Before I share my essential speaking tips for the DELF exam level A2, here is what this level entails in terms of competence.
At this level, the sentences become slightly more complicated due to the introduction of new tenses to help the learners speak in the near future and the past. We often call this the Elementary or Survival phase. If you reach this level, you can do more than just simple ‘tourist’-style activities.
For most European languages including French, the Council of Europe develops the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) sets standards that are used to measure the proficiency of learners and the A2 French level is the second of 6 levels of competency.
WHAT TO EXPECT FOR LA PRODUCTION ORALE A2
At this stage the learner is expected to:
- Converse using phrases to describe their families and other people, their living conditions, their training and their current or past professional activity
- Situating events in time and telling past events
- Have brief exchanges
The DELF A2 speaking exam section lasts 6 to 8 minutes and it accounts for a quarter of the total marks. To pass you must not get less than 5 out of 25 points (out of a total of 100) and it is made up of three parts, just let me show you how it looks so you’re well prepared:
1 : The first is a quick exchange of information called “Entretien dirigé” .
In it, you will introduce yourself or a personal topic.
It is marked out of 4 points and lasts just 1.5 minutes.
No preparation time for that first part the exam however you will have 10 minutes to prepare the 2nd and the 3rd part of the speaking task.
2 : The second part is called “Monologue suivi”.
You’ll be marked out of 5 points and you’ll have to show that you can have a social exchange, talk about something related to you or your life, describe something familiar as well as react and interact with someone.
3 : Finally the third and last part is called “Exercice en interaction”.
This part is a 3 to 5 minute role play. Here you’ll need to ask and give information, conduct a transaction or make suggestions and react during an exchange. This part is marked out of 6 points.
So to summarise, the marks are 4 points for part 1, 5 points for part 2 and then 6 points for the third part.
The remaining 10 points are awarded for your ability to showcase:
Vocabulary (both depth and mastery) / Grammar and syntax / Pronunciation
VOCABULARY AND GRAMMAR FOCUS
The topics are all around daily life and personal circumstances. We recommend you learn how to discuss things like: your family, work, home, hobbies…
The grammar is quite extensive as you move past just using the present tense and add some other verb tenses such to relate the past (passé composé + imparfait) as well as the future (futur proche et simple) along with a variety of more complicated sentence structures.
Want to know all the topics you need for the exam as well as a detailed list of the grammar to know so that you can feel confident to take the DELF A2?
To prepare for greater success, here are some recurring topics or situations from the Speaking part of the DELF A2 exam:
= For Part 1, we regularly see the topics of: home, leisure activities, family, sport, likes and dislikes as well as work.
= For Part 2, it’s usually around personal topics such as your studies, your profession, your favourite dish, a typical day for you, your city or how you met a good friend …
= In Part 3, the role play will have you pretending you are:
- sending a parcel at the post office, organising a weekend away with friends,
- joining a gym, planning a party for someone, joining the local library,
- opening a bank account, discussing plans to study abroad, buying tickets…
MY TOP TIPS FOR THE SPEAKING PART OF THE DELF A2 EXAM
- Keep the conversation natural; you are allowed to hesitate, ask for a word and restart your sentence if you need to
- Take your time and don’t try to speak too fast – always favour a clear pronunciation over speed
- Look at the examiner, smile and show them that you want to answer their questions
- If you get a blank or can’t think of anything more to say, don’t panic the examiner will help you
- For the role plays, remember to get into character and play along whether you’re talking to your friend, a parent, a sibling, a shop keeper or a fellow student…
- Don’t forget to greet the examiner and also thank them at the end. Always use ‘vous’ when addressing the examiner
- As you cannot prepare for every single question that will come up during the DELF A2 exam, don’t panic just remember that you can ask them to repeat if you didn’t understand something. Practise asking this before the exam.
- Remember not to overcomplicate what you want to say to avoid making unnecessary mistakes. Use simple relevant vocabulary to convey your message clearly.
SOME HELPFUL TRAINING VIDEOS
Some of the ‘classics’ i.e. recurring topics we’ve seen used in the DELF A2 exam for the Speaking component of the ‘Exercice en Interaction’ section are listed below.
Here are some sample dialogues to help you practice the speaking (and listening) part of the exam:
- Organise a party with a friend. Check out our video here:
- Conversation at the bank, Check out our video here:
In the Monologue suivi part, here is some extra help:
- Talking about your work. Check out our video here:
YOUR FREE CHECKLIST TO BEST PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE DELF A2 EXAM
Don’t forget to grab your free DELF A2 checklist where I cover all the topics you need for the exam as well as a detailed list of the grammar you need to know so that you can feel confident to take the DELF A2.