Speaking Step 7
Speaking Step 7
Embedded Files
Speaking: The oral transmission of information or ideas.
Step 7: I speak engagingly by using facts and examples to support my points
Outcomes
To achieve Step 7, learners will show that they can reinforce their arguments and ideas by using facts and examples effectively.
Up to now, the focus on Speaking has been about how to speak effectively by thinking about the logical order of content, what their listeners already know, and using appropriate language, tone, expression and gesture. This next stage of mastering speaking focuses on how to speak engagingly.
Learners need to be able to:
Understand the value of using facts and statistics when speaking
Structure an opinion or argument
Introduction
Facts are things that are known or proven to be true.
Statistics are pieces of numerical data – for example, the number of players in a football team.
Facts and statistics are important when speaking because they provide evidence that adds truth to the argument that you are making.
Skill Starter
Fact or Statistic?
Mark out two areas with two different coloured cones, one for facts and one for statistics.
Learners will listen to a clip talking about a famous sports person. Every time they hear a fact about that person they need to stand in the fact area and then when they hear a statistic they move to the statistic box.
At the end they should talk about how the facts and statistics helped them learn about that individual.
10 mins
Group activity
Active
Discussion
Teach & Apply
When speaking, the use of facts and statistics makes it more difficult for other people to disagree with you as you are sharing evidence that what you say is correct.
One simple structure that is to use [Opinion] because [Facts or Statistics]. For example, I think that Serena Williams is the greatest ever tennis player because she has won 23 grand slams.
This sort of approach is the basis of debating, where individuals talk about different topics and present different ideas or arguments about them – the team who speaks most convincingly about a topic wins.
Optional Activity
Which is more skilled?
Identify two sports that the learners enjoy. Split them into two groups, one representing each sport and explain that they will be having a debate about which sport requires more skills and skill actions.
Learners will need to come up with facts and statistics to support their arguments in the debate and can also demonstrate some of the skills required by that sport. Once they have had time to come up with their points, they can then have the debate.
20 mins
Group activity
Active
Discussion
Reflection & Assessment
Embed these strategies across your teaching and coaching to help learners apply what they’ve learnt.
Where relevant, when asking learners to share their ideas, they should be pre-warned that they will be expected to justify their opinion or idea with a fact or statistic to back it up.
Use these ideas for ways of assessing this skill step to help you check learners’ understanding and confidence.
This step is best assessed through a structured activity. For example: Asking learners to prepare a talk or to participate in a debate, where they have to use facts or statistics to back up their opinions.
Ask these reflective questions:
What are facts and what are statistics?
Why can these help structure an argument?
How can you build facts and statistics into your speaking?
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