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Towards the Exhibition: Presenting Information and Your Position

For this set of speeches, you will need to choose a relatively current election-year CONTROVERSY with two clear-cut sides, or pro (for) and con (against) arguments. It is best if you choose a topic which holds real interest for you, and which can be researched with a wide variety of sources. At least three must be print sources.

Proposal due Friday, October 10:
Write a ca 200 word typed proposal outlining: • Your essential question (example: What are the advantages and disadvantages of legalizing the sale of milk and meat derived from cloned animals?) • A brief statement summing up the “pro” arguments • A brief statement summing up the “con” arguments • A brief outline of your speech strategy (will you present the pro or the con side first?) • Your choice of media for each speech, together with a brief justification (example: I will use multimedia for the “con” speech, because I have a good video clip that illustrates the dangers of legalizing “cloned” milk.) • A summary of authoritative sources for both sides of the argument. B) Share your proposal with the class that day and get vital feedback.

October 11: How to make an effective poster (with Ted Ramsey in the Art Room) Poster workshop

During the following 2 rounds you will give TWO separate 8-10 minute informative (not opinion) speeches. They will be given either in the black box theatre or the media center. Each speech must be no less than 8 minutes, but no more than 12 minutes in length (not counting questions and answers). For each these two speeches, you are to give an impartial presentation of the chosen controversy and researched facts for one argument, either for or against. Your opinion is NOT to be presented in any obvious manner (you will lose points for betraying your opinion!). You are simply giving us the facts of the case and presenting an informative, researched analysis of the position. For at least one of these speeches, you must use prepared note cards!
October 14: Benchmarks workshop and presenting and effective power point.
Oct 15: PSAT (no school for 9nth and 12th graders) HW: Be prepared for Thursday with an outline and supporting material!
October 16 and 17: Poster Speech

October 20 and 21: Power Point Speech
This speech must use power point and include a graph (see the rubric). No more than 8 slides will be allowed, including the title slide and bibliography. One of the content slides must be a visual representation of data.

Oct 22: Persuasive Speech In-class outline and essay. You may reference anything in your benchmarks and research folder, but may not use the internet. HW Finish the essay (if you did not complete it in class)

October 23: Preparing the exhibition speech outline and last benchmarks workshop day.

October 24, 27 and 28:
Round 3--Persuasive Position Speech. This 20 minute speech is your graded practice round for the exhibtion. You will combine the most important elements of your two previous speeches into a persuasive speech, in which your goal is to win over your audience to your position (or motivate them to an action). You should consider using the Monroe Persuasive Outline (attention getter, need, satisfaction, visualisation and call to action). You should choose your presentation style and media according to your strengths as a speaker, what is needed for your topic, the given space (Black Box Theatre), and the given audience (students, faculty and parents).

Note: The completed benchmarks and research folder should be finished and turned in on the day you give your Persuasive Position speech (see below).

October 29 and 30: Exhibition Speech
This the persuasive speech you gave in round 3, but tweaked and improved, as needed. We will be presenting in the Black Box Theatre. During the question and answer rounds for your speech, you will also address the essential question for this class: Which mode of presentation is best suited to my strengths, the topic, the given audience and the given space? This speech,which will be graded by the teacher and an outside evaluator, is the FINAL TEST of what you have learned about public speaking and presenting a researched speech, and, as such, represents 10% of the final grade!

Exhibition Research and Benchmarks Folder:

This folder, including previously graded benchmarks, comprises 10% of the final grade. This organized folder should contain
1. Your proposal
2. List of sub-questions
3. Formal research bibliography (extra credit if annotated)
4. Pro speech outline and/or notecards
5. Visual
6. Con speech outline and/or notecards
7. Printout of power point slides
8. Notes on books read and printouts of your internet sources, including notes, underlining, highlighting, analysis, etc.
9. Formal Outline for the exhibition speech (persuasive speech)
10. In-class position essay
11. Publishable quality abstract (1 paragraph)
12. Speech feedback sheets.

