practical guide to the recurring topics in TCF Canada Speaking and Writing—so you can prepare for the specific situations, not just the broad themes.
You’ve been studying French for months. You know your grammar. You’ve built a solid vocabulary. You feel ready.
Then you see a prompt like this:
“You have an interview next week. Ask a friend for advice about preparation, clothing and attitude.”
You understand every word. But you’re not sure what to say. You prepared for le travail in general—not this specific situation.
This is the gap that catches many TCF Canada candidates.
The exam doesn’t ask you to recite general knowledge about broad themes. It asks you to perform precise communication tasks inside specific situations. You need to prepare for the situations, not just the subjects.
This guide maps 50 specific micro-themes across the TCF Canada Speaking and Writing tasks. Use it to broaden your coverage, recognise how one theme can return in several forms, and build confidence for whatever prompt appears.
About the Prompts
The examples below are paraphrased from topics published in candidate discussions and TCF preparation-community archives during 2025–2026. They are not official examination papers and do not predict future sessions. They are provided as illustrative training material to help you understand the types of situations you may encounter.
Each sample prompt is provided in English for understanding, with a French translation to help you recognise the language of the actual task.
How to Read This Guide
| Element | What it means |
|---|---|
| Theme | The broad subject family |
| Micro-theme | The precise issue or situation you’ll need to address |
| Task | Where that type of communication appears in the exam |
| Sample prompt | A paraphrased example showing what you must actually do |
The same theme may return multiple times, but the task determines what a successful response must accomplish. A prompt about work in Speaking Task 2 requires very different language than one about work in Writing Task 3.
1. Work and Professional Life
Work is one of the most frequently tested themes in TCF Canada. You’ll encounter it in almost every session. But the exam rarely asks you to “talk about your job.” Instead, it places you in specific professional situations—preparing for an interview, adapting to a new role, or evaluating the role of education in career success.
The key to success is moving beyond generic vocabulary about le travail and preparing for the specific actions the task requires: asking for advice, describing an experience, or defending a position.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Preparing for a job interview | Speaking Task 2 | You have an interview next week. Ask a friend for advice about preparation, clothing and attitude. | Vous avez un entretien d’embauche la semaine prochaine. Demandez à un ami des conseils sur la préparation, la tenue vestimentaire et l’attitude à adopter. |
| 2 | A first week in a new job | Writing Task 2 | Write to your relatives about your first week. Describe the company, your position and your duties. | Écrivez à vos proches pour leur raconter votre première semaine de travail. Décrivez l’entreprise, votre poste et vos tâches. |
| 3 | Professional experience abroad | Writing Task 2 | You are working abroad. Tell your friends about the experience and explain what you appreciate most. | Vous travaillez à l’étranger. Racontez cette expérience à vos amis et expliquez ce que vous appréciez le plus. |
| 4 | Diplomas and career success | Speaking Task 3 | Are long studies indispensable for a successful professional career? Give your opinion. | De longues études sont-elles indispensables pour réussir sa carrière professionnelle ? Donnez votre avis. |
| 5 | Employee wellbeing | Speaking Task 3 | A company must prioritise employee wellbeing in order to function effectively. What do you think? | Une entreprise doit prioriser le bien-être de ses employés pour fonctionner efficacement. Qu’en pensez-vous ? |
2. Technology and Digital Life
Technology appears in nearly every TCF Canada session, often in connection with daily life, education or consumer behaviour. The exam doesn’t ask you to describe how technology works—it asks you to evaluate its impact. You’ll need to discuss benefits and risks, compare viewpoints, and give reasoned opinions about screens, online shopping, and technology in schools.
