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Les formules de survie — Crack the Role-Play with 8 Phrases
🎭 Les formules de survie — Crack the Role-Play with 8 Phrases
The AQA role-play is worth 10 marks (AO1 communication) and lasts about two minutes. You receive a card with five bullet-point tasks and you must communicate all five to the examiner who is playing a character — a hotel receptionist, a shopkeeper, a tour guide. The examiner does not expect perfect grammar; they reward communication. These 8 formulas cover most bullet-point tasks across every role-play scenario on the specification.
Les 8 formules essentielles
Each formula is a reusable structure — swap the noun or infinitive to cover almost any topic.
Earn the mark scheme marks
💡 Exam Tips & Common Errors
- Role-play answers should be short and precise — one or two sentences per bullet. Never give a paragraph.
- Je voudrais is more polite than je veux — always use voudrais in role-play contexts.
- Use s'il vous plaît (formal) in role-play — the character is a stranger or official. Reserve s'il te plaît for informal conversations with friends.
- If the examiner says something unexpected, stay calm: use Pouvez-vous répéter, s'il vous plaît? — this is a legitimate communicative strategy and earns marks.
- Each bullet task carries 2 marks. Partial communication (getting part of the message across) still earns 1 mark.
❌ Common error: "Je voudrais une chambre pour deux personnes et c'est ma famille et nous aimons voyager ensemble et normalement nous allons dans les hôtels parce que…"
✓ Correct: "Je voudrais une chambre pour deux personnes, s'il vous plaît."
Why it costs marks: Role-play is assessed on communication, not quantity. Over-explaining wastes time, creates confusion, and may lead you to make errors that cost AO3 marks. One clear sentence per bullet is the target.