Good planning ends with a shared result
In Part 1 (Teil 1) you plan a concrete activity with your exam partner. The task sheet lists points you are supposed to talk about. The task is not done when the two of you simply name your ideas one after the other. You have to pick up each other’s suggestions, compare options, solve problems, and at the end state as clearly as possible what has been agreed.
The most useful unit of conversation has four steps:
Vorschlag → Reaktion → Grund/Alternative → Entscheidung oder offene Frage — suggestion → reaction → reason/alternative → decision or open question
If you can handle this unit flexibly, you do not need a memorised dialogue.
Preparation in five minutes
Draw a small table:
| Punkt (point) | Mein Vorschlag (my suggestion) | Alternative / Frage (alternative / question) |
|---|---|---|
| Wann? (when?) | Samstag 15 Uhr | Sonntag? |
| Wo? (where?) | Park | bei Regen Café |
| Was mitbringen? (what to bring?) | Getränke | Partner: Essen? |
| Wie informieren? (how to inform people?) | Gruppenchat | Telefonnummern fehlen? |
Not every point needs an original suggestion. You need enough material to react to the other person. Also write down one realistic constraint: work, cost, travel, weather or availability.
Opening the conversation without a stiff script
A natural start names the task and the first point:
„Wir sollen das Abschiedsfest für unseren Kurs planen. Wollen wir zuerst über den Termin sprechen? Ich könnte am Samstag ab 15 Uhr. Wie sieht es bei dir aus?“ — We are supposed to plan the farewell party for our course. Shall we talk about the date first? I could do Saturday from 3 p.m. How about you?
That way you not only open the conversation, you immediately make room for the other person. Avoid a long overview of all the points; your partner has to be able to take part.
Agreeing and still moving the work forward
„Ja, gute Idee“ (yes, good idea) on its own does not advance the planning. Add a consequence:
- „Samstag passt mir gut. Dann könnten wir schon am Vormittag einkaufen.“ — Saturday suits me well. Then we could do the shopping in the morning.
- „Der Park ist eine gute Idee. Wir brauchen aber einen Plan für Regen.“ — The park is a good idea. But we need a plan for rain.
- „Ich bin einverstanden. Wer übernimmt die Einladungen?“ — I agree. Who takes care of the invitations?
Agreement then turns into the next step.
Disagreeing politely
Disagreement shows interaction when it is justified on the facts and oriented towards a solution:
„Am Freitag kann ich leider nicht, weil ich bis 18 Uhr arbeite. Wäre Samstag für dich möglich?“ — Unfortunately I can’t on Friday, because I work until 6 p.m. Would Saturday be possible for you?
„Ein Restaurant wäre bequem, aber für einige Kursteilnehmer vielleicht zu teuer. Wir könnten stattdessen ein Picknick organisieren.“ — A restaurant would be convenient, but perhaps too expensive for some course participants. We could organise a picnic instead.
You do not need complicated subjunctive forms. Leider (unfortunately), a clear reason and an alternative are enough.
Asking when something is unclear
- „Meinst du diesen oder nächsten Samstag?“ — do you mean this Saturday or next Saturday?
- „Wie viele Personen erwartest du ungefähr?“ — roughly how many people are you expecting?
- „Soll jeder etwas mitbringen?“ — should everyone bring something?
- „Wie kommen wir dorthin?“ — how do we get there?
- „Was machen wir, wenn es regnet?“ — what do we do if it rains?
Questions like these are not time-fillers. They clarify conditions and help you reach a decision.
A complete sample dialogue
A: „Wir möchten für eine neue Kollegin einen Willkommensnachmittag planen. Wann könnten wir das machen?“
B: „Vielleicht am Freitag nach der Arbeit, gegen 17 Uhr. Passt dir das?“
A: „Freitag ist grundsätzlich gut, aber einige Kollegen arbeiten im Homeoffice. Wie wäre es mit Donnerstag, wenn sowieso alle im Büro sind?“
B: „Stimmt, Donnerstag erreichen wir mehr Leute. Dann könnten wir um 16 Uhr im großen Besprechungsraum beginnen.“
A: „Einverstanden. Sollen wir einen Kuchen bestellen?“
B: „Ja. Ich kann mich darum kümmern. Vielleicht bringst du Getränke mit?“
A: „Gerne. Und ich schreibe heute eine Nachricht in den Teamchat.“
B: „Gut, dann halten wir fest: Donnerstag um 16 Uhr im Besprechungsraum. Ich bestelle Kuchen, du organisierst Getränke und Einladung.“
In English: A and B plan a welcome afternoon for a new colleague. B suggests Friday after work, A objects that some colleagues work from home and proposes Thursday, they settle on 4 p.m. in the large meeting room, and they split the tasks — B orders the cake, A brings drinks and posts the invitation in the team chat.
The dialogue works not because of rare words, but because of reference, alternative and closure.
Five conversation mistakes
Two monologues
Each person delivers their complete plan. Fix: after every suggestion, ask a concrete question and pick up the answer.
Automatic agreement
Everything is instantly „super“. Fix: clarify at least one real condition — time, budget, responsibility or a bad-weather plan.
Ticking off the exam points like a list
„Wann? Samstag. Wo? Park. Essen? Pizza.“ (When? Saturday. Where? Park. Food? Pizza.) That is efficient, but linguistically undeveloped. Add reasons and full reactions.
Correcting your partner
You are not an examiner. If the meaning is clear, respond to it. If something is unclear, ask about it instead of giving a grammar lesson.
No result
The conversation ends in the middle of one option. Reserve the last 20 seconds for a summary.
Training with constraint cards
Ordinary practice quickly becomes memorised. Give each other secret constraints:
- „Du kannst nur vormittags.“ — you are only free in the morning.
- „Dein Budget ist höchstens 30 Euro.“ — your budget is 30 euros at most.
- „Du hast kein Auto.“ — you do not have a car.
- „Du findest den vorgeschlagenen Ort zu laut.“ — you find the suggested place too noisy.
The other person does not know your card. That forces you to listen for real, ask follow-up questions and develop alternatives.
Evaluation without gut feeling
After three minutes of conversation, tick the boxes:
| Function | A | B |
|---|---|---|
| made a suggestion | ||
| referred to the partner’s idea | ||
| gave a reason | ||
| asked a follow-up question | ||
| offered an alternative | ||
| summarised the result |
Do not count every grammar problem. In addition, choose exactly one language priority per person.
You will find the whole speaking procedure and repair sentences in Speaking: format and set phrases. New planning situations are available at Goethe B1 Sprechen. As soon as the four-step unit runs automatically, you can organise almost any everyday topic together.