writing a speech activity

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57 Writing a Speech: Activities and Resources

Lyon, A. (2017). Communication coach Alex Lyon. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6sm47j-Am4 Standard YouTube License.

Riegel, D. G.  (2019). Stop Beginning Your Speeches with Good Morning and Thank You and Start with This Instead. Talk Support. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbq4_Swj0Gg

Bonus Features

How to start a speech:

1. When I showed for 1st day of work here, I mistakenly thought that… 2. 5,10,20 years ago, I never could have imagined that… 3. The year was… 4. I will never forget the first time that… 5. What would you do if you’d been in my shoes? Here’s what happened… 6. I have a confession to make… 7. I was brought up to believe… 8. Among my friends, I am famous for… 9. I don’t like to admit it, but… 10. Something you’d never guess about me is…

Advanced Public Speaking Copyright © 2021 by Lynn Meade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Original Speech Writing

Students write eight original speeches.

Rubrics and example speeches are included. Each speech performance focuses on using two Podium Points (elements of effective public speaking).

Common Core Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1

Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence

Classroom Activities

• Classroom Activity One: Introductory Speech Students write and present a speech introducing themselves using Presence.
• Classroom Activity Two: Brown Bag Speech Focusing on Pace and Volume, students share an item that is important to them.
• Classroom Activity Three: Storytelling Speech Tone and Emphasis are stressed in this speech where students tell a true story that happened to them.
• Classroom Activity Four: Tribute Speech Each student honors someone in his/her life while working on improving Eye Contact, Enunciation and Diction.
• Classroom Activity Five: “Read to Me Speech” After picking a favorite text, students return to Emphasis and Tone in order to share a selection with the class.
• Classroom Activity Six: Book Speech Posture and Gesture are introduced to students through a speech on a favorite book. 
• Classroom Activity Seven: Teaching Speech In this activity, students must use all Podium Points while teaching the class a new skill.
• Classroom Activity Eight: This I Believe Using all Podium Points, students need to share their personal philosophy with the class.

Teacher Preparation:

Catherine Plumb-Sperry is a sixth-grade reading teacher at James Bridger Middle School in Independence, MO. Over the course of a year, her students write and perform an original speech each month. This lesson gives teachers framework for how to structure eight different speeches. Catherine’s most important tips for successfully implementing this in the classroom:

• Students do not have the option to “opt-out” of giving a speech. The teacher should perform a sample speech on the day that each speech is assigned.
• When delivering a sample speech, pick a few moments to intentionally ignore one of the Podium Points, so that students can hone their observation skills.
• Starting with Lesson Activity One, model Warm and Cool Feedback.
• Focus on two Podium Points for each speech. However, once a Podium Point has been the focus of a speech, students must continue to work on that element in all subsequent speeches. The Podium Points are cumulative as they progress through the school year. 
• It takes about three 45-minute class periods for a class of 25 students to give their two-minute speeches and receive Warm and Cool Feedback.
• Do not time speeches until the Tribute Speech. It’s better for students to have the first three speech opportunities to stand and speak in front of the class without the added pressure of a time limit.

Additionally, Catherine believes that a podium is a necessary classroom accessory when teaching oratory. Students need to be accustomed to speaking from and using a podium. The podium is also a visual aid indicating that when someone stands to speak, we listen.

Classroom Activity One

Introductory speech.

The first speech of the year is untimed. Catherine usually does the speech on the third day of school. Students cannot use notes of any kind. 

The podium point being evaluated is presence: Can you walk to the podium confidently (even if you don’t feel confident) and use a greeting?

Students are expected to:

• Have presence: walk to the podium confidently and stand confidently throughout their speech.
• Greet their audience.
• Sentence one – Tell their complete name.
• Sentence two – Tell us something about their family.
• Sentence three – Tell us something unique about them.
• End with a “thank you.”

After the speech, the students in the audience spend two minutes giving warm and cool feedback.

Classroom Activity Two

Brown bag speech.

This speech is very similar to “show-and-tell” from early elementary school. 

Students are each given a brown lunch sack. They write the speech requirements on it. They bring it home that night, and select an item to share with the class for their speech. The item must fit in the sack, and may not be a previously living or presently living item. Students bring the item in the sack to school the next day.

The two Podium Points added to this speech are volume and pace. Nerves cause speakers to speak quickly so pace is a challenge. Introduce pace early in the process so student have many opportunities to practice speaking at an appropriate pace.