Your completed folder must be finished by Tuesday, October 28, and will be collected after you give your exhibition.

Ever wonder why... If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?

For the second round of speeches toward the exhibition, students are required to use power point, with the goal of learning how to make and use visually effective power point slides.

Only 8 slides will be allowed for this speech, which must be ready to go on Monday, October 20.

Sample slide format:
Slide 1: Title
Slide 2: Essential question and the "side" for this speech Slide 3: First content points and visual
Slide 4: Second content points and visual
Slide 5: Graph or other appropriate visual illustration of data
Slide 6: Third content slide
7: Conclusion Slide
8: Bibliography in MLA format (remember that a stand-alone URL is not acceptable as a bibliographic entry)

As with the previous speech, you are being asked to present the facts of the case on this side of the argument, as objectively as possible. Keep your opinion out of it -- you are functioning as a reporter!

The final slide is a bibliography, and must include all sources used, in proper citation format. You are expected to provide a minimum of three sources, of which at least one must be a print source, i.e. book (Wikipedia may not count as one of your required sources). The format for internet sources can be downloaded from my home page (under downloads). You can also go to the school website, click current student at the bottom, click online resources at the left, then go to landmark citation machine site. All sources for internet visuals and clips must also be acknowledged by cutting and pasting the URL right under the picture.

Remember that the goal of power point is to get to the point, powerfully.

On Monday, you are to bring your completed poster, outline and, if you need one, script for your ca 5 minutee informative speech. I will hand out the speech rubric for grading, and you will give your practice speech.

Please remember that you are stating the facts of the case for one side of your controversy. You are NOT asked for YOUR OPINIONS in this speech. The poster is there to help the audience understand and connect with your main idea better.

The poster will be graded on: simplicity of idea, simplicity of design, connection between idea and design, impact on the audience and effective use of the visual in speech. IT WILL NOT BE GRADED AS ART WORK! Pretty and neat does not necessarily mean better.

On Tuesday, you will give the speech again for a grade, according to the rubric.

1. What is the overall topic of your speech?

2. What are three questions that get to the heart of the content of your speech?
A.________________________________________________________________
B.________________________________________________________________
C.________________________________________________________________

3. What do you want your audience to get out of it?

4. How do you plan to get their attention? (opening strategy)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. List three supporting details/facts you will use to underline main points:
A. __________________________________________________________
B. __________________________________________________________
C. __________________________________________________________

6. How do you plan to organize your speech?

7. On what aspects would you like the class to give you feedback?
_________________________________________________________________

Assignment on Rhetoric for the Rebuttal and the Exhibition Speech Process

1. Define:
Hyperbole
Anecdote
Anaphora
Alliteration
Assonance
Analogy
Parallelism
Oxymoron
Quotation

2. Rhetorical Analysis of the Churchill Speech:

Underline and label instances of following rhetorical devices and strategies in the speech text below:

Attention getter
Connecting – Showing empathy with the audience
Establishing need
Visualization
Action

Hyperbole
Anecdote
Anaphora
Alliteration
Assonance
Analogy
Parallelism
Oxymoron
Quotation

