5.1. Plan, Map and Diagram Labelling
Find the entrance, follow the speaker's route words, and choose the letter that stands, one step at a time.
Label the plan below. Write the correct letter, A-H, next to Questions 15-18.
- 15the wildflower meadow15
- 16the compost bays16
- 17the bird hide17
- 18the volunteers' hut18
In the test the letters A to H sit on a drawn plan on screen. The lesson's own plan is further down.
The short version
You see a plan, a map or a diagram with lettered boxes, and a list of numbered places.
You choose the letter of the box where each place is. Some sets ask for a word instead.
The speaker walks a route. The places are named in that order, not in letter order.
The speaker often names a place, then corrects it. The second one counts.
What you have to do
The test shows a plan, map or diagram with boxes marked by letters. There is also a list of numbered places, such as the café or the first-aid room. You listen to one speaker describing the site and choose the letter of the box where each place is. Some sets ask for words instead of letters: then you type a word, inside the word limit. The places are named in recording order, so the answer to 16 comes after the answer to 15.
Direction words
On your left and on your right mean the speaker's left and right, facing the way they walk. Opposite means across the path. Past and beyond mean further along than the place just named. At the far end means the last place on that path. Used to be means the old place, which is not the answer.
Step by step
- 1In the preview pause, find the entrance and face the way the speaker will walk
Read the numbered places first, then find the entrance, gate or you are here mark on the plan. Put your cursor there and face into the site, so that left and right mean something. Note the north arrow if there is one. Rule out anything already named on the plan, such as a river or a road: those are landmarks, not answers.
- 2Listen for the route words that place you
The speaker moves along a path and names places as they pass. Listen for straight ahead, on your left, past the, opposite, beyond and at the far end. Move your cursor with each one. A landmark named on the plan, such as the changing rooms, tells you which part of the plan the speaker has reached.
- 3Match the place, not the word, and wait for the correction
The speaker rarely says the words on the list. The café may arrive as somewhere to get a coffee. Listen for the meaning. Then wait a second, because speakers correct themselves: it used to be by the gate, now it is beyond the pond. Choose the place that stands, not the first one named.
- 4Rule out the boxes the speaker rejects
When the speaker says not by the entrance, rule out every box by the entrance. When a box is filled, rule it out too, because a letter is rarely used twice. Left with two boxes, use the last direction word: on the right leaves one. Never give a landmark from the plan as an answer.
- 5If you missed it, choose a letter and jump to the next place
Do not chase a place you have lost. Look at the next numbered place, listen for its name or its meaning, and pick up the route there. Later, choose your best guess for the one you missed: any box still empty near where the speaker was. A blank scores nothing, and one lost answer must not cost the next two.
Plan: the entrance at the bottom, a path running up the middle, boxes A and B on the left of the path, C and D on the right, A and C nearest the entrance. Question 15: the ticket office.
Script: *Come in at the bottom and walk up the path. The ticket office is not the first hut on your right, that is the shop. It is the one beyond it, on the same side.* Start at the entrance, facing up the path. *On your right* rules out A and B. *Not the first hut* rules out C, and the shop is a landmark, not an answer. *Beyond it, on the same side* is D. Choose D.
Every box goes the same way: face the route, follow the direction words, wait for the correction, rule out, choose.
Quiz time5 questions
Every drill uses the same small park, described in its instructions, and a clip of ten to fifteen seconds. Practise one step at a time.
Face the way the speaker walks
The plan shows a small park. The gate is at the bottom and the pond is in the middle. The letters A to D sit on the four corners, clockwise from top left. Start at the gate, face the pond, then play the clip once.
Clip: the bird hide
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Which letter is the bird hide?
Follow past and beyond
The plan shows a small park. The gate is at the bottom and the pond is in the middle. The letters A to D sit on the four corners, clockwise from top left. Follow each direction word as you listen.
Clip: the picnic lawn
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Which letter is the picnic lawn?
Used to be, now is
The plan shows a small park. The gate is at the bottom and the pond is in the middle. The letters A to D sit on the four corners, clockwise from top left. Listen to the end of the clip before you decide.
Clip: the rose garden
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
The rose garden
Rule out what the speaker rejects
The plan shows a small park. The gate is at the bottom and the pond is in the middle. The letters A to D sit on the four corners, clockwise from top left. Rule out a letter each time the speaker rejects a place, then choose from what is left.
Clip: the café
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Which letter is the café?
Lost your place? Jump to the next label
The plan shows a small park. The gate is at the bottom and the pond is in the middle. The letters A to D sit on the four corners, clockwise from top left. The speaker describes the greenhouse too fast to place. Let it go, listen for the bandstand, and choose its letter.
Clip: the greenhouse and the bandstand
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Which letter is the bandstand?
Try a full set
Below is a plan of a leisure centre and a Part 2 talk of real length, with five places to label. Work the five steps in order.
The main entrance is on Quay Street at the south and the river is on the west. The eight boxes marked A to H are empty on purpose: only the talk tells you which room each one is. The terrace, changing rooms and studio are named because they are landmarks, not answers.
The full set5 questions
Where do you collect a locker key?
Play the leisure-centre talk once. Use the plan above. Type the letter. ONE LETTER.
Part 2: leisure centre layout
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Locker keys are collected at
Write no more than 1 word.
The staff offices
Use the recording and plan above. Type the letter. ONE LETTER.
The staff offices are
Write no more than 1 word.
The café
Use the recording and plan above. Type the letter. ONE LETTER.
The café is
Write no more than 1 word.
Where is the main pool now?
Use the recording and plan above. Type the letter. ONE LETTER.
The main pool is now at
Write no more than 1 word.
The climbing wall
Use the recording and plan above. Type the letter. ONE LETTER.
The climbing wall is
Write no more than 1 word.
Tips
- Trace the path with your cursor
The speaker walks a route. Moving your cursor with them is what stops you losing your place.
- Direction words are the answers
Opposite, past, on your left, at the far end. These are what turn a description into a letter.
- Never leave a letter blank
A blank scores nothing and a wrong guess costs nothing. Choose a letter for every place.
Recap
In the preview pause, find the entrance and face the way the speaker will walk.
Follow the route words, and choose the place that stands after the correction.
Rule out the boxes the speaker rejects, and jump to the next place if you lose one.
Next: the same method on a market hall, with a spare box that stays empty.