• Have presence.
• Use appropriate pace and volume.
• Select an item to share.
• Walk the item around and show it to the class.
• Return to the podium to speak.
• Greet the audience. describe where the item came from, what it is used for, why it is significant to them, why they like it, or any other information they want us to know.
• Ask the audience if they have any questions.
• End their speech with a “thank you.”

After the speech, the class spends two minutes giving warm and cool feedback.

Classroom Activity Three 

Storytelling speech.

In this speech, students tell a story from their life. It must be something they are comfortable sharing in front of the class.

The two podium points that are the focus of this speech are tone and emphasis. Students are telling stories that may contain strong emotion, so this is a natural way for them to add tone and emphasis. Students should write their speech down and identify the tone they are trying to achieve. They should also highlight or circle any words they are going to emphasize. They will use the written text to rehearse, and then turn in the text before giving their speech.

Students are expected to

• Use appropriate pace, volume, tone and emphasis.
• Greet the audience.
• Tell a story with a distinct beginning, middle and end.
• Have the story memorized.

Classroom Activity Four

Tribute speech.

In this speech, students are telling the class about an important person in their life, and why they admire this person.

Encourage students to bring a photograph of their person. A photograph gives the audience a nice visual reference during the speech.

The two podium points that are the focus of this speech are eye-contact and diction. Students may use a script when delivering this speech. A caveat: because a script is  allowed, students may tend to read to the audience. It takes a high level of skill to have a script and still make eye contact. Students are expected to rehearse their speech at home before the speech performance day. Assign a rehearsal log to ensure that students practice before their performance.

Teach tongue twisters in class to support development of diction. Students can practice these tongue twisters at home when rehearsing their speech. On speech performance day, the class can warm-up using the tongue twisters. Starting off class this way may also alleviate nerves, as tongue twisters can be fun and promote a bit of laughter.

This is the first speech where speeches are timed. Speeches must be at least one minute and no longer than two minutes. Discuss time with the students but do not use it as an evaluation criteria.

• Use all previously learned Podium Points.
• Use eye-contact and diction.
• Section One: Tell who the person is, what their relationship is to the student, and why the student admires them. The student might also describe physical traits.
• Section Two: Give a personality trait the person has. Students must give two examples of the person showing the trait. (If he says a person is kind, he must say two ways that they show kindness.)
• Section Three: Give a second personality trait that the person has. The student must also give two examples of the person showing the trait.
• Conclude by restating in a different way from their introduction why the person is so special to them.
• End their speech with “thank you.”

Classroom Activity Five 

“read to me” speech.

Note: It might be helpful to pair this with the Refining Tone and Emphasis Lesson.

In this speech, the students read a piece of text written by someone else. The text can be lyrics from a song, a story or a poem.   The Podium Points that are the focus of this speech are emphasis and tone. Although these Podium Points have been covered in the past, the content of this speech requires “extra” attention to tone and emphasis when delivering the speech. Students should make a deliberate effort to put emotion into their delivery.

To find a text to read for performance, students may search online to find song lyrics, a story or poem that they connect with emotionally. They should cut and paste this text into a Word document. Students should read the text carefully to understand the message of the text, and determine the emotional tone. They should annotate their text by circling words they think best express the meaning and tone, and practice emphasizing those words when saying it aloud. Students should bring their annotated text with them to the podium for reference.

Speeches are timed and should be between one and maximum two minutes long.

• Use all previously learned Podium Points, with extra effort to demonstrate tone and emphasis.
• Credit the source of their reading.
• Make an effort to memorize as much of their text as possible and only use their scripts as reference.

After the speech, students are expected to explain briefly how they employed tone and emphasis to convey the meaning of their speech. The class then spends two minutes giving warm and cool feedback.

Classroom Activity Six

Book speech.

In this speech, students review a book they’ve read during the school year.

The Podium Points added for this speech are gesture and posture. Students need to demonstrate confident posture. Confident posture includes standing up tall, without slouching, feet firmly on the floor, no rocking or fidgeting. Shoulders should be back and down. Students can be prompted to squeeze their shoulder blades together, or imagine  that they are tucking their shoulder blades into the back pockets. The goal is to open the chest up, without puffing it out, so that students can breath properly and look confident.

They also should use gestures to emphasize the important parts of the speech or to engage the audience. Remind students that gestures should be as natural as possible. As a frame of reference, it may be helpful to demonstrate examples of natural gestures, or play clips of famous orators and have students observe their gestures.

