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TCF Canada writing Task 1: format and example

Task 1 is a short message in French, 60 to 120 words. Here is what the examiner expects, a model answer and the mistakes that cost points most often.

What Task 1 asks

You write a short message to a friend, your family, colleagues or an organization. The instruction says who you write to and what to do: describe, explain, invite, ask for something or give news. Typical topics: your new apartment, a party you organize, a club you recommend, an ad to sell something.

Length: 60 to 120 words.
Time: the three tasks share 60 minutes. Plan about 10 to 15 minutes for Task 1 and keep the rest for the longer tasks.
Register: tu for a friend or family, vous for an organization, a landlord or people you don't know well.

How it is scored

Examiners look at four things: task completion, coherence, vocabulary and grammar. The three tasks together give one score out of 20, and IRCC converts it to an NCLC level (10-11 is NCLC 7, 12-13 is NCLC 8, 14-15 is NCLC 9). Task 1 is the easiest place to secure points: simple, correct and complete beats long and risky.

How to write it in 5 steps

Find every point in the instruction. "Describe your neighbourhood and invite your friend" means two points; a missing one lowers the task score.
Open with a greeting that fits the person: "Salut Karim," or "Bonjour à tous,".
Give each point its own short paragraph, linked with simple connectors: d'abord, en plus, mais, donc.
Finish with a clear next step and a closing: "Dis-moi vite si ça te va ! À bientôt,".
Keep two minutes to reread: agreements (petit / petite), accents, verb endings.

Example topic

Vous venez d'emménager dans une nouvelle ville au Canada. Écrivez un message à un ami pour lui décrire votre quartier et l'inviter à venir vous voir.

Model answer (113 words)

Salut Karim, Ça y est, je suis installé à Sherbrooke depuis deux semaines ! Mon quartier est calme et très vert : il y a un grand parc juste en face de mon immeuble, où je cours tous les matins. À cinq minutes à pied, on trouve une boulangerie, une épicerie et même un petit café où les voisins jouent aux échecs le soir. Le seul inconvénient, c'est que le centre-ville est un peu loin, mais le bus passe toutes les dix minutes. Pourquoi ne viendrais-tu pas me voir le week-end du 14 ? Tu pourrais dormir sur le canapé-lit et je te ferais visiter la ville. Dis-moi vite si ça te va ! À bientôt, Amine

Both points of the instruction are covered (the neighbourhood and the invitation), the register stays informal from start to finish, and the text uses more than the present tense: passé composé, a conditional invitation (pourquoi ne viendrais-tu pas, tu pourrais) and a concrete date.

Mistakes that cost points

Doing only half of the instruction, for example describing the neighbourhood but forgetting the invitation.
Writing fewer than 60 words or going far over 120.
Mixing tu and vous in the same message.
No greeting or no closing: the message looks unfinished.
Sentences learned by heart that don't match the topic.

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Questions

How many words is TCF Canada writing Task 1?

60 to 120 words. Stay inside this range: a text that is too short or much too long loses points on task completion.

Should I use tu or vous in Task 1?

Use tu for a friend or family member and vous for an organization, a landlord or people you don't know. Choose one and keep it in the whole message.

How long should I spend on Task 1?

The three tasks share 60 minutes. Many candidates spend about 10 to 15 minutes on Task 1, around 20 on Task 2 and the rest on Task 3, the longest one.

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