teacher plays examiner. P1 (2 min) — 3 interview questions. P2 (2 min) — your 1-minute long turn on the photo pair below, partner responds 30s. P3 (4 min) — collaborative task on the option board. Strict timings. The teacher does NOT correct during; corrections come in Lesson 18.
P3 — Collaborative task (~4 min). Talk together about the four options. Then agree which TWO would best help a teenager succeed at CPE.
Which TWO of these would most help a teenager prepare for CPE?
A 6-week intensive course
Fast, expensive — but immersive.
Weekly conversation with a near-native speaker
Fluency-led; less exam strategy.
A graded reader a month
Slow, deep lexis building.
Watching English-language news daily
Listening + topical lexis; no feedback loop.
Useful phrases
- Thanks — I'd say… (P1 opener)
- What strikes me about both photos is… (P2 opener)
- By contrast, the second seems to… (P2 contrast)
- Shall we start with…? (P3 opener)
- I'd lean towards… because… (P3 stance)
- What's your take on…? (P3 invitation)
Optional · Teacher-led
Teacher Activities
Stretches if the slot is longer than 60 min. All work 1:1. ~50 min total
Homework · Section 12
Take-homeTake it home
BEFORE Lesson 18: re-read the Mock cover sheet. Write 3 sentences on (a) the moment you felt strongest, (b) the moment you felt most stuck, (c) what you said to yourself in that stuck moment.
Re-draft your mock essay for 10 minutes only. Don't rewrite — REVISE: change ONE paragraph for stronger stance, add ONE cohesion marker, cut ONE redundancy. Mark the changes in a different colour.
Find one 1-minute clip of a confident interviewee in English. Transcribe their first 30 seconds. Count: hedges, contrast markers, stance phrases. This is your Speaking P2/P4 source bank.
Build a 6-item personal 'exam-day script' card: one sentence each for (1) pacing, (2) recovery, (3) reassurance, (4) flagging, (5) committing a best guess, (6) ending strongly. Carry it to the real exam.
Recap · Section 13
Wrap-upWhat you've learned
- A full mock is a decision gym, not just an English test — practise the moves.
- Mark every question. Leave nothing blank — no marks are deducted for wrong answers.
- Plan time BEFORE each paper. Speak your pacing out loud.
- Flag and move. 'Best guess' is a verb today.
- Tomorrow (L18) we turn this experience into named language goals — keep your notes.