Never Give In, Never, Never, Never
Winston Churchill

October 29, 1941
Harrow School
When Churchill visited Harrow on October 29 to hear the traditional songs again, he discovered that an additional verse had been added to one of them. It ran:
"Not less we praise in darker days
The leader of our nation,
And Churchill's name shall win acclaim
From each new generation.
For you have power in danger's hour
Our freedom to defend, Sir!
Though long the fight we know that right
Will triumph in the end, Sir!
Almost a year has passed since I came down here at your Head Master's kind invitation in order to cheer myself and cheer the hearts of a few of my friends by singing some of our own songs. The ten months that have passed have seen very terrible catastrophic events in the world - ups and downs, misfortunes - but can anyone sitting here this afternoon, this October afternoon, not feel deeply thankful for what has happened in the time that has passed and for the very great improvement in the position of our country and of our home? Why, when I was here last time we were quite alone, desperately alone, and we had been so for five or six months. We were poorly armed. We are not so poorly armed today; but then we were very poorly armed. We had the unmeasured menace of the enemy and their air attack still beating upon us, and you yourselves had had experience of this attack; and I expect you are beginning to feel impatient that there has been this long lull with nothing particular turning up!
But we must learn to be equally good at what is short and sharp and what is long and tough. It is generally said that the British are often better at the last. They do not expect to move from crisis to crisis; they do not always expect that each day will bring up some noble chance of war; but when they very slowly make up their minds that the thing has to be done and the job put through and finished, then, even if it takes months - if it takes years - they do it.
Another lesson I think we may take, just throwing our minds back to our meeting here ten months ago and now, is that appearances are often very deceptive, and as Kipling well says, we must "…meet with Triumph and Disaster. And treat those two impostors just the same."
You cannot tell from appearances how things will go. Sometimes imagination makes things out far worse than they are; yet without imagination not much can be done. Those people who are imaginative see many more dangers than perhaps exist; certainly many more than will happen; but then they must also pray to be given that extra courage to carry this far-reaching imagination. But for everyone, surely, what we have gone through in this period - I am addressing myself to the School - surely from this period of ten months this is the lesson: never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. We stood all alone a year ago, and to many countries it seemed that our account was closed, we were finished. All this tradition of ours, our songs, our School history, this part of the history of this country, were gone and finished and liquidated.
Very different is the mood today. Britain, other nations thought, had drawn a sponge across her slate. But instead our country stood in the gap. There was no flinching and no thought of giving in; and by what seemed almost a miracle to those outside these Islands, though we ourselves never doubted it, we now find ourselves in a position where I say that we can be sure that we have only to persevere to conquer.
You sang here a verse of a School Song: you sang that extra verse written in my honour, which I was very greatly complimented by and which you have repeated today. But there is one word in it I want to alter - I wanted to do so last year, but I did not venture to. It is the line: "Not less we praise in darker days."
I have obtained the Head Master's permission to alter darker to sterner. "Not less we praise in sterner days."
Do not let us speak of darker days: let us speak rather of sterner days. These are not dark days; these are great days - the greatest days our country has ever lived; and we must all thank God that we have been allowed, each of us according to our stations, to play a part in making these days memorable in the history of our race.

http://www.winstonchurchill.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=423

POLITICAL SPEAKING UNIT (September 22 – October 3)

Goal: Each student will be able to write and deliver a 3 Minute Scripted Political Speech

1. Essential Skills:
a. Communicating Effectively
b. Persisting to Achieve Quality

2. Three questions to address during this unit.
a. How does the use of rhetorical devices contribute to a memorable speech?
b. What goes into writing a good political speech?
c. How can I deliver a memorable speech?

3. Lesson Plan

Each student will choose one speech from the following list:

Abraham Lincoln: Gettysburg Address
John F. Kennedy: Inaugural Address
Martin Luther King: I have a Dream
Ronald Reagan: Tear Down the Wall
John McCain: GOP Convention Acceptance Speech
Barack Obama: Democratic Convention Acceptance Speech

Real Video/Audio mp3 links are provided for the more recent addresses. The links can be found at my portaportal site. Go to www.portaportal.com, log in as a guest with vpfuechsel, go to my English classes and then Presenting Information.

a. Monday
i. introduction
ii. Pass out unit description
iii. Watch links for campaign speeches that the students choose
iv. Homework: Read one of the speeches and find instances of the 5 rhetorical methods from the list above.
b. Tuesday
i. Check homework. Discussion of speeches.
ii. Brainstorming session: What makes a speaker GREAT?
iii. Video example: Jesse Jackson
iv. Rhetorical Vocabulary, first 5 words (there will be a quiz on these words later in the week) Check the www.virtualsalt.com link for definitions and examples.
1. Alliteration
2. Amplification
3. Analogy
4. Anaphora
5. Assonance
v. HW. Choose your favorite passage from one of the speeches and practice reading it out loud.

