Oral Presentation: Introduction

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

• Have you ever given an oral presentation or speech before?

• If so, what was the occasion?
• Were you running for an office in your club, or giving a speech at a birthday party, or perhaps you were giving a speech on a topic for a school subject?

In the next several lessons in our Oral Presentation series, you will select and research a topic, decide on a purpose for a presentation or speech, write a speech, prepare note cards, and present a speech to an audience.

Don’t let all that overwhelm you — you will work on this one step at a time and prepare an exciting speech on a topic you love. What you love to do is exactly where you will begin.

• What do you love to do?

Picking a topic from the things you enjoy doing or talking about will make preparing and delivering this speech easy, and maybe even fun!

1. The first step is to brainstorm some ideas for a topic.
2. First, take a deep breath and close your eyes. Focus on the things that really excite you.
3. Then, take out a piece of paper and pencil, set a timer for three minutes, and write down all those thoughts that are floating around in your mind about the things you enjoy. Ready? Get set. Write now!
4. Time's up! Look over your list. Read each of the items out loud, then circle two or three items that you might select as a topic for your speech. As you consider which of the three of the topics you would like to talk about, think about your audience — which of the three would most interest them? Put a star by that topic.
5. Next, consider your purpose for giving the speech.

• Again, thinking about the three topics you selected, would you speak on that topic to inform, persuade, or possibly tell someone how to do something?
• As you think about all these things, which topic should you choose? Place a check mark beside the topic you are going to use.

6. Take a few minutes to discuss your topic with your teacher or parent. Explain why you chose that topic and what your purpose will be for giving the speech will be. Consider any suggestions your teacher or parent may have for your topic or purpose. Make sure you can answer the following questions before moving to the Got It? section:

• What is the topic?
• Is the focus narrow enough that I can stay on track throughout the entire speech?
• Why did I select this speech?
• Do I know enough about this topic that I can form an opinion about it without extensive research?
• Who are my listeners or audience?
• What do I want my listeners to know about my topic?
• What is my purpose for giving the speech? What do I want my readers to do with the information I tell them?

Once you have answered these questions and are comfortable with the topic you have selected, continue to the Got It? section and think about why it may be important to consider all of these details when putting together a speech.

• Do you think it would be difficult to give a speech without preparing? Why or why not?