Students are required to use a visual aide for this speech. They have the choice between creating the visual aide (e.g. a poster advertising the book) or bringing in an item related to the topic of the book (e.g. for a baseball book, a news article from the same time period as the book, or memorabilia that relates to the book). Using the visual aid is an easy way for students to include gesture into a speech.

This is a timed speech and should be between two and three minutes.

• Use all of the Podium Points learned previously.
• Use gestures and have confident posture.
• Discuss the literary elements of the book: main character, theme and plot (without giving away the ending). Share if they liked or didn’t like the book, and offer reasons why.
• Have confident posture, with feet solidly on the floor, standing calmly.
• Use gestures.
• Show their visual aid and explain how it relates to the book. The visual aid must add to the understanding of the book or author of the book.
• Ask if there are any questions about the book.
• End the speech with “thank you.”

After the speech, students spend two minutes giving warm and cool feedback.

Classroom Activity Seven

Teaching speech.

In this speech, students teach something to the entire class. To help students decide their lesson topic, offer some suggestions. This helps students to focus their ideas, so they select something they will feel confident teaching. Some suggestions: origami, how to draw something, a sports strategy, how to do a card trick, a dance step or a simple craft project.

By lesson seven, all of the Podium Points have been introduced. Students are now assessed on their use of all Podium Points and speech requirements.

This is a timed speech and should be between three and five minutes.

• Use all of the Podium Points.
• Include what the class will be learning in their speech introduction.
• If teaching a step-by-step lesson, circulate around the room to assist classmates when needed.
• Provide all the required materials, enough for every student.
• Answer any questions the audience might have.

Classroom Activity Eight

This i believe.

In this speech, students speak about a topic important to them. This speech introduces students to the art of persuasive speech. Students should be encouraged to think about what matters to them, and to select a topic they feel passionately about.  As they write their speeches, students should consider what they want the audience to know, understand and do about the topic as a result of listening to their speech. The speech must include a call to action to the audience.

This is speech includes a research component, to help students understand their issue, find evidence to support their belief, and learn about any opposing points of view. Students will need to be provided with time for research. Length of instructional time dedicated conducting research should be determined according to grade level and how much time the school curriculum will allow.

After researching the topic, the writing process begins. In-class time devoted to writing should be a minimum of three days. Consider a process that includes students writing drafts, editing and rewriting.  This I Believe  has an excellent teaching guide on how to help students write their own statements.

Our original speech writing lesson also has several useful techniques for helping students write their own speeches.

This is a timed speech and must be at least 1 minute 50 seconds, and no longer than 2 minutes 10 seconds.

• Include a personal belief.
• Share a personal story to highlight their belief.
• Explain why this topic is important to them.
• Include a call to action.

Each speech includes an individual rubric for assessment.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

Lyon, A. (2017). Communication coach Alex Lyon. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6sm47j-Am4 Standard YouTube License.

Riegel, D. G.  (2019). Stop Beginning Your Speeches with Good Morning and Thank You and Start with This Instead. Talk Support. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbq4_Swj0Gg

Bonus Features

How to start a speech:

1. When I showed for 1st day of work here, I mistakenly thought that… 2. 5,10,20 years ago, I never could have imagined that… 3. The year was… 4. I will never forget the first time that… 5. What would you do if you’d been in my shoes? Here’s what happened… 6. I have a confession to make… 7. I was brought up to believe… 8. Among my friends, I am famous for… 9. I don’t like to admit it, but… 10. Something you’d never guess about me is…

Public Speaking by Lynn Meade is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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• 17 fun effective impromptu speech activities

17 fun impromptu speech activities

Impromptu speaking competence without stress

17 fun, effective, and easily taught, impromptu speech activities to ease the way into impromptu speaking, one step, one word, at a time!

• the hilarious, raucous and super effective speed speaking group game where participants make numerous one minute speeches one after another,
• four variations on one minute speeches ,
• expert interviews ,
• connect the dots (which you can see in the preview pdf below),
• plus ten more !  

 They're popular, versatile & effective activities

You'll find the activities invaluable and popular additions to  speech and debate, or high school level ELA classes. 

From experience I know they're equally good with adults in a work place or community group. (These are tested and proven activities!)

Some require longer to run than others. These you can use as the core of a lesson. Others you make great fillers when you have a spare couple of minutes. 

