Speech Checklist

TO: WRIT 340 Students
FROM: Eric
RE: More speech tips
DATE: October 9, 2003

Many people get very nervous speaking in front of an audience. It’s natural. Yet your classmates want to hear your information and support you. The audience is on your side. You have become an expert on an individual engineer/doctor and their impact.

Nobody will heckle you, throw objects, or boo. People will do their best to follow your thoughts, distill the key information, and learn from your interview and speech. As FDR observed in his inauguration address, “there is nothing to fear but fear itself.”

Naturally, the more you plan your speech, the more comfortable you will feel and the more poised you will appear to the audience. The five-minute format also limits the amount of content that you can share in your speech. Be selective. Prioritize. Practice.

You might also ask yourself some core questions:

Will the audience be able to identify my topic and purpose within a minute?
Will my organization be immediately clear? Do I give organization clues in my introductory overview?
Do I have a solid hook?
Do I signal each key point as I come to it?
Do I use transitional words and phrases to guide audience?
Do I make the information interest?
Do I have supporting details and examples?
Will the audience understand my main points and supporting evidence?
Will the audience be able to distinguish between the facts presented and opinions offered?
Have I tried to pack too much information in the allotted time?
Have I omitted some critical information for audience comprehension?
Will the audience be able to summarize the main points?
What do I want the audience to learn and/or do?
Do I have an effective conclusion?
Have I timed my practice speech? How close is the speech to 5 minutes?

 

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