Public speaking is when you speak in front of an audience. Some examples of when you might need to do public speaking include; talking in front of the class, in a debate, presenting a project or participating in a public speaking competition at school.

It's more formal than everyday conversations. For example, the speaker usually talks to an audience (without being interrupted) in a structured way.

Some people love to talk and some people can't think of anything worse than public speaking! Even though it can sometimes be scary, public speaking is a great opportunity because it gives you a chance to communicate your ideas, knowledge or opinions to a large group of people.

Every year, hundreds of students take part in public speaking competitions in NSW schools. Some students go on to compete in local district, regional, state and national finals. At public speaking events, students make 2 speeches:

a prepared speech (which they have rehearsed)
an impromptu speech (a speech made up on the day, based around a surprise topic).

When we discuss a speech (and when adjudicators judge a speech) we look at something called the 3 Ms:

Matter is what you say
Manner is how you say it
Method is the structure of a speech.

In public speaking, the most important element is matter.

However, it is also important to have good manner and method if you want your speech to be really effective.

In this class we are going to explore matter in depth.

Let's get started!

Method

Method is how you structure or organise your speech. It's similar to how you might write a text: with an introduction, middle and conclusion!

Speeches are similar to writing; your structure will depend on the purpose of your speech (whether you want to inform, persuade or entertain your audience).

However, there are a few things speakers should and shouldn't do! After watching the video select each of the 3 drop down boxes to find out more.

Tips for method

Duration: 01:46

Video full screen – Prepared speeches – Method

Video transcript – Prepared speeches – Method

Introduction (beginning)

Don't: start with "Hi, my name is... and I'm going to talk about..."

Do: Start with something interesting to engage your audience! A relevant joke, story, fact or anecdote are good ways to start.

Middle

Don't: Talk about too many different ideas in your speech. A speech shouldn't be a list of random thoughts or facts.

Do: include about 2-3 arguments or ideas that are interesting and relevant to your topic.

Conclusion (end)

Don't: end with "thank you for listening."

Do: end with a powerful phrase or sentence that leaves your audience interested. It's even better if it links back to your introduction!

Identify

Task

Watch each of the following 3 'Speech excerpt' videos.

See if you can identify which part of the speech it is. Some are tricky – watch and listen closely!

Once you have finished guessing you can check your answers below.

Speech excerpt 1

Duration: 02:50

Video full screen – Speech excerpt 1
Video transcript – Speech excerpt 1

Speech excerpt 2

Duration: 00:31

Video full screen – Speech excerpt 2
Video transcript – Speech excerpt 2

Speech excerpt 3

Duration: 01:20

Video full screen – Speech excerpt 3

Video transcript – Speech excerpt 3

Answers

Video 1: body (middle)

Video 2: conclusion (ending)

Video 3: introduction (beginning)

Important things to know about method

Task

What do you know about method?

Write down at least 1-2 things you know about each part of a speech (introduction, middle and conclusion).

Select the arrows below to reveal some example answers. Did you have the same or different answers?

Introduction (beginning)

It should be pretty short.
Always aim to capture the audience's attention so they want to listen to the rest of your speech.
Make the topic and the purpose clear (but don't say "Today I'm going to talk about ...")

Body (middle)

The main part of your speech – focus mostly on this!
Link it to your introduction in an interesting and logical way.
Make sure you get the message across in the body of your speech.
Don't make lists or have too many ideas! Pick roughly 2-3 ideas to include.
Your points should link together in a logical and interesting way.

Conclusion (ending)

The conclusion sums up the subject and purpose in a short, final statement.
It can be useful to relate it back to your introduction.

Engaging introductions

Remember that you don't start a speech with "My name is ... and today I'm going to talk about ...".

You only have a short time to speak, use it wisely! Make sure your audience is interested in your speech from the very beginning by starting with a quick and interesting introduction.

When starting a speech, you can try using:

a question
an anecdote (a short story)
a bold statement that makes people think
a real life example
an opinion or fact.

Task 1

Watch the video Ways to start a speech to see a few example introductions.

Describe: How did each student start their speech (with a question, a story, an interesting fact or statement)?
Think and explain, why are these introductions effective?

Ways to start a speech

Duration: 02:30

Video full screen – Ways to start a speech
Video transcript – Ways to start a speech

Task 2

Select a topic from the 2 drop-down lists below. You can choose a beginner topic or a more challenging topic. It is up to you.

Beginner topics:

My family
When I grow up
The best day ever
Bullying
Why reading is important
Harmony Day

Organising your ideas

Find a way to structure your ideas for the middle of your speech. You should have about 2-3 ideas in the middle of your speech.

There are many ways you can organise your speech. There are 3 approaches listed below, select the drop-down boxes to find out more.

Self view, world view

Start with how the topic relates to you.
Zoom out and look at how it affects the world more broadly.

Example

Topic: Kids should learn coding:

why you would like to learn about coding
the benefits of primary kids learning coding
how the world would change if more kids learnt about coding.

Past, present and future

Start with what's happened in the past.
Move onto what's happening right now.
Finish with what might happen in the future.

Example

Topic: Kids should learn coding.

What has happened in the past (or recent history) in coding?
How are kids learning about coding today?
Where will this take us in the future?

Positives and negatives

Similar to a discussion.

You can:

Weigh up the pros and cons and come to a final conclusion/opinion.
Go from positive to negative.
Go from negative to positive.

Example

Topic: Kids should learn coding.

Positives:

Help us understand technology.
Learning for the future.

Negatives:

Lots of other things we need to learn at school.
Not everyone likes learning about technology.

Final opinion:

We should have optional coding clubs at school for people who are interested.

Task

Consider the topic 'Staying connected'. What does this mean to you, what could you talk about more specifically?

Discuss how you could approach this topic using self view and world view.
Discuss how you could structure this topic using past, present and future.
Discuss how you could structure the topic with positives and negatives.
Can you think of another way you might approach this topic that splits it into 2-3 different ideas?
Decide: which approach do you think works best?

A memorable conclusion

Good conclusions are:

memorable
effective
original.

Select the 3 drop-down boxes below to learn more about planning and writing your conclusion.

When planning your conclusion, you must first consider the ...

purpose of your speech.

Do you want to entertain, persuade or inform your audience? This will help you decide the kind of conclusion. You might end with a powerful statement, a question or an amusing statement that ties the whole speech together.

Your conclusion should leave your audience...

... thinking about your main message.

Think carefully about your final statement. What do you want your audience to take away from your speech?

You can also try referring back to your ...

introduction.

For example: if you asked a rhetorical question to begin your speech ("Have you ever thought about how much electricity is wasted by leaving appliances on each day?") you could refer back to that at the end of your speech. Your ending could be along the lines of "So, will you choose to turn the lights off when you leave your house tomorrow?"