In short, they're versatile, contagiously good fun and they work! 

Additionally, they're evergreen. You'll use them, and the resource files they come with, over and over again.

Speech Language Pathologist Kadisha Currie  from New York says: 

I tried the “one-minute speech” and “speed speaking” activities with my students and they were a huge hit. 

My shy students got a lot practice speaking in a fun, stress-free environment with their peers. 

My gregarious ones learned to speak in a timely fashion and practiced turn taking. 

I look forward to trying the other activities in the next school year. This is an excellent resource! 

What's in this ebook?

• 17 impromptu speech activities  (plus multiple variations and extensions) with full instructions,
• 26 printable topic, image, outline and feedback sheets  
• and,  guidelines covering the physical space needed, optimum group size, timing, demonstrating the activities, setting student guidelines, conducting positive and valuable feedback sessions, selecting, and evaluating an activity.

In all there are 27 hyperlinked pdfs. That's one main PDF and 26 printable resource files.

The ebook fully interlinked for ease of use

To make it easy to use the ebook is extensively cross-linked and the activities are classified by:

• focus point: 15 of them; including developing awareness of vocabulary, topic, fluency, audience, listening skills, eye contact, body language, credibility, structure, and transitions
• skill level: beginner, experienced, or both, making it easy to choose an activity.

Paul Andreas, Certified Speaking Coach , London, UK says: 

17 Fun, Effective, Impromptu Speech activities is a great resource for anyone who wants to learn how to teach impromptu speaking.

The book lists many suggestions for impromptu topics and several methods for answering them, such as the Point, Reason, Example (PREP) method and Past, Present, Future. There is also a template for each of them, making it easy for students to structure their answers. A method of giving good feedback to students is explained, in order to build up the students' confidence and to show them areas for improvement. Lastly, there are many suggestions for group activities, which make learning fun and take the fear out of public speaking.

I teach impromptu speaking to the students that I coach online and this book will be very useful for me.

Paul Andreas Certified Speaking Coach London www.tofluentenglish.com

Ready to show them speaking up can be fun?

For US based teachers

These activities belong to the English Language Arts (ELA) Literacy strand and meet the Common Core Standards (CCSS) Speaking & Listening criteria listed below. (To find out more click the grade link you want. It will take you to the page on the Common Core State Standards website,  that will give you more information.)

Grade 6 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.4,  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.6

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.7.4,  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.7.6

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.8.4,  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.8.6

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.4,  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.6

Grades 11 & 12

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.4,  CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.6

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Click the link and download the ebook pdf file to your computer. When you open it and click on the resource file links within it, you'll gain access to the 26 supporting pdfs.

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Writing a speech

Subject: English

Age range: 14-16

Resource type: Worksheet/Activity

Last updated

28 August 2020

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How to Write a Speech – Step By Step Guide (Updated for 2023)

Engage your audience with perfect speech writing.

Do you think writing a speech is a daunting task? Do you often search for tips on how to write a speech to keep your audience interested and engaged? 

If so, don’t worry! 

To compile a comprehensive speech, you need to consider the audience, length, purpose, or topic of the speech. Focusing on these factors helps you retain the audience’s interest and prevent them from dozing off. 

But there’s more you can do to deliver a thought-provoking speech. This detailed blog features helpful information about how to write a speech regardless of the purpose and occasion.

Let’s begin.

What is a Speech?

A speech serves as an excellent medium to deliver whatever message you’ve got for your audience. You can take the speech to convey ideas through communicating to a group of people. 

While writing a speech, ensure that it contains logical ideas. The speech also has sufficient evidence to support those ideas. 

Moreover, it is always written focusing on purpose or message that needs to be delivered to the audience or public. 

What Makes Speeches Different?

Writing for the public isn’t exhausting. It’s pretty similar to other types of writing. For example, you would want to communicate your message in a speech or need the audience’s attention.

However, some writing qualities might favor others, depending on the public speaking conditions. For instance, when your audience listens to you, they understand and process the information as you speak. 

So it’s essential to opt for a speech writing services for your speech to be well structured and easy to understand. More importantly, your speech information and delivery must align with the audience. 

The Purpose of a Speech

When the public gathers to listen to speakers on a particular issue, they expect you to talk about the essential information immediately. On the other hand, as a speaker, you want to have an immediate effect on your audience. 

