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Lesson B1 · Intermediate Listening

Volunteer Shift: Hear the Small Words

Decode six short volunteer messages, hear weak forms and linking, and practise fourteen listening checks with supported shadowing.

9 min read 1,548 words Updated Nov 4, 2026
An adult volunteer listens to a phone message beside donation-centre shelves.
On this page (6 sections)

Your listening task

You are joining a fictional donation-centre shift. Lena has sent six separate voice messages. Listen for the practical instruction first, then investigate the small words that are easy to miss. The task is suitable for B1 learners who already understand common instructions. Allow about twenty-five minutes, including replay and speaking practice. You need paper or a notes app; recording your own voice is optional.

First pass: listen to each message without reading the transcript and note the practical action. Second pass: answer the checks, replaying as needed. Third pass: open the full transcript, compare your notes and shadow two useful chunks. A missed weak word is a listening clue to investigate, not a reason to repeat the whole lesson from the beginning.

Useful words and visual cues

A badge is a small card or object that shows a person’s name or role. A tray is a shallow container. A trolley is a small wheeled vehicle used to move things. Spare pens are extra pens that are not currently needed. To pack up means to finish and put equipment away. To head out means to leave.

After answering the listening checks, use the illustrated task sequence in the review section to check your notes. It contains answer information, so leave it until you have listened. A written description beside the image gives the same information for readers who cannot see the picture.

How to use the dictation checks

For a gap, write the actual small word you hear. For a linked phrase, count the written words after listening; connected pronunciation does not remove written spaces. If a negative is unclear, replay the whole instruction and check the situation. Do not decide can versus cannot from volume alone. All answer explanations identify the relevant message and the reason for the answer.

Listen and learn

Message 1: volunteer shift

Open audio separately
Read the transcript

Lena: Hi, it is Lena from the donation centre. Please come to the side door at ten, and ask for Ravi. He can show you where to leave your coat.

Listen and learn

Message 2: volunteer shift

Open audio separately
Read the transcript

Lena: When you arrive, pick up a badge and a pen from the small tray. Write your first name on the badge, then clip it on your shirt.

Listen and learn

Message 3: volunteer shift

Open audio separately
Read the transcript

Lena: There is a box of blank labels by the desk. Pick it up and put it on a table near the shelves. We will use those labels later.

Listen and learn

Message 4: volunteer shift

Open audio separately
Read the transcript

Lena: Before you pack a bag, check the name on the list. If you cannot read it, ask me to check it with you. Please do not guess.

Listen and learn

Message 5: volunteer shift

Open audio separately
Read the transcript

Lena: Some boxes are heavy. You can ask for a trolley, and I can help you move them. Leave a clear path to the door while you work.

Listen and learn

Message 6: volunteer shift

Open audio separately
Read the transcript

Lena: We will pack up at four. Put any spare pens in the tray, and leave the badges on the desk. Please tell Ravi before you head out.

Practice tasks

Try each item before opening the answer. Read the explanation even when your answer is correct.

Your turn 0 of 14 answered

Answer on paper, then open the explanations below. Enable JavaScript to check answers here.

1 Message 1: Which entrance should you use?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

the side door

Lena explicitly says to come to the side door.

2 Message 1: Complete “come ___ the side door”.
Answer and explanation

to

To expresses the destination and can be unstressed in the phrase.

3 Message 1: Who can show you where to leave your coat?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Ravi

Lena says to ask for Ravi and then uses he to refer to him.

4 Message 2: Complete “a badge ___ a pen”.
Answer and explanation

and

And connects the two items and may be reduced in natural speech.

5 Message 2: Which phrase contains a consonant-to-vowel link?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

clip it on

The consonants in clip and it can link to the following vowel sounds.

6 Message 3: Write the three-word phrase after “labels by the desk”: “___”.
Answer and explanation

Pick it up

Also accepted: pick it up; Pick it up.

The phrase has three written words even when it sounds like one flowing chunk.

7 Message 3: Complete “put it on ___ table”.
Answer and explanation

a

The article a introduces an unspecified table and is unstressed.

8 Message 3: Where should the box go?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

On a table near the shelves.

The instruction gives both the surface and the location.

9 Message 4: What should you do if you cannot read a name?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Ask Lena to check it with you.

“Ask me” refers to the speaker Lena; she specifically says not to guess.

10 Message 4: Complete “ask me ___ check it”.
Answer and explanation

to

Ask someone to do something uses the to-infinitive; to may be weak in speech.

11 Message 5: Complete “You ___ ask for a trolley”.
Answer and explanation

can

The instruction offers an available option: you can ask for a trolley.

12 Message 5: Which route must stay clear?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

The path to the door.

Lena asks volunteers to leave a clear path to the door.

13 Message 6: Write the four-word chunk that gives the finishing time.
Answer and explanation

pack up at four

Also accepted: Pack up at four; pack up at four.

The connected chunk contains pack, up, at and four. Final consonants may join following vowels.

14 Message 6: Where do the badges go at the end?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

On the desk.

Pens go in the tray; badges go on the desk. The small prepositions distinguish the instructions.

Visual review: check after listening

The six task cues are: meet at the side door; pick up a badge; put the box on a table; check a name; ask for a trolley; pack up at four. Compare this sequence with your notes, then replay any message whose detail you missed.

Six volunteer task cues: side door, badge, box on a table, checking a name, trolley, and packing up at four.
Use the six task cues to remember the sequence. Listen to the recording for the details.

Your turn · self-review

Apply it and compare

Write or say your own answer first. The models are examples, not the only acceptable answers. Use the checklist to review your work; open responses are not automatically assessed.

Practice only. Your writing stays on this page; it is not submitted or saved.

  1. Model answer and explanation

    “PICK‿it‿UP / and PUT‿it‿on a TABLE.” The slashes suggest two meaning groups. And and a can be weak; the action and object stay clear. Your accent does not need to match Lena’s.

  2. Model answer and explanation

    “Come to the side door at ten and ask for Ravi. Pick up a badge and a pen, then write your name. If you cannot read a name on the list, ask Lena. We pack up at four.” Self-check: correct entrance and time; no invented rules; clear small words; a listener can follow the sequence.

Full transcript: read after listening

Message 1: Hi, it is Lena from the donation centre. Please come to the side door at ten, and ask for Ravi. He can show you where to leave your coat.

Message 2: When you arrive, pick up a badge and a pen from the small tray. Write your first name on the badge, then clip it on your shirt.

Message 3: There is a box of blank labels by the desk. Pick it up and put it on a table near the shelves. We will use those labels later.

Message 4: Before you pack a bag, check the name on the list. If you cannot read it, ask me to check it with you. Please do not guess.

Message 5: Some boxes are heavy. You can ask for a trolley, and I can help you move them. Leave a clear path to the door while you work.

Message 6: We will pack up at four. Put any spare pens in the tray, and leave the badges on the desk. Please tell Ravi before you head out.

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