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CELPIP Listening Part 3 practice with answers
Part 3, Listening for Information, asks you to follow an explanation and retain useful details. Below is a free six-question set about a bird survey, with a transcript and answers.
Part 3: understanding an explanation
Part 3 contains six questions. This original set has two speakers: a new volunteer and a survey leader. The volunteer asks about an unfamiliar activity, giving the leader opportunities to explain its purpose and procedures. Use six minutes as the suggested time for the page’s exercise.
The questions below are written out with choices, and the transcript remains available for review. For your first attempt, keep it hidden after one reading or one reading aloud. On the test, Listening audio plays once and you cannot return to an earlier part.
Follow both the topic and the relationship between the turns. A question can contain a mistaken assumption, and the reply can replace it with an explanation. Remembering the question more vividly than the correction can lead you towards a plausible but unsupported choice.
Separate guesses from confirmed information
In an information exchange, listen for the difference between what a newcomer assumes and what the knowledgeable speaker confirms. An initial suggestion may be partly reasonable while missing the main reason. Preserve the distinction between a secondary benefit and the explanation being emphasized.
Procedure questions require attention to sequence and responsibility. Who notices something, who records it and who takes further action may be different people. An option can name a person from the conversation while giving that person a task they were never assigned.
Purpose questions ask what an action achieves. Find the connection between the action and its intended result. A meeting location, a piece of equipment or a time of day may be easy to remember, but it will not answer a question about why a procedure is used.
Build the explanation as you listen
- Before listening, identify who is seeking information and who is explaining it. Leave room for several topics rather than guessing which detail the questions will test.
- During the exchange, use each new question as a topic marker. Listen through the whole reply before deciding whether the first speaker’s assumption was accepted.
- Attach reasons to procedures. When the explanation introduces an exception or uncertainty, keep that qualification with the relevant instruction.
- After listening, recall the main topics in order. For each question, decide whether you need a duty, a reason, a procedure or the purpose of a final step.
Check the scope of an answer before selecting it. An instruction about an uncertain situation should not become a rule for every situation. Equally, a suggestion raised by the volunteer needs confirmation before you can treat it as the project’s method.
Use paper notes for duties and reasons
Use the paper and pen provided on test day; return them at the end. For rehearsal, draw a narrow column for topic labels and a wider one for explanations. This lets you locate a procedure without rereading a paragraph of notes.
Write an action with its owner when the conversation assigns duties. Add a short reason where the speaker explains why a method matters. Keep optional equipment separate from required behaviour so a remembered object does not become an invented instruction.
When an explanation corrects a guess, cross out the guess or clearly mark it as rejected. Avoid recording both versions with equal emphasis. If a reply contains several instructions, capture the distinctions first and leave out decorative wording. During review, inspect whether the missed answer was absent from your notes or present under the wrong topic.
Apply the method to the shoreline survey
The bird-survey conversation moves through a volunteer’s concerns and practical questions. You do not need knowledge of birds or field surveys. Keep your attention on how the leader responds, including whether a reply reassures, corrects or gives a reason for a procedure.
The recorded audio is in the app; this page uses the transcript. Ask someone to read both roles aloud once, without explaining difficult words or repeating a reply during the attempt.
Answer all six questions before opening the explanations. Afterwards, compare this explanatory conversation with the Part 4 news item. The next set requires you to organize reported information without a newcomer’s questions marking each change of topic.
Free Listening Part 3 practice set
Practice set: Learning to count shoreline birds
Original Part 3 set. A new volunteer asks a survey leader about a bird-counting project near Nanaimo. The recorded audio is in the app; here you get the transcript. Read it once at speaking speed (or have someone read it to you), then cover it and answer. Suggested time: 6 minutes.
Transcript
Woman: I've signed up for Sunday's shoreline bird count, but I'm no expert. I can recognize a few common birds. Will I slow everyone down if I keep asking what we're looking at?
Man: Not at all. We pair new volunteers with experienced counters. Your first job will be recording the numbers your partner calls out. You'll pick up identification skills along the way, and questions are welcome.
Woman: That's reassuring. I usually walk that beach in the afternoon, when the water is farther out. Why are we meeting so early? Is it simply because there are fewer people and dogs around?
Man: That helps, but the main reason is the tide. We count near high tide, when birds gather on a smaller stretch of shore. It makes the counts more comparable from one visit to another, even though the starting time changes.
Woman: What if a flock takes off and lands a little farther down the beach? I suppose we add it again when we reach the next viewing point. Otherwise, how would we record that location?
Man: We note the movement, but don't count the same flock twice. Your partner will track it as you walk. If you're unsure whether a group is new, flag the uncertainty on the sheet instead of making the number look definite.
Woman: And what if I notice an injured bird? I've got a pet carrier I could put in the car. I'd feel terrible just walking past without doing anything to help it.
Man: Don't try to catch it yourself. Tell the survey leader, who will contact the wildlife rescue team. You can record the location and keep people back while help is arranged. Bring binoculars if you own them, but we have loan pairs. Wear waterproof boots, because the path can be muddy even in clear weather. We'll finish at the shelter, where we check the sheets together before anyone leaves. That final check often catches a missing time or an unclear number.
How to review this set
Trace each missed answer to the leader’s reply, checking the volunteer’s preceding assumption as well. “That helps, but the main reason is the tide” distinguishes a secondary benefit from the stated reason. “Flag the uncertainty on the sheet” gives a specific response to doubt. Check whether you retained a guess, assigned an action to the wrong person or remembered a procedure without its purpose, then compare with the explanation.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are in Listening Part 3?
Part 3 has six questions. The original set on this page uses a suggested six-minute timer.
Is knowledge of bird surveys required?
No. Use the leader’s explanation as the evidence for your answers, including corrections to the volunteer’s assumptions.
What if both speakers mention a possible reason?
Check whether the reply confirms it, limits it or supplies a different main reason. A suggestion in a question is not automatically confirmed information.
What should my notes contain?
Keep topic labels, actions, responsible people and short reasons. Mark corrected assumptions clearly so they do not compete with the explanation.
Sources
Checked October 19, 2026. Rules and fees change: check the official page before you act. celpip.ca pages were read from public archive snapshots because the site blocks automated access.