‫In this lesson, we're going to learn some speaking skills that you can use on the day of your test,
‫and they are conversation fillers and opinion openers.
‫You learn what language to use when you need to buy some time and you're not sure what you want to talk
‫about.
‫And you're going to learn some excellent phrases that you can use to begin your speaking in the speaking
‫test.
‫So let's move to the band descriptors and find out why conversation fillers are so useful.
‫As you can see, I've highlighted in every band level from six to nine the word hesitation.
‫Now, hesitating in the speaking test is perfectly OK, it's a natural thing that we all do whilst we
‫decide what we want to talk about, but using language like this isn't going to score you extra marks.
‫In fact, it will lower your band score.
‫Conversation fillers are phrases that you can use to buy some time while you think about what you want
‫to discuss.
‫Here is why I think they are so useful.
‫Again, words such as Mom will lose you marks conversation fillers can actually buy you time and using
‫them properly can actually score you some extra points in the out speaking test.
‫Here are four examples of conversation fillers that I think you should practice using.
‫I'm going to show you them used against an ALT'S question.
‫Now, it's also worth noting that conversation fillers are especially useful in part one and part three
‫of the speaking test, as you're going to be answering quickfire questions from the examiner.
‫Let's take a look at that question now.
‫This is an example of a part one question about a common topic such as friendship.
‫What makes a good friend?
‫Let's see the first example using.
‫That's a really good question.
‫I think a good friend is someone who will help you, whatever the situation is.
‫Well, let me think about that.
‫A good friend is someone you can trust at any time with anything.
‫Let's try changing the question, do you have a lot of free time?
‫It's difficult to say, really.
‫Sometimes on the weekend I can relax, but usually I'm always very busy.
‫And here's another example of a part, one question.
‫Are you currently working or studying?
‫So let me move on to our final example, which is to be honest, I've never thought about that.
‫He you wouldn't want to use a conversation filler, as this question doesn't require much thought for
‫this reason, there's no need to hesitate and buy some time you could simply answer with.
‫Right now, I'm learning business at my local college.
‫It's hard, but I really enjoy it.
‫It's also important to note that even though I'm not giving an opinion, I've added extra detail to
‫my answer by saying it's hard, but I really enjoy it.
‫So as you can see, it's not always appropriate to use conversation fillers if the question doesn't
‫require too much thinking or an opinion, maybe using a conversation filler would sound slightly strange.
‫Try and practice these four phrases as much as you can, but do remember not to repeat the language
‫often as this will lose you marks.
‫Now let's move on to opinion openers.
‫Instead of going through the whole scope of the ban descriptors, I thought that this part of the Ban
‫seven ban descriptor really summed up why opinion openers are quite so important than seven states uses
‫a range of connectives and discourse markers.
‫Now, a discourse marker is language that organizes your speaking into parts, and that's exactly what
‫opinion openers do so much like before.
‫Here are four opinion openers or four phrases, and I'm going to show you them in use against a question
‫from the alts example.
‫Here is a part three example question.
‫Why do people like to travel?
‫In my opinion, many people enjoy travelling so they can see a new country or culture that they are
‫interested in, and here is an example to.
‫Well, it seems to me that many people enjoy travelling these days.
‫I think it helps them to relax and distress.
‫Now, let's have a go at changing the question.
‫What kind of jobs pay the most?
‫Personally speaking, I feel doctors and lawyers are paid the most money businesspeople to earn a lot
‫of cash.
‫And the last example, I believe, I believe that the highest paid jobs are different in each country
‫where I'm from, I.T. professionals are paid very well.
‫So that rounds up our four opinion openers.
‫And as with the conversation, fellows, I recommend that you do practice using them as much as possible.
‫But just like conversation fellows, you can't repeat them too often during your speaking test.
‫You need to show a range of language to make sure you can get a band score of seven or higher.
‫Before we move on, I've prepared for you a quick quiz to test your understanding of conversation fillers
‫and opinion openers.
‫Let's take a look at question number one, using phrases such as and will A, annoy the examiner B,
‫make no difference or C, possibly lose you marks in the test.
‫Well, Don, if you answered see, that's correct, that using phrases such as and could possibly lose
‫you marks in the test as it shows you lack confidence in your language, here is question number two.
‫Well, it seems to me.
‫What kind of language is this?
‫A conversation filler, be a connective or c an opinion opener.
‫And the correct answer is C well, it seems to me is an opinion opener, and it's something that you
‫can use in your aout speaking test to begin your speaking part and to start discussing something that
‫you have an opinion on.
‫And here is your final question, in what sections of the test are opinion openers most useful?
‫A, Part three, B, all sections of the test, or C, parts one and three.
‫Again, the correct answer is C parts one and three, and that's because you'd be giving opinions or
‫answering questions from the examiner.
‫So that brings us to an end of our lesson on conversation fellows and opinion openers.
‫I highly suggest practicing those eight phrases to help you use them in your speaking test.