Noun 1. rebuttal - the speech act of refuting by offering a contrary contention or argument
From The Free Dictionary. http://www.thefreedictionary.com/rebuttal
c. Wednesday
i. Delivery of chosen speech paragraphs at the podium.
ii. No Brainers Rhetoric and Persuasive Speaking (with some interruptions)
iii. Demonstration: What are some different methods of delivery?
iv. What are some methods that could work for you?
v.
d. Thursday
i. Second vocabulary list:
1. Antithesis
2. Enumeratio
3. Epithet
4. Explitive
5. Hyperbole
ii. Work through the Planning Backwards Sheet
iii. Research your rebuttal; find at least 3 good supporting sources (no Wikipedia)
iv. Start writing (if stuck, use the No Brainers Persuasive Outline)
v. Go over speech rubric
vi. Homework: Start writing your rebuttal and bring your text on Friday.
e. Friday
i. Speech writing workshop continued
ii. Rhetorical Vocabulary Quiz (10 words)
iii. Homework: Correct and type up your speech. Have it ready for Monday
f. Monday
i. How do you mark a scripted speech to help the delivery?
ii. Speech marking workshop
iii. Practice delivery in pairs and give each other feedback.
iv. Homework. Begin thinking about a current election year controversy (NOT the one you used for your speech!) that you wish to research for your exhibition persuasive position speech. Make sure that it has two very clear sides and that you are sufficiently interested in the topic to give an informed and impassioned speech by the time you get to the exhibition.
v. Get your field trip permission forms signed (A + part of B modules)
g. Tuesday
i. Set up the camera, podium and screen
ii. Practice with the set up
iii. Talk about the exhibion round and topic proposal procedure
iv. Homework Start writing a topic proposal for your exhibition persuasive position speech. It must contain your working essential question and a short description of the two major positions.
h. Wednesday
i. Set up the camera, podium and screen
ii. PRACTICE ROUND OF SPEECHES (graded)
iii Finish your topic proposal and BRING YOUR Fairfax LIBRARY CARD (if you have one) for Thursday.
iv. TURN IN YOUR FIELD TRIP PERMISSION FORM!

i. Thursday

9:30- ca. 12 PM Research Field trip with Joanna Cole to the Fairfax Public Library

j. Friday
i. Viewing and learning from your videotaped speech
ii. Tightening up and polishing your speech script
iii. Preparation for final videotaped rounds on Monday

k. Monday, October 6
i. Set up the camera, podium and screen
ii. FINAL VIDEOTAPED REBUTTALS

Present Yourself!
Persuasive Political Speech

Speaker:
Thumbs Down Average Good Thumbs up WOW!

Eye Contact...................... 6 7 8 9 10
(The speaker makes contact with the listeners
by looking at them directly from time to time)

Body Language/Gestures.. 6 7 8 9 10
(The use of facial expression, arm gestures
and body language are convincing)

Clarity................... 6 7 8 9 10
(The speaker employs appropriate language
and can be heard and understood clearly)

Vocal Expression.............. 6 7 8 9 10
(The speaker employs differentiated volume,
emphasis and emotions to convince listeners.)

ATTENTION GRABBER.......6 7 8 9 10
(Opening)

NEED...................... 6 7 8 9 10
(The speaker convinces the audience of
the need)

SOLUTION.............. 6 7 8 9 10
(The answer to the problem is stated clearly)

BACK-UP INFO.............. 6 7 8 9 10
(Back-up details and information supports
the argument and help convince the listeners)

ACTION.............. 6 7 8 9 10
(The desired action is stated clearly and
convincingly)

Overall Impression............ 6 7 8 9 10
(How convinced are you?)

