Speech Assignment

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Speech Assignment

• 7th Grade Language Arts

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Nuts and Bolts

• You must give a speech about your favorite book.
• Your speech must be at least two minutes, and no
  more than five minutes long.
• You must keep in mind the public speaking
  guidelines (see How will I be graded slide)
• You will be giving your speech this Friday.

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How do I prepare?

• Step 1 Choose a book. It can be a book you read
  this year that you really liked, or it can be
  your all your all-time favorite book.
• Step 2 Write your speech out using the power
  paragraph format. Start with a topic sentence,
  then give a summary of the book (without giving
  away the end!). Then, you must have at least 3
  reasons why you like the book (yellow) and you
  must explain those three reasons (pink). Finish
  with a topic sentence restatement and a
  concluding sentence.
• Step 3 Read your paragraph. Edit it for content,
  flow and conventions. HAVE SOMEONE ELSE READ IT!
• Step 4 Create a note card with key words to help
  you remember what to say (this is what you will
  be able to use when you give your speech).
• Step 5 Practice, practice, practice! Practice in
  front of the mirror, in front of your dog, in
  front of your mom, in front of your siblings, in
  front of your friends just practice!

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Mr. Sadauskass Example

• Favorite book The Alchemist
• Topic Sentence My favorite book that I read this
  year was The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
• Summary The Alchemist is the story of a young
  shepherds journey to find his treasure. The
  story begins when the shepherd dreams of finding
  a treasure. The dream is so real to him that he
  talks to several people about it and, in talking
  to these people, he finds that the dream is
  showing him something real. Soon he realizes he
  must give up his life as a shepherd and pursue
  his dream. As a result, and after some guidance
  from a wizard, he sets off to find his treasure.
  It is almost as if he is on a quest as he must
  face several trials and setbacks including
  finding love and leaving it until he can find
  this treasure.

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Mr. Sadauskass Example (contd)

• Reason 1 The first reason I liked this story was
  that it was a metaphor.
• Explanation/Example 1 In the story, you are
  reading about one mans physical journey to find
  a real treasure, but thats not what it is really
  about. The author is really just showing you, the
  reader, the choices and trials you have to face
  in order to find your dream.
• Reason 2 Another reason I enjoyed this book as
  that it included a lot of fantastical scenes.
• Explanation/Example 2 At one point, the
  shepherd is able to control the wind and talk to
  the sun. Obviously this isnt realistic, but I
  enjoyed the symbolism of his action (which was
  that he was taking control of his fate).
• Reason 3 Finally, I enjoyed this story because
  when I finished reading it (in, like, a few hours
  it was that good), it made me feel good.
• Explanation/Example 2 It was like when you
  finish watching a really good, uplifting movie
  and you just want to go out and conquer the
  world. Thats how this book made me feel
  really, really uplifted and positive. It was also
  a book that made me think, and I really enjoyed
  that. It stuck with me.

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Mr. Sadauskass Example (contd)

• Topic Sentence Restatment Overall, The Alchemist
  was one of the best books I have read so far.
• Concluding Sentence Thank you for listening!

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Putting it all together

• Favorite book The Alchemist by Paul Coelho
• My favorite book that I read this year was The
  Alchemist. The Alchemist is the story of a young
  shepherds journey to find his treasure. The
  story begins when the shepherd dreams of finding
  a treasure. The dream is so real to him that he
  talks to several people about it and, in talking
  to these people, he finds that the dream is
  showing him something real. Soon he realizes he
  must give up his life as a shepherd and pursue
  his dream. As a result, and after some guidance
  from a wizard, he sets off to find his treasure.
  It is almost as if he is on a quest as he must
  face several trials and setbacks including
  finding love and leaving it until he can find
  this treasure. The first reason I liked this
  story was that it was a metaphor. In the story,
  you are reading about one mans physical journey
  to find a real treasure, but thats not what it
  is really about. The author is really just
  showing you, the reader, the choices and trials
  you have to face in order to find your dream.
  Another reason I enjoyed this book as that it
  included a lot of fantastical scenes. At one
  point, the shepherd is able to control the wind
  and talk to the sun. Obviously this isnt
  realistic, but I enjoyed the symbolism of his
  action (which was that he was taking control of
  his fate). Finally, I enjoyed this story because
  when I finished reading it (in, like, a few hours
  it was that good), it made me feel good. It
  was like when you finish watching a really good,
  uplifting movie and you just want to go out and
  conquer the world. Thats how this book made me
  feel really, really uplifted and positive. It
  was also a book that made me think, and I really
  enjoyed that. It stuck with me. Overall, The
  Alchemist was one of the best books I have read
  so far. Thank you for listening!

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How will I be graded?

• You will be graded on the following things
• Preparation it looks like you practiced and
  know your stuff.
• Volume we can hear you everywhere in the room.
• Speed/pace you didnt talk too fast or too
  slow.
• Posture you stood up straight.
• Eye contact you looked at the audience and not
  just at your cue card.
• Expression we can tell you liked the book just
  by the way you talked.
• Organization the way you presented your reasons
  makes sense.
• This assignment is worth 35 points in the test
  category. It can really help your grade, or
  really hurt your grade depending on how you do.

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Whats the bottom line?

• Bottom line?
• You will be giving a speech this Friday.
• It is worth 35 points in the test category.
• You will be allowed to use 1 note card to aid
  your speech. (You can have the book too, if you
  want, but you will need to get it on your own
  because the school library is now closed for the
  year.)
• You speech will need to be 2-5 minutes long.
  (Yes, I will be timing them.)
• You will be given today to work/prepare, I will
  show you how to structure your index card on
  Wednesday and you will have time during class on
  Thursday to practice.

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So, what should I do now?

• CHOOSE the book you want to write about.
• Do a PLOT LINE for the book to help you with your
  summary.
• BRAINSTORM three reasons you liked the book and
  come up with three explanations and examples (one
  for each reason) from the book.
• WRITE your Power Paragraph.(Topic Sentence,
  Summary, Reason 1, Explanation 1, Reason 2,
  Explanation 2, Reason 3, Explanation 3, Topic
  Sentence Restatement, Concluding Sentence)
• Show your paragraph to me or a classmate to get
  feedback/input.
• This is the only full class period you have to
  work on the writing part so get to it!
• Questions/confusion? Raise your hand. Ready?? GO!