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).

Watch the video 'Method' and summarise what you can recall about 'method'.

Be sure to clarify anything that you're not clear on.

Method

Duration: 01:46

Video full screen – Prepared speeches – Method
Video transcript – Prepared speeches – Method

Task

Review: what makes a good introduction, body and conclusion? Write down 2-3 things you should do and 2 things you shouldn't do for each.

You can select the arrows below to check your answers – not everything will be listed but it's a good starting point!

Introduction

Do: make it short and snappy!
Do: try to catch the audience's attention (use a relevant and interesting story, anecdote, surprising fact or something else).
Do: make the topic and the purpose clear (without saying "Today I'm going to talk about...")

Don't: start with "My name is... and today I'm going to talk about..."
Don't: start with a completely unrelated story, fact or anecdote.
Don't: spend too much time on your introduction.

Body

Do: spend most of your speech time on this section!
Do: link the body of your speech to your introduction in an interesting and logical way.
Do: make sure you get the message across in the body of your speech
Do: Make sure your points link together in a logical and interesting way.
Don't: recite lists and lists of facts.
Don't: try to cover too many ideas or perspectives
Don't: only cover one idea or perspective.
Don't: just tell a story and leave the audience to guess about how it's relevant. Make the connection to your purpose clear.

Conclusion

Do: use the conclusion to sum up the topic and purpose in a short, final statement.
Do: (sometimes) relate your conclusion back to your introduction in a clever way.
Do: keep it short and sweet. Leave the audience with a powerful final thought, idea or statement to ponder.
Don't: end with "In conclusion I think that... thank you."
Don't: spend too long on your conclusion.

Prepared speech structure

Task

Watch the speech 'Restorative Justice' by Brendan Lambert and take notes about the clear structure of his speech.

In particular, focus on:

How did he engage the audience in his introduction?
How did he organise the body of his speech in a clear and logical manner?
How did he make the speech easy for the audience to follow?
What was effective about his conclusion?

Prepared speech - Restorative Justice by Brendan Lambert

Duration: 5:33

Video full screen – Prepared speech 'Restorative Justice'
Video transcript – Prepared speech 'Restorative Justice'

Engaging introductions

Always aim to start with a strong and compelling introduction. You need to capture the audience's attention from the second you begin speaking.

When starting a speech, you can try using:

a question (either a rhetorical question, or a question you will answer in your speech)
an anecdote or short story
a bold statement that makes people think
a real life example
an opinion or fact.

It's also important that you keep your purpose front of mind. Everything in your speech should contribute to your purpose (or goal), including your introduction.

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!

Task

Complete the following 5 steps:

Select a topic from the list below.
Select a strategy for your introduction (for example: a question, bold statement, anecdote).
Write an engaging introduction using that strategy.
Repeat steps 2 and 3, using the same topic but a different strategy.
Consider the 2 different introductions you've written. Which do you think is better? Justify your answer.

Topics:

Failure
Expect the unexpected
The truth emerges
The customer is always right
Creativity is key
Times are changing
Mind your business
Animal instincts
Falling through the cracks

Different ways to structure your speech

The body (middle) of your speech should:

explore why your topic is an issue
get your message across
link to your introduction and conclusion in a logical and interesting way.

Deciding on a clear structure will help you organise and plan your speech. It will also help the audience follow along when you present your speech.

There are many different ways you can structure the body of your speech. Let's look at 3 possible options below.

Select the drop-down arrows to reveal more information about each strategy.

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: We should teach financial literacy in schools.

Start with how you do/don't know much about money and finances and how this has affected you.
Look more broadly at how it affects all people your age.
Discuss how this in turn affects the country (and world) economies.

Alternatively, you can reverse it: start with the world perspective then zoom in to your personal perspective.

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: We should teach financial literacy in schools.

How much did young people in the past know about finances?
How much do young people today know about finances and money? Why is this an issue?
How will this affect young people/society in the future? What is the solution?

Positives and negatives

There are a few approaches you can use.

Discussion: Weigh up the pros and cons and come to a final conclusion/opinion.
PIN: Start with a positive, focus on something interesting and end with a negative.
Reverse PIN: As above, but start with a negative and end with a positive.

Example

Topic: We should teach financial literacy in schools.

Pros:

It would limit how many young people are being taken advantage of (financially).
Encourages businesses to be more transparent.
Supports the Australian economy.

Cons:

Limited time in the school day, there are so many other areas that we also need to focus on.
Schools would need to employ additional staff (or re-train staff).

Final opinion:

Worth the cost, saves both citizens and the government money in the long run.

Task

Consider the broad topic 'It's everyone's business'. Decide what your topic (more specifically) could be.
- For example: how companies are able to access personal phone/internet data.
- For example: that being environmentally friendly should be compulsory for every Australian business.

Plan 3 rough drafts, explaining how you could approach your speech using each the following strategies:
- self view, world view
- past, present, future
- positives and negatives.

Can you think of another way you might approach this topic or organise your ideas? If so, add it to your drafts.
Decide: which approach would work best for your particular topic? Justify your answer (explain why).

A memorable conclusion

Good conclusions are:

memorable
effective
original.

They should draw everything together and inspire the audience to think about (or do) something differently after listening.

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 the audience a question (or told an anecdote) in your introduction, you could refer back to that at the end of your speech. This is just one strategy that can be quite effective in certain speeches.

Task

Consider the broad topic 'The world as we know it'.
Decide, what could your speech be about (specifically)? What is your purpose?
Brainstorm at least 2-3 different ways you could begin and end your speech. Consider some of the strategies already mentioned.
Determine which is most powerful and effective. Explain your reasoning.

Congratulations!

You have completed this Digital @ The Arts Unit Creative Class

You are on your way to becoming a great public speaker!

To investigate public speaking in more detail and explore a range of skills building activities you might like to complete these creative classes:

Starting with prepared speeches