Prepare to move beyond simple descriptions and develop arguments about consequences and balance.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Buying a child’s first phone | Speaking Task 2 | Ask a telephone-shop employee about suitable models, accessories, safeguards and prices. | Demandez à un vendeur de téléphonie des informations sur les modèles adaptés, les accessoires, les protections et les prix. |
| 7 | Children’s screen time | Speaking Task 3 | Do children spend too much time in front of screens? Explain your answer. | Les enfants passent-ils trop de temps devant les écrans ? Expliquez votre réponse. |
| 8 | Everyday electronic devices | Speaking Task 3 | What benefits and risks come from daily use of phones, computers and tablets? | Quels sont les avantages et les risques liés à l’usage quotidien des téléphones, ordinateurs et tablettes ? |
| 9 | Technology in schools | Writing Task 3 | Compare views supporting classroom technology with concerns about screens and reduced human interaction; then give your opinion. | Comparez les arguments en faveur de la technologie en classe avec les inquiétudes concernant les écrans et la réduction des interactions humaines ; donnez ensuite votre avis. |
| 10 | Online shopping and physical shops | Speaking Task 3 | Could the growth of online sales cause physical shops to disappear? What do you think? | La croissance des ventes en ligne pourrait-elle entraîner la disparition des magasins physiques ? Qu’en pensez-vous ? |
3. Children and Education
Education prompts often ask you to evaluate specific practices rather than discuss education in general. You might need to defend a position on paying for grades, school uniforms, or the role of authority in teaching. These prompts often appear in Writing Task 3, where you must compare two viewpoints before giving your own opinion.
Success depends on your ability to move from general opinions about education to specific, reasoned arguments about particular practices.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Paying for good grades | Speaking Task 3 | Some parents give children money when they obtain good results at school. What do you think? | Certains parents donnent de l’argent à leurs enfants lorsqu’ils obtiennent de bons résultats à l’école. Qu’en pensez-vous ? |
| 12 | Authority in education | Speaking Task 3 | Is authority indispensable when educating children? Explain your position. | L’autorité est-elle indispensable dans l’éducation des enfants ? Expliquez votre position. |
| 13 | School uniforms | Writing Task 3 | Compare personal-expression objections to arguments about equality and school identity; then state your view. | Comparez les objections liées à la liberté d’expression avec les arguments sur l’égalité et l’identité scolaire ; donnez ensuite votre avis. |
| 14 | Private schools | Writing Task 3 | Compare closer supervision in private schools with concerns about cost and social inequality. | Comparez l’encadrement plus étroit dans les écoles privées avec les préoccupations concernant le coût et l’inégalité sociale. |
| 15 | Encouraging children to read | Writing Task 3 | Compare the view that reading cannot be forced with the argument that regular family reading improves language and concentration. | Comparez l’idée selon laquelle la lecture ne peut pas être imposée avec l’argument qu’une lecture familiale régulière améliore le langage et la concentration. |
4. Immigration and Integration
As a test designed for candidates seeking to live, work or study in Canada, TCF Canada frequently includes themes of immigration and integration. These prompts explore the relationship between newcomers and their host society—changing habits, maintaining traditions, finding employment, and adapting to a new culture.
These topics require you to handle nuance and balance. You’ll need to acknowledge competing perspectives without abandoning your own position.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Changing habits after migration | Speaking Task 3 | When people settle in a new country, should they change habits such as food, clothing and leisure activities? | Lorsque des personnes s’installent dans un nouveau pays, doivent-elles changer leurs habitudes alimentaires, vestimentaires et de loisirs ? |
| 17 | Traditions and integration | Speaking Task 3 | To integrate successfully, a newcomer must give up their traditions. Do you agree? | Pour s’intégrer avec succès, un nouvel arrivant doit renoncer à ses traditions. Êtes-vous d’accord ? |
| 18 | Young people living abroad | Speaking Task 3 | Should every young person live abroad for at least six months to become more independent? | Tout jeune devrait-il vivre à l’étranger pendant au moins six mois pour devenir plus indépendant ? |
| 19 | Finding employment in Canada | Speaking Task 3 | If you moved to Canada, do you think you would find work easily? Why or why not? | Si vous déménagiez au Canada, pensez-vous que vous trouveriez facilement du travail ? Pourquoi ou pourquoi pas ? |
| 20 | Studying abroad | Writing Task 2 | Write a blog article about time spent at a foreign university and share your impressions. | Rédigez un article de blog sur votre séjour dans une université étrangère et partagez vos impressions. |
5. Housing and Accommodation
Housing prompts typically place you in practical, information-seeking situations—asking about apartments, negotiating rentals, or recommending accommodation to others. These tasks test your ability to handle everyday transactional language alongside more developed description and comparison.