Hence, the purpose of speaking to a group of people is to get the response you need. And most speeches encourage listeners to react in the following ways:

For example, college lectures enable students to see a topic from a different perspective; protest speeches encourage an audience to take action, and eulogy examples stimulate an emotional response from the listeners. 

Questions to Achieve your Purpose

To attain the purpose of your speech, don’t hesitate to ask yourself the following questions:

• If you’re presenting an argument, why do you want your audience to agree to it?
• Which points or ideas would be beneficial for your audience?
• Do you want your audience to learn anything from your speech?

Understanding How to Write a Speech

There’s no denying that speech writing is the art of communicating your message through words. These words captivate and keep listeners engaged. If you’ve written essays, you might find it easier to compile a meaningful speech. 

But it’s imperative to understand your speech’s purpose. Factors such as required length, purpose, and analysis of the audience are necessary to consider.

It’s true that writing an effective speech is a time-consuming activity. Therefore, it’s best to follow proper guidelines and maintain the format to develop a great speech, leaving your audience to think about something significant. 

Different Types of Speeches

If you’re wondering, speech writing has three types; informative, persuasive, and special occasions. 

Before understanding how to write a speech for school or any other place, let’s discuss each type in detail.

Informative Speech

The type of speech informs and teaches your audience about a particular topic. 

Informative speeches could be a few minute-long overviews on the causes that lead to the American Revolution or an hour-long speaking session on technologies to clean space debris . 

Don’t forget that an informative speech focuses on telling facts or narrating a story, maintaining the audience’s attention.

Persuasive Speech

If you want to convince your audience about an idea, go for the persuasive speech type. 

It could be a short or long one, defining the advantages and disadvantages of a topic that favors a public office’s representative. 

When writing on persuasive speech topics, you need to use facts and opinions to convince listeners to focus on what you’re thinking. 

Special Occasion Speech

Special speeches are what you hear at funerals, parties, or weddings. You can use this type of speech to entertain and pay tribute to a person or institution. You don’t use special speech to inform your audience. They were intended to celebrate the person or place being commemorated at the occasion without the persuasion involved.

For instance, writing a eulogy speech is the perfect example of this category. It is a special speech that allows you to pay a final tribute to your loved one, perfectly by showing the love and affection in words.

How to Write a Speech Outline?

If you want to compose a speech that will create a lasting impact on your audience, you need to work on the speech outline. 

When you begin writing an outline, you will focus on introducing yourself, the topic, and the points you will be highlighting. 

Working on a speech’s outline will help you appear authoritative, save time and organize your thoughts, ensuring that you follow a proper structure. If you don’t know how to write a speech format, an outline will also give you an idea about it. 

It’s also essential to understand who you’re addressing through the speech, what the speech will cover, and how long it will continue.

Following tips will help you to know how to write a speech properly. 

01. Take Time to Write a Speech

This step enables you to choose your topic and points that your speech will address. It would be helpful if you know your audience and understand what they have been living for. 

Try to focus on their needs. More importantly, you need to define the speech’s purpose and structure it correctly. 

02. Write a Compelling Speech Introduction

To make your introduction stand out, you can opt for a strong statement and grab the audience’s attention. And you can incorporate something that builds credibility.

Take introductory lines as an opportunity to discuss something significant and keep your audience engaged. 

03. Focus on Body 

The body of your speech contains main ideas and supporting statements. You can also include examples, facts, and other essentials to compile a great speech.

04. Concluding Lines 

In the end, you need to summarize the essential points of your speech. And you need to end your speech with a relevant closing statement. If there’s a need, you can think about incorporating a call to action. 

How to Write a Speech Introduction in a Few Steps?

You can divide speech writing into different sections to make the entire process smooth and streamlined. However, you need to keep your audience in mind at each level of speech writing. 

Here’s how to write a speech considering these points.

Write a Speech with Audience Research

It’s best to know your audience before writing a speech. The more you know about your audience, the more it becomes easier to reach them. 

For example, you’re already a member of a Chamber of Commerce of your town, and you’ve started a small eatery in your neighborhood. 

You’re invited to an annual dinner where you’ve 10 minutes to speak to the audience and talk about your new venture. 

It might seem stressful if you haven’t interacted with a public gathering. However, to streamline the speech writing process, you can ask yourself the following questions:

• What does the audience want to know?
• Which problems do I need to solve for them?
• Is there anything important I can incorporate in the speech for them? 

Choosing a Topic

In this scenario, you’re familiar with the topic that you’re invited to provide a overview of your business . But you’ve only 10 minutes to speak about it. Therefore, it’s crucial to keep your speech short and focused.

