# Describe a prize or award you received: IELTS Speaking sample answers

Speaking Part 2 - Events

Describe a prize or award you have received.

You should say:
- what the prize was
- when you received it
- what you did to receive it
- and explain how you felt about receiving it

Source: Sample answers and examiner notes are written by Testmigo.

## Band 7 sample

I'd like to talk about a prize I won at a school science fair when I was about fifteen years old. It was second place in the competition, and the prize was a certificate, a small trophy and some money to buy books.

The science fair was held every year at our school, and students from other schools in the district were also invited. That year there were around forty projects, so I really didn't expect to win anything.

My project was about cleaning water using simple, cheap materials. Together with my friend, I built a water filter from a plastic bottle, sand, gravel and charcoal. We collected dirty water from a pond near our school and tested how clean it became after passing through the filter. It took us about two months, because we had to make a lot of experiments before it worked properly. Our science teacher helped us a lot, especially with explaining the results.

On the day of the fair, we had to present our project to a group of judges, and I was extremely nervous. My hands were shaking when I was explaining the experiment. But the judges asked us some questions and they seemed quite interested.

When they announced that we had won the second place, I couldn't believe it. I felt really proud and also a bit shocked. My parents were very happy and my father even put the certificate on the wall in our living room, where it still is now. More than the prize itself, I think it gave me confidence, and it was one of the reasons I decided to study science later.

**Examiner notes.** This Band 7 answer is relevant and well organised, covering the competition, the project and the feelings with clear detail. Vocabulary is appropriate ("district", "gravel", "charcoal", "judges"), and past perfect is used correctly in "we had won". There are two typical errors: the collocation "make a lot of experiments" (rather than "do a lot of experiments") and the unnecessary article in "the second place" (rather than "second place"). Some expressions are also a little plain ("really proud", "a bit shocked"). For Band 8, the speaker would need more idiomatic and precise language for feelings and more flexible sentence structures.

The Band 8 sample is free with an account on the [topic page](https://testmigo.com/ielts/speaking/topics/describe-a-prize-you-received).

## Common questions

### How long should an IELTS Speaking Part 2 answer be?

You get one minute to prepare and then speak for up to two minutes; the examiner stops you at two. Aim to keep talking for the full time, which is usually 220 to 300 words.

### Can I use these sample answers in my test?

No. Examiners are trained to spot memorised answers, and a learned script is marked down. Use the samples to see what each band does, then answer in your own words.