Cambridge B1 Preliminary Foundations Course

B1 Preliminary tests the language people use in real life: shopping, travel, work, school, friends and free time. Learn words in topic groups and record common collocations so they are ready when you need them.

• Study vocabulary by topics such as travel, food and health.
• Record collocations like make a complaint and keep fit.
• Learn high-frequency phrasal verbs such as take off and put off.
• Use new words in short sentences to remember them.

Collocation drill: for each new noun, write two verb + noun pairs you can use in conversation, such as make a decision, take advice, and keep in touch. Review them in short topic sets: travel, food, health, work, and free time.

When you meet a phrasal verb, write the sentence where you saw it. Phrasal verbs are easier to remember with context: put off a meeting, take off a jacket, get on with a colleague.

B1 grammar is practical. Practise tenses for past, present and future, modal verbs, comparatives and superlatives, first and second conditionals, and the passive in common situations.

• Use present perfect for experiences and recent events.
• Use modal verbs such as must, should and can.
• Compare people and things with comparative forms.
• Use first and second conditionals in everyday situations.

Error log method: after each grammar exercise, copy the sentence you got wrong, underline the corrected form, and write one similar sentence. For example, if you miss the present perfect, write: "I have visited London twice." and "Have you ever tried sushi?"

Compare tenses by time marker: yesterday and last week use past simple; since, for, ever, and just often signal present perfect; tomorrow and next month need a future form.

The PET Reading paper has six parts. Learn what each part asks so you can use the right strategy: signs, matching, multiple choice, gapped text, multiple-choice cloze and open cloze.

• Part 1: understand short signs and notices.
• Part 2: match people to texts by comparing needs.
• Part 4: choose sentences for gaps using text links.
• Parts 5-6: choose or write words using context and grammar.

Part by part strategy: in Part 2, underline each person's key needs, then read the texts and match by the strongest need, not just one repeated word. In Part 4, read the sentence before and after the gap to find pronoun and connector clues.

For Parts 5 and 6, read the whole text once quickly to get the topic, then complete each gap by checking grammar first and meaning second. If two options fit grammatically, choose the one that matches the sentence meaning.

PET Writing has two parts. Part 1 asks for a short email, and Part 2 asks for an article or story. Practise clear structure, simple linking words and correct basic grammar.

• Start emails with a clear greeting and purpose.
• Use paragraphs and linking words such as first, also and finally.
• Keep sentences short and check spelling.
• Answer every part of the question in both writing tasks.

Email skeleton: greeting, reason for writing, key information, request or question, closing. Keep each part to one or two short sentences. In Part 2, choose article or story first, then write a clear opening that answers the task.

Check your work against the question one final time: did you include every point, use paragraphs, and keep the tone polite? Spelling mistakes in common words like address, believe, and receive cost marks, so build a personal spelling list.

The PET Reading and Writing paper lasts about 90 minutes. Use a time plan, transfer answers carefully and keep an error log so repeated mistakes become study targets.

• Spend about 10 minutes on each reading part and 20 minutes on writing.
• Finish each part before moving to the next.
• Use pencil on the answer sheet and check transferred answers.
• Review your error log before the exam.

Time budget: put a small clock plan on the exam paper: about 10 minutes per reading part, 30 minutes for writing, and 10 minutes to check. If a reading question takes more than 90 seconds, mark it and come back.

Before the exam, do two timed papers in the same order as the real test. After each one, review every wrong answer and write the reason: vocabulary, grammar, or strategy. Focus your last study sessions on the most frequent reason.