During this class, you will give a LOT of speeches. After all, this is a public speaking class! The other main reason for this is that it will only help you to become better at public speaking. You will actually make a total of 11 in-class speeches, including 2 Scholar update presentations. The other 9 are broken down below.
Random Impromptu Speeches – These are short (1-2 minute) speeches you will be asked to make at random during class time, and you will be asked to do a total of 5 of these speeches over the semester. There will be a different question during each week of the course (Weeks 2-13) and everyone who is asked to speak that week will address that week’s topic. You will have advance notice of what the topics will be. You will earn 10 points for the first two speeches and 20 points for the last three speeches. There will be higher expectations of you for the 20 point impromptu speeches.
Celebratory Speech – You will be asked to make a prepared 3-minute speech that marks an occasion or a milestone for a person or organization during Week 6 (February 19. Be sure to list your topic on the celebratory speech signup sheet no later than February 19. A decision about the order in which students will speak will be made before the speeches will be presented. You will earn 40 points for completing this speech. You must be present or have an excused absence on the day you are scheduled to speak, or you will get a zero for this activity.
Informative Speech – You will be asked to make a prepared 5-minute speech on an informational topic of your choice during Week 9 (March 18-20). Please choose one of the available dates on the Informative Speech Signup Sheet no later than October 20. Once the names are filled up for a given day, no more names can be added. The goal of this speech is to teach the class or demonstrate something to the class. This is a chance for you to share something that you enjoy doing or knowing. Be sure to keep the goals of an informational speech in mind. You can’t use a script for this speech, but index cards are permitted. You aren’t required to include a slide presentation, but you may find one useful for this speech. You will earn 50 points for this speech. You must be present or have an excused absence on the day you are scheduled to speak, or you will get a zero for this activity.
Persuasive Speech – You will be asked to speak for 5 minutes on a persuasive topic of your choice during Week 12 (April 8-10). Please choose one of the available dates on the Persuasive Speech Signup Sheet . Once the names are filled up for a given day, no more names can be added. Your topic should be something that you are either passionate about or are at least curious about. Like the informational speech, this is a chance to share something of importance with us. Be sure to keep the goals of a persuasive speech in mind. You aren’t required to include a slide presentation, but you may find one useful for this speech. You will earn 60 points for this speech. You must be present or have an excused absence on the day you are scheduled to speak, or you will get a zero for this activity.
Final Speech Presentation – You will make a final speech during our final three class meetings (December 4, December 6, December 11), which can be any of the three speech genres we have discussed.. Please choose one of the available dates on the Final Speech Presentation Signup Sheet. Once the names are filled up for a given day, no more names can be added. A slide or other type of visual presentation is required for this speech. Your speech should be 8-9 minutes long, but NO LONGER THAN 9 MINUTES. You will be permitted to use a script for this speech but you must also maintain eye contact with the audience. You will earn 150 points for this speech. You MUST be present on the day you are scheduled to speak or you will get a zero for this activity.
The table below details the rubric used for all three speeches and the point values assigned to each speech criteria:
| Criteria | Celebratory (50) | Informative (60) | Persuasive (70) | |
| Presentation Quality | Are the slides effective? Do they aid the audience in following the speech? Are they well designed and not just the speech text? If there are no slides, how is the topic being conveyed? Can the audience follow along without slides? | 15 | 17 | 19 |
| Organization | Is the speech organized well? Does it have a good introduction and conclusion? Is the speech topic covered during the body of the speech? | 10 | 12 | 14 |
| Speech Skills | Is the speaker making eye contact with the audience? Is the speaker focused on the audience and not their notes? Is their volume effective? Are they too loud/too soft? Is their rate of speech good? Is it too fast/too slow? Is the speaker using good tone of voice? Are they monotone or otherwise uninteresting? | 15 | 17 | 19 |
| Audience Engagement | Is the speaker making a connection with the audience? Is the audience interested in what the speaker is talking about/the topic of the speech? Does the presentation contribute to audience engagement? | 5 | 7 | 9 |
| Genre Consistency | Is the speech true to the specific genre? Is the informative speech overly persuasive? Does the persuasive/argumentative speech have a solid thesis statement and main points to back it up? Does the celebratory speech effectively address a person, event, or other notable topic? | 5 | 7 | 9 |