While the tasks may seem simple, they require precise vocabulary and the ability to ask follow-up questions naturally.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Sharing an apartment in Toronto | Speaking Task 2 | A friend offers you a room in their Toronto apartment. Ask about the home, area, costs and lifestyle before deciding. | Un ami vous propose une chambre dans son appartement à Toronto. Renseignez-vous sur le logement, le quartier, les coûts et le mode de vie avant de décider. |
| 22 | Finding an apartment in Quebec | Speaking Task 2 | You have just arrived in Quebec. Ask a rental agent about procedures, neighbourhoods and suitable apartments. | Vous venez d’arriver au Québec. Interrogez un agent immobilier sur les procédures, les quartiers et les appartements disponibles. |
| 23 | Renting a home to tourists | Speaking Task 2 | Ask an estate agent for advice about price, rental length and the type of holiday tenant to accept. | Demandez conseil à un agent immobilier sur le prix, la durée de location et le type de locataire à accepter. |
| 24 | Short-term accommodation | Writing Task 3 | Compare cheaper, sociable tourist accommodation with a host’s account of noise, delays and a dirty apartment. | Comparez l’hébergement touristique moins cher et convivial avec le témoignage d’un hôte concernant le bruit, les retards et un appartement sale. |
| 25 | Recommending a hotel | Writing Task 1 | Present a hotel to friends before a holiday, including its price, location and facilities, and suggest booking it. | Présentez un hôtel à des amis avant leurs vacances, en indiquant le prix, l’emplacement et les équipements, et suggérez-leur de réserver. |
6. Environment and Transport
Environmental themes are common in TCF Canada, particularly when paired with transport and urban planning. These prompts ask you to evaluate trade-offs—economic development versus environmental protection, individual action versus systemic change, convenience versus sustainability.
These are argument-heavy topics that require you to handle concessions and counter-arguments effectively. You’ll often need to acknowledge valid concerns on both sides before reaching a reasoned conclusion.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 | Growth and environmental protection | Speaking Task 3 | Is it possible to develop the economy while protecting the environment? | Est-il possible de développer l’économie tout en protégeant l’environnement ? |
| 27 | Individual ecological actions | Speaking Task 3 | Are recycling and saving water or energy genuinely effective environmental actions? | Le recyclage et les économies d’eau ou d’énergie sont-ils réellement des actions environnementales efficaces ? |
| 28 | Cars in city centres | Writing Task 3 | Compare the pollution and safety benefits of restricting cars with accessibility and infrastructure concerns. | Comparez les avantages en matière de pollution et de sécurité de la restriction des voitures avec les préoccupations concernant l’accessibilité et les infrastructures. |
| 29 | Free public transport | Writing Task 3 | Compare reduced traffic and affordable mobility with funding and service-quality objections. | Comparez la réduction du trafic et la mobilité abordable avec les objections concernant le financement et la qualité du service. |
| 30 | Public transport in a new city | Speaking Task 2 | Ask an employee about available transport, schedules, fares and the best way to travel around the city. | Demandez à un employé quels sont les transports disponibles, les horaires, les tarifs et le meilleur moyen de se déplacer en ville. |
7. Travel and Tourism
Travel prompts in TCF Canada often combine practical information-seeking with personal opinion and description. You might need to ask about a tour, recommend a destination, or defend an opinion about travel styles or modes of transport.