You can create a list of strengths of your food business. Discuss challenges and how you overcome them. You will get 10 minutes, so use these minutes to highlight unique factors that help your eatery stand out. 

Research on your Topic

As a food business owner, you may be familiar with the core areas of your business and don’t need a lot of research before writing your speech. 

But it’s good to be aware of what’s going in the industry or what your competitors are up to. Therefore, spend some on research and include essential points in your speech. 

Compile your Information

This step includes writing your speech once you get the essential information. Here’s how you can ace it.

Stay Organized

Gather all information, facts, or quotes in front of your eyes. And try to be as organized as possible. You can also create an outline to ensure that you don’t miss anything. 

Focus on Using a Conversational Tone 

You need to write your speech in a tone that you use in everyday communication. Incorporate a relevant incident or humor – if it goes well with your topic.

Think about Speaker’s Notes

Your audience can’t see these notes. Therefore, you can use them for self-reminders. 

Try to Be Specific

Avoid providing unnecessary information and incorporate examples or stats to support your point. 

Keep Sentences Short

To make speaking hassle-free, it’s best to use shorter sentences with the rule of three practice. They are also easy to use and can help people to understand your point quickly. 

Choose a Presentation Tool

Depending on your topic and occasion, you can use a professional presentation tool to make the entire session visually interesting. 

Go for a Template

If you prefer, you can use a template to display eye-catching graphics. A good template design can transform an average speaking session into a memorable public speech. 

Deliver a memorable speech with our expertly crafted speeches!

Tips on How to Write a Persuasive Speech

Following tips will help you to know about how to write a speech with a persuasive tone. 

Work on Speech Introduction

You need to work on the introductory lines to keep your audience attentive. If you’re wondering how to write a speech introduction, you can think about the ways that make your listeners relate to your core points.

You can connect with your audience and get their attention by talking about concerns. Moreover, you can try starting with anecdotes to grab your audience’s attention. 

And you can also try other tactics, such as adding interesting facts, realistic stats, and asking questions to make your audience curious to listen more. 

Build a Motive or Context

As a speaker, you need to describe why your topic is significant. Talk about your purpose and factors that made you speak to a particular audience. 

Keep it Well Organized

If you don’t organize your speech, it might turn into a terrible one. Having a structured speech will keep the readers engaged and help you stick to the main points or ideas. 

When you start promisingly outlining the essential factors, challenges, and other relatable things, try to continue your speech in the same manner so that your audience will know where you’re heading and why. 

Stick to a Point

It’d be helpful if you stay relevant and focused on the topic. Don’t provide irrelevant or unnecessary information that might make your audience lose interest. 

More importantly, it takes several minutes to deliver introductory lines. If possible, try to move from introducing a body of the speech quickly to retain the listener’s interest. 

Repeat Important Factors

It’s a good idea to repeat crucial information or buzzwords , especially if your speech is long. For example, you can link an idea that you discussed initially while wrapping or concluding your speech.

Add Summaries and Previews

Adding verbal cues allows your audience to connect pieces of your speech. And they will likely connect with the rest of your speech. 

You can talk about issues in the educational system. For example, I’m here to highlight the so and so issues that have been threatening our educational system for years. 

Go for Strong Transitions

At this level, you can present new information that relates to what your audience has heard. You can always demolish a counter argument by saying, “but this argument doesn’t appear weighty when you think about…”

Use Short or Simpler Sentences

When you want your audience to remember whatever you say, use simpler and shorter sentences. You need to avoid using subordinate clauses, places, and verbs together. 

Don’t Overuse Pronouns

Listeners might need time to understand what “this” or “it” refers to. Therefore, it’s best not to use pronouns and be clear by using nouns. 

Add Rhetorical Strategies

You can incorporate rhetorical strategies of logos, pathos, and ethos to convince your audience to trust you. These strategies also make your argument stronger. 

Ethos refers to building your trustworthiness and authenticity as a speaker. When you opt for pathos, you appeal to your listener’s emotions. And logos refer to using stats and facts in the speech.

Use Quotations and Stats 

To support your perspective, it’s best to incorporate quotes and stats sparingly in your speech. This way, the words will stick to your listener’s mind for a long time. 

However, if you try to provide plenty of information, you may overwhelm your audience, and they may lose interest. 

