The importance of conserving water

Assignment summary: prepare a three-to-five-minute speech on an
issue you care about. You will be responsible for conducting research and
including that research in your speech.

About the student: 28 year old Canadian woman living in Victoria,
BC.

Topic: The importance of conserving water

What exactly is it
that you want to say about your issue? This will help narrow your focus and
eventually help you craft a thesis (more on that later!)
Take some time to narrow the topics you feel most strongly about. Here are a
couple of examples:
Daily exercise is beneficial
as it gives us energy, boosts mood, and prevents many types of illness.
Eating locally-grown food
reduces our carbon footprint, reduces the use of pesticides, and increases
food security.

Begin with a compelling
story. Forget about opening remarks and introducing yourself. Grab your
audience’s attention right away by diving directly into the story.
Make sure your speech is a
personal account rather than a dry recitation of facts, and make sure that
there is some conflict in it. Both of these elements draw an audience in.
Show Don’t Tell. (Have you
heard this before from me? It’s so important! You want to use lots of
detail to help your listener have the fullest experience of the event).
Be specific.
Aim for a positive message
or takeaway for the audience.
Compelling story
Personal account
Being specific
Positive message or takeaway
The next step is to add in research to make
your speech even more convincing.

Grading rubric:
Your speech engages and the
audience and leaves them with a clear takeaway
The structure of your speech
is controlled and purposeful
You effectively build
and deliver a clear message about the issue you’ve chosen
You include strong,
research-based arguments to support your ideas – and indicate the sources
in your speech
Your central story is
strong, with elements such as detail and description

Step
Two: Revising Your Speech
When we
talk about revising, we are generally talking about big-picture changes, like
reorganizing your ideas or adding detail. The questions you asked yourself
while writing the personal essay in Unit One are equally valid for this
assignment:

Purpose
What is
the central idea that you are focussing on? Where have you lost focus?
What is
the key takeaway for your audience? What is the thing that you learned about
yourself? Is that takeaway clear?
What
kind of impact you would like your speech to have on the audience?

Structure
How will
you engage the reader right at the beginning? How will you draw them in?
How can
you best structure your speech?
Structural
Unity/Focussing Your Ideas
The best
writing (and speaking) has structural unity, which means that every detail
contributes to your main theme and purpose.
What
does not contribute? What is unnecessary? Take it out.
And what
do you need to add to really develop the theme and purpose fully?

Audience
How can
you keep your audience in mind throughout this piece?
How will
you engage your audience?
What
information will your audience need in order to fully understand your story?

Voice
How can
you make your voice/story as honest and natural as possible?
How can
you help your audience to see the person behind the words?

Sensory
Language, Detail, and Description
How can
you bring events alive for the audience? Describe for us relevant sights,
sounds, smells. Include small, important details. Use sensory language.

Research-based
facts and statistics
What
facts and statistics support your central argument?
Where
does it make the most sense to build these into the speech?
How can
you indicate where you found the information? (ie. “An article published
in September in the Globe and Mail suggests that 70% of people have considered
choosing a more plant-based diet.”)

Last Completed Projects