Digital @ The Arts Unit Creative Classes
The power of public speaking
Teacher notes
Introducing public speaking and prepared speeches
Student public speaking resource developed by The Arts Unit
Years 3 to 6 public speaking
What will your students learn?
Your students will:
define public speaking and explore public speaking examples
identify types of speeches
reflect on the elements of prepared speeches
organise their ideas
practise their own prepared speeches.
Public speaking and other speaking competitions can have many benefits. Public speaking can:
help students develop and enhance their literacy skills
encourage research and organisational skills
improve critical thinking and encourage creativity
help students learn new skills and gain confidence speaking in front of others
develop language and vocabulary
provide students with opportunities for success.
Public speaking teacher resources
Public speaking in primary schools is a Creative Teachers resource designed for teachers who are teaching or coordinating public speaking in a NSW school setting. Resources have been created with the intention of supporting teachers across the state of NSW, however, all content should be considered as general advice only.
These resources have been developed by the NSW Department of Education, The Arts Unit, who facilitate a number of state-wide public speaking programs and competitions.
To explore our full range of teacher and student resources be sure to check out Digital @ The Arts Unit.
The following 6 Creative Classes have been designed to support student learning of public speaking, engaging students in a broad range of tasks, resources, and activites. These classes can be used in sequence or as stand alone lessons to support your teaching.
Syllabus outcomes
Your public speaking program may meet some (or all) of the following English outcomes for Stages 2 and 3:
Stage 2
EN2-1A: Communicates in a range of informal and formal contexts by adopting a range of roles in group, classroom, school and community contexts.
EN2-2A: Plans, composes and reviews a range of texts that are more demanding in terms of topic, audience and language.
EN2-6B: Identifies the effect of purpose and audience on spoken texts, distinguishes between different forms of English and identifies organisational patterns and features.
EN2-10C: Thinks imaginatively, creatively and interpretively about information, ideas and texts when responding to and composing texts.
EN2-11D: Responds to and composes a range of texts that express viewpoints of the world similar to and different from their own.
EN2-12E: Recognises and uses an increasing range of strategies to reflect on their own and others’ learning.
Stage 3
EN3-1A: Communicates effectively for a variety of audiences and purposes using increasingly challenging topics, ideas, issues and language forms and features.
EN3-2A: Composes, edits and presents well-structured and coherent texts.
EN3-5B: Discusses how language is used to achieve a widening range of purposes for a widening range of audiences and contexts.
EN3-7C: Thinks imaginatively, creatively, interpretively and critically about information and ideas and identifies connections between texts when responding to and composing texts.
EN3-8D: Identifies and considers how different viewpoints of their world, including aspects of culture, are represented in texts.
EN3-9E: Recognises, reflects on and assesses their strengths as a learner.
Suggestions for how to use this resource with your students
Collection of student work
Google Form: create a Google Form with activities and/or questions, as well as, the ability for your students to upload of any files they create. Email this form to your students with the link to the Creative Class and all your student responses will be collated in a google sheet.
Google Classroom Assignment: create an assignment or a quiz in your classes Google Classroom with activities and/or questions, as well as, the ability for your students to upload any files they create.
MS Teams: create a quiz or an assignment in your class team drive where students can submit responses and upload any files they create.
Email: instruct your students to email you any responses and files they create.
Flipgrid: a website that allows teachers to create 'grids' to facilitate video discussions. Each grid is like a message board where teachers can pose questions, called "topics," and their students can post video responses that appear in a tiled grid display.
Jamboard: an interactive whiteboard that can be used as a feedback board for you and your students to use.
For further support on how to create these resources
Offline access
Download and print this document to send to students with limited access to online resources.
Would you like to promote your school and showcase your students' work as a result of engaging in this Creative Class?
Help us celebrate the fantastic work of NSW public school students by emailing photos or videos that you have permission to share and comments on how your students enjoyed the class to digital.artsunit@det.nsw.edu.au.
Please include the Creative Class title and your school name in the email so we can share on The Arts Unit social media and our website.
Teacher feedback
Return to Student page
Third-party content attributions
English K-10 Syllabus, © NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) for and on behalf of the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales, 2016, copied under s113P, accessed 1 August 2021.