Chapter 11 and 12

Bottom Line

Don't think about delivering a speech, think about it as talking to people. Also, practice your speech beforehand, at home or elsewhere, the way you will give it in class

History

Objects (microwave oven); Place (PPCC); and Ideas/Concepts (democracy)

Monotone

a continuing sound, especially of someone's voice, that is unchanging in pitch and without intonation

Lectern

a small raised surface, usually with a slanted top, where a speaker can place notes during a speech

Informative speech

a speech based entirely and exclusively on facts and whose main purpose is to inform rather than persuade, amuse, or inspire; an informative speech does not attempt to convince the audience that one thing is better than another; it does not advocate a course of action

Irrefutable

a statement or claim that cannot be argued

Speaking

allows for flexibility, meaningful pauses, eye contact, small changes in word order, and vocal emphasis.

Biography

biographies should focus on people of some note or fame, since doing research on people who are not at least mildly well-known could be difficult

Eye contact

eye contact is how you establish and maintain a rapport with your audience during your speech, it is an extremely important element of your delivery; 80% of your total speech time should be spent making eye contact with your audience

Reading

is a more or less exact replication of words on paper without the use of any nonverbal interpretation

Ideas/concepts

make your concept concrete, real, and specific for your audience with examples

Vocalized Pauses

pauses that incorporate some sort of sound or word that is unrelated to what is being said; "uh," "um," and "like" are well known examples; these are also known as "filler words

Pauses

should be controlled to maintain attention of the audience; you pause in normal conversations, so you shouldn't be afraid of pausing while speaking

Processes

sometimes referred to as demonstration or "how to" speeches because they often entail demonstrating something; these speeches require you to provide steps that will help your audience understand how to accomplish a specific task or process

Hands

the key for knowing what to do with your hands is to use them naturally as you would in normal conversation

Objects

the only objects you should need to give your speech are whatever materials you are speaking from, and possibly a visual aid if you are using one

Extemporaneous

the presentation of a carefully planned and rehearsed speech, spoken in a conversational manner using brief note

Impromptu

the presentation of a short message without advance preparation

Volume

the relative softness or loudness of your voice Pitch: the relative highness or lowness of your voice

Rate

the speed at which you speak; how quickly or slowly a speaker talks

Manuscript

the word-for-word iteration o

Feet

you want to look and feel natural, so it is fine to adjust your weight or move out from behind the lectern, but constant motion (or perpetual stillness) will do much more harm than good

microphone use

•: it amplifies the sound, but it does not clarify - ex: clip-on style, lectern, and hand-held •Audience size: small is more intimate; whereas a large audience can be intimidating and impersonal

Guidelines

•Guidelines for selecting an informative speech topic: •Pick a specific or focused topic: a topic that is too broad makes doing research even harder; it will actually make the research and writing phases of the informative speech much easier •Avoid fake informative speech topics: sometimes students think that because something sounds like an informative speech topic that it is one •Guidelines for preparing an informative speech topic: •Don't be too broad: providing too much detail on a topic will only serve to dilute the really important points being made •Be accurate, clear, and interesting: a good informative speech conveys accurate information to the audience in a way that is clear and that keeps the listener interested in the topic •Keep in mind audience diversity: not everyone in your audience is the same, so an informative speech should be prepared with audience diversity in mind

info

•Practice your speech out loud: practicing out loud allows you to actually hear where you have trouble and fix it before getting up in front of the audience •Practice your speech standing up: practicing this way will help develop muscle memory and will make it feel more natural when you are doing it for real •Practice your speech with a lectern: practice your speech while standing behind something that approximates the lectern you will have in a typical classroom •Practice your speech with an audience: have someone watch you while you practice giving a speech •Practice your speech for time: when practicing your speech at home for time, it is a good idea to time yourself at least three times •Practice your speech by filming yourself: By watching yourself, you will notice all the small things you do that might prove to be distracting (or cost you points) during the actual speech

Speaking in a small or large physical space

•make practical adjustments based on space of the venue •Speaking outdoors: prone to distractions, such as weather, animals, automobiles (noises)

Opinion as its basis

•some opinion statements sometime sound like facts, but are really opinion; you should never take sides on an issue in an informative speech, nor should you "spin" the issue in order to influence the opinions of the listeners

Catergories/divisions

•sometimes an informative speech topic doesn't lend itself to a specific type of approach, and in those cases the topics tend to fall into a "general" category of informative speeches

Lectern

•the lectern is a tool for you to use that should ultimately make your speech easier to give, and you need to use it that way

Memorized

•the rote recitation of a written message that the speaker has committed to memory