V. WHO’S GOING TO HELP?
Team members will not be going at this thing alone. First of all, your head coach used to do this when he was in high school - yes, you guessed it - he competed in the Radio event. And he did pretty good - until he got too cocky. Junior year he won the Waukegan Tournament and qualified for the Tournament of Champions at New Trier High School ( I think I did pretty good there.) I also earned enough competition points to earn membership in the NFL (National Forensic League.)
Senior year he placed high enough at Regionals to qualify for Sectionals. At Sectionals he ‘blew it‘ - thought he could beat the competition in his sleep. Well, he was partially correct, he did it half-asleep and got ‘blown out‘ of the competition.
After college your head coach went back to his high school and helped coach a couple of students in radio speaking. His trainees won several competitions. One of his trainees was the son of the man who used to be the voice of Channel 7 and the head of the radio department at Columbia College. Many years after that, your head coach returned to his alma mater and helped coach students in radio and prose and served as a judge at many competitions.
In addition to your head coach, you have your family and friends to help you out. You should be performing in front of them on a daily basis at home. They should encourage you to spend time on your event each day - set aside an hour or so each night and longer on the weekends to practice, practice, practice.
At the school, you will meet with your head coach once a week (in addition to the weekly meeting) to go over your ‘piece’ and see if it needs fine-tuning. You will only be selected for competitions if you are ‘on’ with your piece.
We will also use your weekly training session (at least at the beginning of the school year) to search for and select the piece or pieces that you will want to perform. Your coach will only help you refine your presentation. You choose the material and practice, practice, practice.
As a final bit of help, here is a list of tips from some experts that you should read. (stuff in parenthesis is from your coach.)
10 Tips For Successful Public Speaking
Feeling some nervousness before giving a speech is natural and healthy. It shows you care about doing well. But, too much nervousness can be detrimental. Here's how you can control your nervousness and make effective, memorable presentations:
Know the room. Be familiar with the place in which you will speak. Arrive early, walk around the speaking area and practice speaking (if possible).
Know the audience. (pay attention to the judge, their attitude, how they speak to others, listen to what they say - what they expect from you and others)
Know your material. If you're not familiar with your material or are uncomfortable with it, your nervousness will increase. Practice your speech and revise it if necessary.
Relax. Ease tension by doing exercises.
Visualize yourself giving your speech. Imagine yourself speaking, your voice loud, clear, and assured. When you visualize yourself as successful, you will be successful.
Realize that people want you to succeed. Audiences want you to be interesting, stimulating, informative, and entertaining. They don't want you to fail.
Don't apologize. If you mention your nervousness or apologize for any problems you think you have with your speech, you may be calling the audience's attention to something they hadn't noticed. Keep silent.
Concentrate on the message -- not the medium. Focus your attention away from your own anxieties, and outwardly toward your message and your audience. Your nervousness will dissipate.
Turn nervousness into positive energy. Harness your nervous energy and transform it into vitality and enthusiasm.
Gain experience. Experience builds confidence, which is the key to effective speaking. (PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE)
WELL, THAT'S ABOUT IT FOR NOW. CLICK HERE TO GO BACK TO THE MAIN PAGE.