The 0510 listening paper mixes multiple-choice questions, note and gap completion and short detail questions on recorded talks and conversations. You cannot hear audio on a page, so ask someone to read each of our original transcripts aloud twice at a natural pace. The real recordings are played more than once.
Check the syllabus for the current arrangements. Answer as you listen, then reveal the plan and check your work.
1Ask a helper to read this original phone message aloud twice while you answer. Do not read it yourself. Transcript: 'Hi, it's Dan from the drama club.
Quick change for Saturday - rehearsal has moved from the hall to room 14, because the hall's being used for exams. We're still starting at ten, not nine as the email said. Oh, and bring a pencil, not your scripts; we're using new ones.
See you there.' Choose the correct answer: 1. Where is the rehearsal now? (a) the hall (b) room 14 (c) the exam room 2.
What time does it start? (a) nine (b) ten (c) the time in the email 3. What should you bring?
(a) your script (b) a pencil (c) nothing
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Listening multiple-choice often names the wrong option on purpose - the hall, nine o'clock and scripts are all mentioned, then corrected. Listen for the change, not the first thing said.
Reading the three options before your helper starts tells you what to listen for. Check the syllabus for how the listening paper is timed.
Model opening: 1. (b) room 14 - the hall is mentioned, but only to say the rehearsal has moved out of it.
Checklist:
- I read the options before listening
- I chose the corrected detail, not the first one mentioned
- I did not read the transcript myself first
- I confirmed my answers on the second reading
2Ask a helper to read this original talk aloud twice. Complete the notes with a word or short phrase in each gap. Transcript: 'Welcome to Fenwick Nature Reserve.
The reserve covers about forty hectares of old woodland and two ponds. The main path is a loop of three kilometres and takes most people just over an hour. Please keep dogs on a lead near the ponds, where the ground-nesting birds are.
The bird hide is open every day except Monday. If you'd like a guided walk, they run on the first Saturday of each month, and you book at the visitor desk.' Complete the notes: - Size of reserve: about ___ hectares - Length of main path: ___ km - Dogs must be on a lead near the ___ - Bird hide closed on: ___ - Guided walks: first ___ of each month
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Note completion wants one or two words, and spelling counts. Listen for the exact figure or word that fits each gap's grammar - forty, ponds, Monday, Saturday.
Do not write a full sentence. If you miss one on the first reading, leave it blank and catch it on the second.
Model opening: - Size of reserve: about forty hectares
Checklist:
- Each answer is a word or short phrase, not a sentence
- I spelled the answers correctly
- My answer fits the grammar of the note
- I used the second reading to fill any gaps I missed
3Ask a helper to read this original announcement aloud twice while you complete the entry form. Transcript: 'Entries are now open for the town photography competition. This year's theme is Water.
You may enter up to three photographs, and there's no charge for students. Send your entries to the library by the fourteenth of May. Please write your name and a phone number on the back of each print.
Winners will be announced at the summer fair.' Complete the form: - Competition theme: ___ - Maximum number of photos: ___ - Cost for students: ___ - Deadline: ___ - Winners announced at: ___
Tried these practice tasks? A teacher can mark your child's attempt and explain the next step in a paid one-hour trial.
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: Forms want precise details. Listen for the theme, the number, the cost, the date and the place, and write each exactly. 'No charge' or 'free for students' both capture the cost.
A number and a month capture the deadline. Numbers and dates are common answers here, so listen for them closely.
Model opening: - Competition theme: Water
Checklist:
- My answers are precise and short
- I wrote dates and numbers exactly as said
- I spelled the theme and place correctly
- I used the second reading to check the details
4Ask a helper to read this original conversation aloud twice, taking both parts. Then answer the questions, which ask for reasons and opinions, not just facts. Interviewer: 'You cycle to school every day, Leila.
Why not take the bus like most people?' Leila: 'Honestly, the bus is slower in the morning traffic, and by the time I've waited I could be halfway there. Cycling also wakes me up - I actually concentrate better in the first lesson.' Interviewer: 'Isn't it hard in winter?' Leila: 'It can be, but I'd rather be a bit cold than stuck standing on a crowded bus. The only thing I'd change is having somewhere safer to lock my bike.' 1.
Give two reasons Leila prefers cycling to taking the bus. 2. What does she dislike about the bus in winter, compared with cycling?
3. What one change would she like, and why?
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: These questions want the reason behind an opinion. For question 1, listen for the 'because' ideas - the bus is slower, and cycling helps her concentrate. Question 2 contrasts being a little cold with standing on a crowded bus.
Question 3 names the change, a safer place to lock her bike, and implies the reason is security. Note the reasons, not just that she likes cycling.
Model opening: 1. She finds the bus slower in the morning traffic, and cycling wakes her up so she concentrates better in the first lesson.
Checklist:
- I gave reasons, not just the fact that she cycles
- I gave two reasons where the question asked for two
- I caught the winter contrast between cold and a crowded bus
- For question 3 I gave both the change and its reason
5Ask a helper to read this original talk aloud twice. The speaker mentions several ideas before settling on one - choose what the speaker actually decides. Transcript: 'For the class trip we looked at a few options.
The theme park was popular, but it's too expensive this term. The beach is free, but the forecast is poor. So we've decided on the science centre - it's indoors, it's cheap for schools, and there's a workshop we can book. We'll go on the last Friday of term.' 1.
Where is the class going? (a) the theme park (b) the beach (c) the science centre 2. Why not the theme park?
(a) too far (b) too expensive (c) closed 3. When is the trip? (a) the first Friday (b) the last Friday (c) not yet decided
Show plan, model opening & checklist
Plan: The transcript names three places but chooses only one. The theme park and beach are mentioned so they can be ruled out, each with a reason.
Listen for the word 'decided' and the reason attached to each option. This is exactly how the listening paper tests whether you follow a speaker through to their conclusion.
Model opening: 1. (c) the science centre - the other places are named only to explain why they were ruled out.
Checklist:
- I chose the decided option, not one that was rejected
- I matched each reason to the right place
- I read the options before listening
- I used the second reading to confirm the decision
See the method and an annotated model on the listening comprehension page for Cambridge International 0510, or the technique in our listening comprehension skills guide.