These topics allow you to showcase descriptive language, opinion vocabulary, and the ability to handle both planned and spontaneous communication.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | A low-budget weekend | Speaking Task 2 | Ask a tourist-office employee for an inexpensive destination, activities and transport advice. | Demandez à un employé de l’office de tourisme des conseils sur une destination bon marché, des activités et les transports. |
| 32 | A sightseeing circuit in Canada | Speaking Task 2 | Question a colleague about a Canadian tour’s stops, duration and price. | Interrogez un collègue sur un circuit touristique au Canada : ses arrêts, sa durée et son prix. |
| 33 | Solo travel | Speaking Task 3 | Some people choose to travel alone. What do you think of this way of travelling? | Certaines personnes choisissent de voyager seules. Que pensez-vous de cette façon de voyager ? |
| 34 | Low-cost flights | Writing Task 3 | Compare cheap fares with concerns about comfort, services, working conditions and alternatives such as trains. | Comparez les tarifs bon marché avec les préoccupations concernant le confort, les services, les conditions de travail et les alternatives comme le train. |
| 35 | Presenting your country | Writing Task 1 | Recommend your country to someone planning a trip, describing traditions, monuments and places to visit. | Recommandez votre pays à une personne qui prépare un voyage en décrivant les traditions, les monuments et les lieux à visiter. |
8. Community and Social Life
Community-themed prompts explore how people connect, participate, and build relationships in their neighbourhoods and cities. These tasks often involve practical information-seeking (asking about activities or events) alongside more reflective opinion pieces about volunteering or civic engagement.
These prompts test your ability to handle interpersonal language and social commentary in equal measure.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36 | Meeting people in a new city | Speaking Task 2 | Ask the municipal leisure service about activities that could help you meet people. | Demandez au service municipal des loisirs quelles activités pourraient vous aider à rencontrer des gens. |
| 37 | A neighbourhood celebration | Speaking Task 2 | A neighbour invites you to a building party. Ask about the date, participants, food and organisation. | Un voisin vous invite à une fête d’immeuble. Renseignez-vous sur la date, les participants, la nourriture et l’organisation. |
| 38 | Volunteering | Speaking Task 3 | Some people use their free time to volunteer. What do you think? | Certaines personnes utilisent leur temps libre pour faire du bénévolat. Qu’en pensez-vous ? |
| 39 | Young people’s civic engagement | Speaking Task 3 | Are young people less involved today in environmental, political or health causes? | Les jeunes sont-ils aujourd’hui moins engagés dans les causes environnementales, politiques ou sanitaires ? |
| 40 | A family celebration | Writing Task 2 | Tell friends about a family party and explain what you particularly enjoyed. | Racontez à des amis une fête de famille et expliquez ce que vous avez particulièrement apprécié. |
9. Health, Sport and Leisure
Health and sport prompts appear frequently, often exploring the role of physical activity in daily life, the benefits and risks of different activities, or the relationship between lifestyle choices and wellbeing.
These topics allow you to combine descriptive language (describing activities or routines) with argumentative structures (defending positions on health-related issues).
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 41 | Choosing a sports club | Speaking Task 2 | Ask about available sports, schedules, levels and membership fees before choosing. | Renseignez-vous sur les sports disponibles, les horaires, les niveaux et les frais d’adhésion avant de choisir. |
| 42 | Group running sessions | Speaking Task 2 | Ask a colleague about a running group’s route, timetable, required equipment and level. | Interrogez un collègue sur le parcours, les horaires, l’équipement requis et le niveau d’un groupe de course. |
| 43 | Sport in daily life | Writing Task 1 | Respond to a television request for testimonies explaining the place sport occupies in your life. | Répondez à une demande de témoignages de la télévision en expliquant la place que le sport occupe dans votre vie. |
| 44 | Video games and development | Writing Task 3 | Compare possible cognitive benefits for players with research linking heavy play among children to stress and weaker school results. | Comparez les éventuels bénéfices cognitifs pour les joueurs avec les recherches liant le jeu intensif chez les enfants au stress et à de moins bons résultats scolaires. |
| 45 | Pets and happiness | Speaking Task 3 | Can pets contribute to people’s happiness? Explain your answer. | Les animaux de compagnie peuvent-ils contribuer au bonheur des gens ? Expliquez votre réponse. |
10. Services, Shopping and Events
Consumer-themed prompts test your ability to handle practical, transaction-oriented communication—asking about services, making inquiries, recommending products, or organising events.
