Cue Card # 56: A birthday party you have attended

IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card # 56

Describe a birthday party you have attended.

You should say:

• whose birthday it was
• who were present at the party
• what you did at the party

and explain how much you enjoyed it.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you are going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Model Answer:

One of my closest friends ‘Maria’ celebrated her 21st birthday a few months ago and I attended the party which interestingly turned out to be one of the best birthday parties ever.

Maria invited around twenty of her friends to her house on the occasion of her birthday. I was one of her invited guests and friends present at the party, and I was taken aback by the sheer number of guests at the party which would be more than a hundred, I guess. I did not know most of them but they must have been Maria’s neighbours, relatives and her parents’ colleagues and their family members. Maria introduced me to her parents and most of the time, I tried to stay near my friends instead of getting lost in the crowd!

On the evening of the party, I arrived at Maria’s house and brought a present for her. Some of our friends were already there and as soon as I arrived, I could see and feel a joyful environment all around me. The decorated house looked gorgeous and everyone was dressed to their best. Food and drinks were aplenty and we helped ourselves to whatever that caught our fancy. Maria and her sister lit 21 candles and they were placed on the large birthday cake. When we gathered around the candle, Maria blew all the candles with one single puff and we sang the birthday song to her – “Happy birthday to you…”. Everybody laughed and clapped and they seem to have a good time.

After Maria cut the cake, each of us had a slice to eat. It was delicious and I took another slice! We partied till 11:00 pm and we played games, sang songs, listen to music and have had interesting conversations. For a few hours, we totally forgot our everyday issues and problems and thoroughly enjoyed the party with a joyful spirit. That was a rare experience for me and I will never forget this party as it was one of the best that I have ever been to.