Basisexamen Speaking A1 (Spreken): Format and Practice

Spreekvaardigheid is the A1 speaking part of the basisexamen inburgering buitenland. It takes 30 minutes and has 22 short spoken answers: 10 questions you answer yourself and 12 sentences you complete with help from a picture. Each recording can be up to 60 seconds. Train with short, clear Dutch answers instead of long scripts.

• The Spreken A1 exam is fully digital and is taken with a headset and microphone.
• Part 1, Vraag en antwoord, has 10 everyday questions. You hear a person on screen and give your own answer.
• Part 2, Zinnen afmaken, has 12 sentence completions. You see a picture, read and hear the prompt, then finish the sentence aloud.
• For practice, use 2 points per item: 1 point for an adequate answer and 1 point for understandable pronunciation.
• A useful practice target is 34 out of 44 points. The official result is reported as a mark from 1 to 10, and 6 or higher passes the speaking part.
• Human assessors check the speaking answers with the A1 assessment model.

The exam checks whether you can produce simple Dutch in daily situations: saying where you live, what you do, what you need, how you travel, what you eat, and what is happening in a picture. A good A1 answer can be very short. It must fit the question and be understandable to a trained listener.

• Vraag en antwoord: listen for the question word, such as wat, waar, wanneer, hoe, wie, or waarom. Start with a direct answer: Ik ga..., Ik woon..., Ik eet..., Mijn familie...
• Zinnen afmaken: look at the picture first. Finish only the sentence start. One logical word group is often enough: naar school, met de bus, warm, in de tas, voor mijn moeder.
• Timer habit: do not wait for a perfect sentence. Speak within the first few seconds, then add one simple detail if the task needs it.

The A1 speaking model scores two things for both task types: adequacy and pronunciation. If the answer is missing, not understandable, or not an answer to the task, adequacy is 0 and the pronunciation point also becomes 0. Small grammar mistakes are less dangerous than silence or an answer that does not match the prompt.

• Adequacy: Did you answer the question, or did you complete the sentence logically?
• Pronunciation: Can a trained listener understand you with some effort?
• Best strategy: use words you can pronounce clearly, even if the sentence is simple.

• 0-5 seconds: find the main word in the question or picture.
• 5-20 seconds: say the direct answer in one simple sentence.
• 20-45 seconds: add one detail for question-answer tasks. For sentence completions, stop if the completion is already clear.
• 45-60 seconds: repeat or repair only if needed: Sorry, ik bedoel... or Ik zeg het nog een keer.

Record every answer for up to 60 seconds and score yourself out of 2 points.

• 1. Prompt: U bent bij de apotheek. Wat koopt u? Good answer: Ik koop medicijnen en pleisters.
• 2. Prompt: U hebt een vrije dag. Wat doet u? Good answer: Ik ga wandelen en ik bel mijn familie.
• 3. Prompt: U ziet een kind vallen. Wat doet u? Good answer: Ik help het kind en ik vraag: gaat het?
• 4. Prompt: U gaat naar de markt. Wat koopt u? Good answer: Ik koop tomaten, brood en appels.
• 5. Prompt: U bent moe. Wat doet u vanavond? Good answer: Ik eet vroeg en ik ga naar bed.
• 6. Prompt: U wilt Nederlands oefenen. Met wie praat u? Good answer: Ik praat met mijn buurman en met mijn docent.
• 7. Prompt: U krijgt een brief. Wat doet u? Good answer: Ik lees de brief. Soms vraag ik hulp.
• 8. Prompt: Uw fiets is kapot. Hoe gaat u naar school of werk? Good answer: Ik ga met de bus of ik loop.
• 9. Prompt: U kookt voor uw familie. Wat maakt u? Good answer: Ik maak rijst met groente.
• 10. Prompt: U moet om negen uur ergens zijn. Hoe laat vertrekt u? Good answer: Ik vertrek om half negen.

• 11. Picture clue: a bowl of hot soup. Complete: Mira roert in de soep. De soep is... Possible answer: warm.
• 12. Picture clue: a man looking under a chair. Complete: Pavel zoekt zijn sleutel. Hij kijkt... Possible answer: onder de stoel.
• 13. Picture clue: a woman with a towel near the bathroom. Complete: Yara pakt een handdoek. Ze gaat... Possible answer: douchen.
• 14. Picture clue: bread in a school bag. Complete: Sami doet brood in zijn tas. Hij neemt brood mee naar... Possible answer: school.
• 15. Picture clue: a woman at a cash register. Complete: Lotte staat bij de kassa. Ze gaat... Possible answer: betalen.
• 16. Picture clue: a dark room and a lamp. Complete: Jin doet de lamp aan. Het is... Possible answer: donker.
• 17. Picture clue: a woman opening a refrigerator. Complete: Amina opent de koelkast. Ze zoekt... Possible answer: eten.
• 18. Picture clue: a message on a phone. Complete: Pavel leest een bericht. Het bericht staat op zijn... Possible answer: telefoon.
• 19. Picture clue: a woman wearing a helmet beside a bicycle. Complete: Nour draagt een helm. Ze rijdt op haar... Possible answer: fiets.
• 20. Picture clue: flowers on a table. Complete: Diego legt bloemen op tafel. De bloemen zijn voor... Possible answer: zijn moeder.
• 21. Picture clue: a wet coat on a coat rack. Complete: Yusuf hangt zijn jas op. Zijn jas is... Possible answer: nat.
• 22. Picture clue: a clock and a person running. Complete: Iris kijkt op de klok. Ze is... Possible answer: te laat.

• Practise the official Naar Nederland materials first so you know the exam interface and A1 vocabulary.
• Record your answers. If you cannot understand your own key words, make the sentence shorter.
• Prepare answer frames for daily topics: family, home, food, travel, work, school, health, shopping, and weather.
• Practise both task types. A strong question-answer routine is not enough if sentence completions feel unfamiliar.
• Use the online Speaking A1 practice course when you want timed recordings and feedback.