These tasks often appear in Speaking Task 2 (information exchange) and Writing Task 1 (practical messages), making them excellent opportunities to demonstrate clear, functional language.
| # | Micro-theme | Task | Sample Prompt (EN) | Exemple de sujet (FR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | Organising a restaurant birthday | Speaking Task 2 | Ask restaurant staff about guest numbers, menus, prices and reservation conditions. | Demandez au personnel d’un restaurant des informations sur le nombre de convives, les menus, les prix et les conditions de réservation. |
| 47 | Selling a used bicycle | Writing Task 1 | Reply to a buyer, describe your bicycle, propose a price and arrange a test ride. | Répondez à un acheteur, décrivez votre vélo, proposez un prix et organisez un essai. |
| 48 | Grocery delivery | Speaking Task 2 | Ask a shop employee about delivery times, charges, conditions and payment. | Interrogez un employé de magasin sur les délais de livraison, les frais, les conditions et le paiement. |
| 49 | Joining a music school | Speaking Task 2 | Ask about instruments, lesson formats, schedules, teacher experience and prices. | Renseignez-vous sur les instruments, les formats de cours, les horaires, l’expérience des professeurs et les prix. |
| 50 | Planning a concert outing | Writing Task 1 | Invite a friend to your favourite artist’s concert and provide the date, place, price and duration. | Invitez un ami au concert de votre artiste préféré en fournissant la date, le lieu, le prix et la durée. |
The 10 TCF Canada Themes at a Glance
| Theme | Micro-themes covered | Typical task types |
|---|---|---|
| Work | Interview, new job, work abroad, diplomas, wellbeing | Speaking 2, Speaking 3, Writing 2 |
| Technology | First phone, screens, devices, school tech, online shopping | Speaking 2, Speaking 3, Writing 3 |
| Education | Grades, authority, uniforms, private schools, reading | Speaking 3, Writing 3 |
| Immigration | Habits, traditions, life abroad, employment, study | Speaking 3, Writing 2 |
| Housing | Colocation, Quebec rentals, tourist letting, short stays | Speaking 2, Writing 1, Writing 3 |
| Environment | Growth, individual action, city cars, free transport | Speaking 3, Writing 3 |
| Travel | Budget weekends, circuits, solo travel, low-cost flights | Speaking 2, Speaking 3, Writing 1 |
| Community | Meeting people, neighbourhood events, volunteering | Speaking 2, Speaking 3, Writing 2 |
| Wellbeing | Sports clubs, running, daily sport, gaming, pets | Speaking 2, Speaking 3, Writing 1 |
| Consumer life | Restaurants, used goods, delivery, music lessons | Speaking 2, Writing 1 |
How to Use This List Effectively
1. Don’t memorise 50 fixed answers.
The exam will vary the wording, the task type, and the specific angle. Instead, use each micro-theme as a practice trigger.
2. Practise the action attached to each task.
The same theme can appear in different tasks, requiring completely different language:
| Task | What to practise |
|---|---|
| Speaking Task 2 | Conducting an information exchange and reacting to answers |
| Speaking Task 3 | Giving a clear position and supporting it without preparation |
| Writing Task 1 | Completing a practical message within the required word range |
| Writing Task 2 | Narrating, describing and evaluating an experience |
| Writing Task 3 | Reformulating both documents before presenting your own position |
3. Train the skill, not just the content.
For each micro-theme, identify what the task is really testing:
Is it your ability to ask natural follow-up questions?
Your capacity to develop a nuanced argument?
Your skill at comparing two perspectives?
Focus your preparation on the communication function, not just the topic vocabulary.
4. Test yourself with random prompts.
Set a timer and practice responding to a randomly selected prompt from this list. This builds the spontaneity you’ll need on exam day.
What This List Does and Doesn’t Do
This list helps you:
Recognise how broad themes become specific exam prompts
Practice the right task types for each micro-theme
Build broader vocabulary coverage across recurring situations
Develop flexibility by practising different angles on similar themes
This list does NOT:
Predict which topics will appear in your specific exam session
Replace official preparation materials or practice with authentic exam tasks
Guarantee familiarity with every prompt you may encounter
Always consult the official TCF Canada guidelines and practice with authentic materials as the primary source of preparation.
Next Steps
Choose one theme and practice three different micro-themes from it.
For each micro-theme, practice the specific task type (Speaking 2, Speaking 3, Writing 1, etc.).
Time yourself—use the official time limits for each task.
Record yourself or write your responses, then review for clarity, structure and task fulfilment.
Randomly select prompts from different themes and practice launching your response within 10 seconds.