Focus on the Tone

It’s also one of the essential factors associated with writing or delivering a thought-provoking speech. Therefore, the tone you use must align with your topic or audience. 

More importantly, you need to avoid using inappropriate humor or show over-excitement to grab the audience’s attention. 

Try to Be Memorable

It takes imagination and discipline to become a memorable speaker. As a speaker, if you’re looking for an example of a speech to appear memorable, you can consider the words of John F Kennedy from the 1961 inaugural address:

“And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what can do for your country.” 

Try to Be Yourself

You and your message are the same. If your audience doesn’t consider, they might resist your message. Therefore, ensure that your body language and delivery will leave an impressive impression. 

You can focus on the ways that connect you and your audience. For example, you can talk about how speaking to the public makes you nervous, and some of the attendees might even relate to it. 

Wrap Your Speech Strongly

Knowing the above points about how to write a speech, now you might be wondering about how to end a speech? 

Well, it needs to be something that your audience would always remember. You can share a success story and try to link it with the topic.

You can also make a call to action if it goes well with your topic. And it’s also a good idea to appreciate their presence and time and mention it while concluding your speech. 

Tips to Ace Public Speech

No doubt, writing a well-structured speech is necessary. But how you deliver it plays an essential role too. Here are a few things you can remember to master the art of public speaking. 

Avoid Speech Reading

You can memorize your speech if it’s a possibility for you. But it’s fine to use keynotes or outlines to avoid any inconvenience. 

However, don’t read those notes or outlines and only refer to them when you forget a fact, quote, or when you feel stuck. 

Use Interesting Visuals

If your topic allows, don’t forget to use interesting but relevant visuals. These visuals will incorporate visual elements into your public speech. 

You can find various templates to use for your speech, and if you want to showcase your project work, you can display it too.

Speak and Appear Natural

Don’t worry if you feel nervous. You need to focus on appearing as natural as possible, even after making a mistake. 

Focus on your body language, stay alert, and talk like you normally would. 

Comfortable and Professional Clothing

Wearing comfortable clothing will keep you at ease. However, ensure that whatever you wear aligns with the dress code of the occasion. 

If you aren’t sure, you can always ask the organizer. The key here is to fit in and ace your public speaking experience. 

Try to Maintain Enthusiasm

If you’re excited about your topic, your audience will likely take an interest in it too. It’s essential to maintain enthusiasm as it will keep the readers engaged. 

Practice, Practice, Practice.

Let’s accept the fact that you can’t ace public speaking overnight. Apart from appearing confident and professional, you also need to deliver the speech in the given time. 

Therefore, you need to practice getting more comfortable with your speech and learn to deliver it without exceeding the time. 

If you are a fresher, you can take a look at various speech writing templates for students available on the web. These templates provide you ease in understanding the outline and deliver a speech perfectly in front of the audience.

Speech Writing Topics 

Writing a speech for a university’s orientation or eulogy for a mother required immense effort. Choosing the right topic according to your speech type may take most of your time. 

Here’s a list of some helpful topics to help you get started with your speech.

Topics for Persuasive Speech

If you have to write a persuasive speech, you can write on the following topics:

• Adverse effects of consuming junk food
• Why you shouldn’t text while driving
• A ban needs to be imposed on products containing tobacco
• Give stiffer penalties to celebrities who break the laws
• A society where women ride a bike without fears 

Topics for Special Occasion Speech

It’s challenging to put your emotions into a few lines or choose a topic that resonates with the occasion. You can consider the following examples:

• Volunteer projects and their impact on students
• I’m a proud son today
• No longer an eligible bachelor
• You’re a strong young woman

Topics for Informative Speech

When writing an informative speech, choose topics that interest the audience and encourage them to listen more. 

• Marketing practices in 2023 
• How tech will shape our lives in future
• Tiny herbs, bigger benefits
• Combating factors that impact public speaking

Summing it Up! 

Composing a speech won’t become a hassle if you invest time in researching a speech topic. Researching will help to get the necessary information. It’s up to you how to present that information to make your speaking session exciting and memorable. 

You can ace public speaking by focusing and working on the speech format. A well-organized speech will help your audience understand the purpose of the speech. 

Despite following the practical tips, if you still don’t know how to write a speech for script, don’t worry and consult with us. Our speech writers can help you convey your message by stating points that grab the audience’s attention.

Additional Resources:

• How to write a best man speech
• How to write a valedictorian speech

Frequently Asked Question (FAQs)

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