PEIC YL Breakthrough cheat sheet

PEIC YL Breakthrough listening tasks are heard twice; the second hearing is for confirming answers, not for first-time comprehension.

Marks are awarded for the information carried by the answer, so a spelling slip that still identifies the word (e.g. 'wos' for 'was' in a name) is treated differently from a wrong word choice.

Question order follows the recording order in sequenced tasks; if a candidate hears the answer to item 5 before item 4, item 4 has been missed and should be guessed and left.

Distractors are typically corrected on the recording ('we said Tuesday, but it's actually Thursday'); the last stated version is the answer.

Numbers, times and prices are common targets: 'half past seven', 'a quarter to nine', '£3.50' and 'two hundred' must be written in the form the rubric allows.

Names and places must be copied exactly as spelled out; the recording often spells them letter by letter after first use.

In picture-based or matching tasks, eliminate options as they are mentioned and ruled out, so the remaining option is confirmed by elimination.

Answers must be written during the pause after each section; leaving all writing until the end risks losing items held only in short-term memory.

Text types at Breakthrough level include short notices, signs, menus, timetables, postcards, emails and simple informative paragraphs of roughly 100–150 words.

Scanning questions ask for one specific detail (a time, a price, a name); skimming questions ask for the topic or purpose of the whole text.

A 'true/false/not given' item is false only when the text contradicts it; if the text is silent on the point, the answer is 'not given'.

Inference items are limited to one logical step from stated information; answers requiring two or more unstated steps are outside the level.

Vocabulary in context items are answered by substituting each option into the sentence and checking that the surrounding grammar still works.

Reference questions ('What does "it" refer to in line 4?') are answered by the nearest preceding noun phrase that agrees in number.

Matching headings to paragraphs is decided by the topic sentence, usually the first or last sentence of the paragraph.

Gapped-text items are solved by checking the words immediately before and after the gap for grammatical agreement (article, preposition, verb form).

Breakthrough writing tasks are short and functional: a postcard, a short email, a form, or 5–8 connected sentences on a familiar topic (about 50–80 words).

All three content points in the prompt must be addressed; an unaddressed bullet caps the task-achievement mark regardless of language accuracy.

Assessment is split between task achievement/communicative purpose and accuracy of grammar, vocabulary, spelling and punctuation.

Simple past, present simple and present continuous, 'going to' for plans, and basic modals (can, must, would like) cover the expected range.

Connectors expected at this level are 'and, but, because, so, then, after that'; complex subordination is not required.

Register rules: postcards and emails to friends use contractions and informal openings ('Hi Sam,'); letters to unknown adults avoid contractions.

Word-count guidance is a minimum, not a target; writing far beyond it increases error density without adding marks.

Spelling of high-frequency words and correct use of capital letters for days, months, nationalities and 'I' are explicitly checked.

The speaking test is conducted face to face and typically has four parts: personal questions, a picture or prompt description, a short role-play or information exchange, and closing questions.

Assessment criteria are communicative effectiveness, pronunciation and intonation, grammar and vocabulary range, and interactive competence (turn-taking, responding to the examiner).

Answers should be extended beyond one word: 'Yes, I do - I play football every Saturday with my brother.'

The examiner's questions use familiar topics (family, school, hobbies, daily routine, last holiday); prepared topic vocabulary raises the range mark.

Picture description follows a fixed frame: what/who is in the picture, where they are, what is happening, and one personal reaction.

In the information-exchange task, candidates must ask questions as well as answer them; failing to ask loses interactive marks.

Pronunciation is judged on intelligibility, not accent; word stress on common words (hoTEL, COMputer) matters more than individual sounds.

If a question is not understood, the expected repair is 'Sorry, could you repeat that, please?' - silence or a guessed answer is penalised.