Focus Skill: Communicating effectively

“What this country needs is more free speech worth listening to.” --Hansell B. Duckett
“A good orator is pointed and impassioned” – Cicero

Which mode of presentation is best suited to my strengths, the topic, the given audience and the given space?
This course focuses on the development of individual presentation, public speaking and teaching skills. Using examples from guest speakers, written and filmed speeches, students will learn how to judge effective strategies and techniques of communication. Each week students will explore and practice a different aspect of informative speaking, with the goal of improving exhibition skills. The first set of speeches will culminate in a 30 minute interactive lesson on a topic of the student’s choice. In-class and homework assignments consist largely of written and verbal preparation for the weekly presentations. One speech will be written out entirely, so the students can concentrate on persuasive rhetoric and delivery. For the exhibition project, students will choose an election year controversy with relatively clear-cut positions. They will research and present both sides of the controversy before preparing a persuasive exhibition. Practice sessions and the rubric for the exhibition speech will address all four areas: your strengths as a speaker, your ability to address the controversy meaningfully, your ability to connect with the audience, and your ability to deal well with the given room and technology at hand.

The 5 B’s (Spirit of the Classroom)

1) Be Professional
• Respect for each other and different perspectives, styles, etc.
• Communicate effectively with language appropriate to a school setting.
• Appropriate professional appearance for class and presentations.

2) Be Punctual
Latenesses will be deducted from participation points for that day, and will be accumulated. When they add up to 90 minutes, it counts as an absence. You can’t receive participation points if you are absent. It is the student’s responsibility to bring assignments that were due that day on the first day you return to class, and to make up missed in-class work within 2 class days after an absence. You can also ask me about make-up assignments for missed participation points. Please pay close attention to The New School’s absence policy!

3) Be Prepared
ALL presentations must be prepared by the assigned date. Missed presentations (due to absence) must be made up on the next available date. If you feel totally unprepared and ask to reschedule, you will lose 10% of the grade. But it’s always better to try. If you are not happy with a speech grade, you can redo it to improve your grade, if time permits. Some class time is given for preparation assignments. It is in your interest to use that time effectively. Written assignments are due two class days before the given presentation, in order to allow you revision and rehearsal time. As far as possible, preparation assignments will be reviewed and given back on the same day.

4) Be Careful.
• Because we are meeting in the black box theatre, unless we are having a presentation or special event that involves food, we will strictly observe the no food policy for this space.
• Please be considerate of each other and needs for personal work space.
• Keep your materials, handouts, speech preparation sheets, outlines, etc. organized in a binder.
• Please take care of our materials and space by picking everything up, taking your stuff and putting boxes and other furniture away at the end of class. Keep your stuff

5) Be Collaborative
• To become more effective speakers, we need to work on better listening and observing skills, as well as working together to help each person do his/her best. Each person’s contribution to discussion, brainstorming and feedback sessions is vital. If you talk too much, someone else might not get his turn.
• Listen to each presentation attentively.
• Take notes for each other and fill out feedback sheets honestly.
• Hold questions until AFTER presentations (otherwise the speak can become derailed).
• Please be considerate of each other’s feelings, difficulties, age, race and gender when giving feedback.
• Ask questions! Don’t be afraid to ask a “dumb question”--most likely someone else wants to know the same thing.
• If you have any questions for me after class, need feedback on assignments, are behind schedule or whatever, check out my website (www.schoolrack.com/virginiapalmerfuechsel), contact me via e-mail (virginia@nsnva.pvt.k12.va.us) or track me down at school during lunch or my office hours (C module). I’ll send class updates and reminders from time to time per email.

Schedule:
Week I Introductory Mini-Speeches
Week 2 “Tell a Story” (personal speech)
Week 3 Student as Teacher (how-to lesson)
Week 4 Rhetoric and Speech Delivery
Week 5 3 minute scripted Political Speech (if possible, these will be video-taped)Proposed issue: High Gas Prices
Week 6 Campaign Controversy Speech 1 using an effective Visual Illustration (to be Ted-proofed)
Week 7 Campaign Controversy Speech 2 using an effective short Power Point
Week 8 The Art of Persuasive Speaking and Exhibition benchmarks
Week 9 Exhibition Speeches

Grading:

15% Professional attitude, punctuality and participation
30% Preparation, Quizzes and Written assignments
35% Best 7 of 8 weekly speeches
10% Complete Exhibition Research and Benchmarks Folder
10% Exhibition Speeches