TOEFL iBT Speaking activity

Winning the lottery

The task

•You've discovered you've won $15 million on the lottery! What are you going to do with all that money? How much would you spend on:

•investments?

•your family?

•your friends?

•charity?

•yourself?

Some questions to consider

• How would it feel to win a huge sum of money?

• How would it change your life?

• What drawbacks, if any, would there be to winning a huge sum of money?

To answer the task effectively

You would need to use speculative language

• I would probably ...

• I'd imagine ...

• Most likely I'd ...

• I'd be inclined to ...

• My guess is ...

• Chances are I'd ...

• It's likely that ...

• I doubt whether ...

Before you answer the question

Look at some useful language (in red).

Have you ever dreamed of becoming a millionaire overnight?

Do you think a million dollars is a tidy sum to live on nowadays?

If somebody wins the lottery, does it mean they are in the money?

What is the best way to be set up for life other than winning a lottery?

Would you classify middle class people as well-off?

What do you think it must be like to have money to burn?

Have you ever got a paycheck and decided to go on a spending spree?

Which would you splash out on: a new outfit or a new gadget?

Would you make a donation or provide financial suport to a charity?

Related to money and spending

Proverbs and sayings

• The ... of money is the root of all evil

• You should save money for a ... day

• Money can't buy love or ...

• You should neither a borrower nor a ... be.

• We live in a buy-now-.......-later society

• A fool and his ... are soon parted.

What's the missing word in each?

• The LOVE of money is the root of all evil

• You should save money for a RAINY day

• Money can't buy love or HAPPINESS

• You should neither a borrower nor a LENDER be.

• We live in a buy-now-PAY-later society

• A fool and his MONEY are soon parted.

What's the missing word in each?

Remember the useful language

Now get ready to answer the task

The task

• You've discovered you've won $15 million on the lottery! What are you going to do with all that money? How much would you spend it on:

• investments

• your family

• your friends

• charity

• yourself