Describe something you did for the first time as an adult.
A card about a first time that came late: a first rollercoaster, a first swim in the sea, a first night camping, a first meal cooked for a crowd. The reason it waited until adulthood, and the gap between your nerves and the reality, give you a built-in arc.
The task card
Describe something you did for the first time as an adult.
You should say:
- what you did
- when and where you did it
- who you were with
and explain how you felt during and after the experience.
Now say it yourself
Record your own two minutes on this card and have it transcribed and marked against the Speaking criteria. Practising is free; the band estimate is part of Pro.
Record my answerHow long you have
- 1 minute
Preparation
The examiner hands you the card, paper and a pencil. Make notes — a few words per cue point, never sentences.
- 1–2 minutes
Your long turn
Speak until the examiner stops you at two minutes. Finishing early is the most common self-inflicted problem in Part 2.
- 1–2 questions
Rounding off
The examiner may ask one or two short follow-up questions, then moves straight into the Part 3 discussion on the same theme.
Part 2 takes three to four minutes in total. The whole Speaking test runs 11 to 14 minutes across three parts, and Part 3 that follows lasts four to five minutes.
How to approach this card
Choose a single, bounded first attempt rather than a hobby you have done for years — one afternoon, one evening, one ride. Say why you had never done it before, because the reason it waited until adulthood sets up the rest of the story.
Use the setting and the people to slow the story down: the queue, the instructor who explained too quickly, the relative who found your nerves hilarious. Concrete people make your feelings easier to describe.
The final bullet asks about feelings during and after, so plan a contrast: nerves, clumsiness or embarrassment during; pride, relief or surprise after. Structures like 'I hadn't expected to...' and 'by the end I was...' handle that shift naturally.
The common mistake is choosing something so exotic that the answer becomes a travel brochure. An ordinary first time told with honest feelings scores better than a dramatic one described from the outside.
Model answer
Speak your own answer first. Examiners are trained to spot memorised speeches and mark them down — use this to study structure, pacing and naturalness, never to recite.
Show the model answer
Something I did for the first time as an adult, at twenty-eight, was ride a proper rollercoaster. That probably sounds trivial, but I'd avoided them my whole life — I got stuck at the top of a Ferris wheel when I was eight, and ever since I'd been the one holding everyone's bags. It happened last August, at a theme park about two hours from our city. We'd gone for my nephew's twelfth birthday, and the plan was that my sister would take him on the big rides. Then, in the car park, she announced that she gets motion sickness and had never actually intended to go on anything. So it was me or nobody, and I could see from his face that 'nobody' wasn't an option. We queued for about forty minutes, which was almost the worst part, because it gave me plenty of time to have second thoughts. My nephew spent it explaining, very helpfully, exactly how high the first drop was. Then we were strapped in, the car began that slow, clicking climb, and I was gripping the bar so hard my hands hurt. I screamed for the entire first drop — the on-ride photo proves it: me with my eyes shut and my mouth wide open, and my nephew beside me looking completely calm. But somewhere around the second loop the fear turned into something closer to joy, and by the end I was laughing. Afterwards my legs were shaking, but I felt exhilarated, and slightly annoyed with myself for wasting twenty years. We went on it three more times. The photo is now on my sister's fridge, and I've stopped holding the bags.
Why this works: The childhood Ferris wheel explains in one line why this first time waited until adulthood, and the sister's car-park announcement makes the decision circumstantial rather than a story about being persuaded. The queue, the clicking climb and the on-ride photo slow the 'during' half down, the shift from screaming to laughing gives the feelings a clear contrast, and 'I've stopped holding the bags' answers 'after' with a real change rather than 'it was fun'.
Useful vocabulary for this topic
- to step outside my comfort zone
Common phrase for trying something unfamiliar; use it once, then show it.
- to work up the courage
To make yourself brave enough to do something, gradually.
- to have second thoughts
To start doubting a decision; natural for the moments before you begin.
- white-knuckled
Holding on very tightly because you are frightened; vivid, so use it once.
- to make a fool of yourself
To look silly in front of others; natural for nervous first attempts.
- exhilarating
Very exciting; precise and natural for physical experiences.
- I'd happily do it again
Simple, honest way to sum up a positive experience.
Part 3 discussion
After your long turn the examiner moves into a four to five minute discussion on the same theme, working from two related discussion topics with about three questions each. The first stays close to your own experience; the second widens out. Answer with reasons and examples, not one-line replies.
- 1What kinds of new experiences are popular with adults in your country?
- 2Do fears that people develop in childhood usually last into adult life?
- 3Should schools encourage students to take risks with unfamiliar activities?
- 4How can new experiences help people who move to another country?
- 5Is trying new things always a good idea, or can it be unwise?
- 6Why do people pay for experiences that frighten them, such as fairground rides or extreme sports?
More on how this family of cards is discussed: Events and experiences. Model answers for Part 3: Part 3 questions and answers.