Prose & Poetry Interpretation
Overview:
Students competing in this event are performing poetry or prose. Students are encouraged to explore socially relevant and emotionally powerful content and many pieces have mature themes. They will have rehearsed for weeks or months to deliver a polished and emotional performance. They typically use a small black binder and close it during an introduction that states their theme and properly cites the source of their content. As a judge, you will rank them from first to last.
Prose Example
2018 National Champion
Poetry Example
2013 National Champion
Questions to Consider
As you rank students from first to last, consider all elements of their performances. Using the questions to the left can assist you in writing helpful ballot comments and accurately ranking a very competitive room of performances.
Time Signals
Many speakers will ask for you to give them a time signal countdown as their 7 minutes elapses. Many ask for "5 down" or "3 down" and "a fist at grace." The best technique is to set your phone timer to count down from 7. Time begins when they speak the first word. You hold up fingers for the time remaining. (as pictured in the video) and make a fist at zero. ***At 0 minutes remaining the speaker has 30 seconds to finish their final sentence. It is wise to consult with the tournament or check your ballot about rules regarding time.
***Some tournaments will NOT have a grace period, so please check with the ballot table, or check your ballot for instructions.
Helpful Tools:
Online Timer
Grab this helpful tool to keep track of time.