A2 Flyers exam format

Exam format

A2 Flyers is made up of three papers developed to encourage and motivate young learners. You can see exactly what’s in each component below.

Component	Content	Marks
Listening (about 25 minutes)	5 parts / 25 questions	a maximum of five shields
Reading and Writing (40 minutes)	7 parts / 44 questions	a maximum of five shields
Speaking (7–9 minutes)	4 parts	a maximum of five shields

Linked to the CEFR, Can Do statements show what a learner can do at each level. Read the Can Do statements for Pre A1 Starters, A1 Movers and A2 Flyers.

Listening
Reading and Writing
Speaking

What’s in the Listening test?

The A2 Flyers Listening test has five parts. Each part begins with one or two examples. Children will hear each recording twice.

Summary

Time allowed:	about 25 minutes
Number of parts:	5
Number of questions:	25
Marks:	a maximum of five shields

Part 1

What's in Part 1?	A big picture which shows people doing different things. Above and below the picture, there are some names. Children have to listen carefully to a conversation between an adult and a child and draw a line from each name to the correct person on the big picture.
What should children practise?	Listening for names and descriptions.
How many questions are there?	5

Part 2

What's in Part 2?	A short conversation between two people. There is a form or a page of a notebook with some missing words (gaps). Children have to listen to the recording and write a missing word or number in each gap.
What should children practise?	Listening for names, spellings and other information.
How many questions are there?	5

Part 3

What's in Part 3?	Two sets of pictures. On the left, there are some pictures of people and their names, or other named places or objects. On the right, there is a set of pictures with letters but no words. Children have to listen to a conversation between two people and match each of the pictures on the right to one of the named pictures on the left.
What should children practise?	Listening for words, names and detailed information.
How many questions are there?	5

Part 4

What's in Part 4?	Five short conversations. There is a question and three pictures for each conversation. Children have to decide which picture shows the right answer to the question and put a tick in the box under it.
What should children practise?	Listening for specific information.
How many questions are there?	5

Part 5

What's in Part 5?	A big picture. Children have to listen carefully to a conversation between an adult and a child and colour different objects for three of the questions and write a single word for two of the questions in the picture.
What should children practise?	Listening for words, colours and specific information.
How many questions are there?	5

What’s in the Reading and Writing test?

The A2 Flyers Reading and Writing test has seven parts. Each part begins with one or two examples. For all parts of the Reading and Writing test, children must spell their answers correctly.

Summary

Time allowed:	40 minutes
Number of parts:	7
Number of questions:	44 questions
Marks:	a maximum of five shields

Part 1

What's in Part 1?	Fifteen words and ten definitions (sentences that describe or explain ten of the fifteen words). Children have to write the correct word next to each definition.
What should children practise?	Reading definitions and matching to words. Copying words.
How many questions are there?	10

Part 2

What's in Part 2?	A short conversation between two people. Everything that the first speaker says is printed on the question paper, with gaps for the second speaker's answers. For each gap, children have to choose the correct answer from a list (A–H).
What should children practise?	Reading and completing a continuous dialogue. Writing letters.
How many questions are there?	5

Part 3

What's in Part 3?	A text with some missing words (gaps) in it (a noun, adjective or verb). Next to the text there is a box with words in it. Children have to choose the correct word from the box for each gap and copy it. For the last question, children have to choose the best title for the text from a choice of three possible titles.
What should children practise?	Reading for specific information and gist. Copying words.
How many questions are there?	6

Part 4

What's in Part 4?	A text with some missing words (gaps). Next to the line where each word is missing, there is a choice of three possible answers. Children have to decide which answer is correct and copy the word into the gap.
What should children practise?	Reading and understanding a factual text. Copying words. Simple grammar.
How many questions are there?	10

Part 5

What's in Part 5?	A complete story, and seven sentences about the story. Each sentence has a gap which children have to complete using one, two, three or four words.
What should children practise?	Reading a story. Completing sentences.
How many questions are there?	7

Part 6

What's in Part 6?	A text from a letter or diary with five gaps. Children have to write the missing word in each of the five gaps. There is no list of words to choose from.
What should children practise?	Reading and understanding a short text.
How many questions are there?	5

Part 7

What's in Part 7?	Children write a story based on three pictures.
What should children practise?	Writing short stories.
How many questions are there?	1

What’s in the Speaking test?

The A2 Flyers Speaking test has four parts. Children take the test alone with the examiner, but someone they know who speaks their language (like their teacher) will introduce them to the examiner and explain what to do in their own language.