Follow directions on a plan
Follow the route from its stated starting point. Keep the traveller’s direction separate from the fixed north arrow on the plan.
Written preparation — recordings pending. This original plan and six fictional directions practise spatial interpretation, not listening performance. They are not official test questions. Specialist review has not been completed. Answers stay only in this open page; they are not saved and produce no band score or mastery record.
Locate, face, move, then label
- Read the task and the plan. Find the entrance, compass arrow, junctions and lettered positions. Check whether the task asks for a letter from a list or another kind of response; follow its own instructions.
- Mark your starting point and facing direction. Page-left means west on this north-up plan. A traveller’s left depends on which way they face: left is west when facing north, but east when facing south.
- Follow movement in order. “Pass the first junction” means keep going there. “At the middle junction” fixes where to turn; choosing the correct side at the wrong junction still gives the wrong room.
- Use fixed landmarks to check relative turns. North and south do not change when the traveller turns around. If a direction says both “left while facing south” and “east”, those clues should agree.
- Reset when instructed. Each item below starts afresh. Do not continue from your previous answer. Keep all letters available because these practice sets permit reuse.
Plan labelling connects language to a visual position. A diagram of equipment may instead describe parts and their relationships, so do not apply compass directions unless that diagram supplies them. In the actual Listening test, recordings are played once; reading and rereading directions here is preparation only.
Before moving: check your viewpoint
Point toward north on the plan. Your left points west. Now imagine turning around to face south: your left points east, although the rooms have not moved. A north arrow tells you the plan’s orientation; it does not tell you which way a speaker is facing.
The community centre plan
Rooms A–F connect to one main corridor. Read the plan before opening the directions. Room names are supplied by each practice item, not printed on the plan.
Text description of the plan
The south entrance is below the main corridor. Travelling north, you reach the southern, middle and northern junctions in that order. Each junction has a short branch west and east.
- A: West of the northern junction.
- B: East of the northern junction.
- C: West of the middle junction.
- D: East of the middle junction.
- E: West of the southern junction.
- F: East of the southern junction.
Six original direction-following entries
Read each set’s starting instruction, open its written directions, and choose all three rooms before checking. Explain the junction and the side, not just the letter. Editing a choice clears that set’s feedback.
1. From the south entrance
Start again at the south entrance, facing north, for each item. Choose the letter A–F of the room described. Letters may be reused; keep every option available.
Read the original practice transcript
Cloakroom: Enter from the south and walk north along the main corridor. At the first junction, turn left. The cloakroom is the room at the end of that short branch. Do not continue to the middle junction.
Art studio: Starting at the south entrance again, pass the first junction without turning. At the middle junction, turn right. That branch leads directly to the art studio.
Seminar room: Begin at the south entrance and stay on the main corridor past both the southern and middle junctions. At the northern end, take the branch to the west. The seminar room is on that side.
2. Change your viewpoint
Start again at the northern junction, facing south, for each item. Choose A–F. Letters may be reused, including letters chosen in the first set.
Read the original practice transcript
Café: Stand at the northern junction facing south. Do not walk down the main corridor yet. Take the branch immediately on your left. The café is in the room at the end of that branch.
Reading room: Start at the northern junction facing south. Walk to the middle junction. Turn right there, rather than continuing to the southern junction. That room is the reading room.
Workshop: From the northern junction, walk south past the middle junction to the southern one. Still facing south, turn left into the short branch. The workshop is at its end. It is on the east side of the plan.
Explain the route without guessing
Stand at the middle junction facing north. Turn right into a room. Which letter is it? Then imagine leaving that room facing west: which way must you turn at the main corridor to travel north? Explain why a right turn can point in two different compass directions.
Compare my reasoning
The room is D: right while facing north is east. Leaving D towards the corridor means facing west; turning right from that direction points north. The fixed compass stays the same, while the traveller’s facing direction changes. Explaining this familiar plan is rehearsal, not evidence that you can follow an unseen recording.
What to practise next
Try the directions again without keeping the transcript open. The new scripts still need recordings, timing and pronunciation checks. No full-paper plan task has yet been verified and linked to this lesson.
Use matching preparation to track items against shared options, or multiple-choice preparation to compare separate choices. A written route check does not verify audio playback.