SPEECH ASSIGNMENTS –
FALL 2012
Notes:
 All speeches must be delivered extemporaneously, carefully prepared in
advance using the appropriate Preparation Outline template and delivered
from a brief set of speaking notes or a very brief speaking outline. Do not
read to your audience – speak to them.
 If you want to discuss your topics with me, see me in my office or email me.
 Length for speeches 1 through 6 is three to five minutes.
SPEECH #1: Personal Experience.
 Choose an experience you have had at some point in your life that holds
some special meaning for you. Consider what was the experience? –
What Happened? Who was involved? Consider how the experience
affected you. What have you learned from it? This is a Narrative – you
are telling us your story.
SPEECH #2: Pet Peeve
 What is your pet peeve? In other words, what is that one thing that really
drives you crazy? Your goal is not to have a complaint session, but, rather
to give your audience insight into who you are. You should have three
main points. Consider what drives you crazy, why it drives you crazy, and
what can your audience do to avoid committing that which drives you
crazy.
SPEECH #3: Oral Interpretation
 Pick your favorite piece of literature: prose (a short story) or poetry (song
lyrics are considered poetry). Tell us what it means to you. Every piece of
literature can be interpreted in different ways. There are no “right” or
1|Page
ENG111_FALL 2012
LCCC
KimAlyse Popkave, M.Ed., CMI, CPPC
“wrong” interpretations here. Be sure to make two or three good main
points and use lines from the literature to support your points.
SPEECH #4: Informative
 Pick one issue (topic) that you will be dealing with in your career. Do
Scholarly Research, utilizing at least three (3) academically researchworthy sources. If you do not do the research, I will not accept your
assignment. Should this occur, your grade for this assignment will be a
0%. This is not to be a “What I Want To Do When I Graduate” speech.
Rather you are to research one topic that you will deal with in your career.
SPEECH #5: Demonstration of a Process
 You are free to demonstrate any process. You are required to actually do
the demonstration while speaking. If you are uncertain of what to
demonstrate, email me. If you do not actually do the demonstration in
class, your grade for the assignment will be a 0%. If you are uncertain if
your chosen topic will be able to be demonstrated in class, come speak
with me, at least a week in advance of the speech.
SPEECH #6: Persuasive
 Pick one controversial issue for which you hold very strong opinions or
beliefs. Do Scholarly Research, utilizing at least three (3) academically
research-worthy sources. Utilize Monroe’s Motivated Sequence to
organize your speech.
Note:
 If you do not do the research, I will not accept your assignment. If you do
not use Monroe’s Motivated Sequence, I will not accept your speech.
Should either of these occur, your grade for this assignment will be a 0%.
 Please realize that there are three main goals under the overall
umbrella of persuasion, each having subtle differences in
approach. They are as follows:
2|Page
ENG111_FALL 2012
LCCC
KimAlyse Popkave, M.Ed., CMI, CPPC
 To Convince
o When you seek to convince, you want to bring your audience
around to your way of thinking on the topic.
 To Stimulate
o When you seek to stimulate your audience’s thinking on a
particular topic, you will offer both sides of the issue and
challenge the audience to make up their own minds.
 You are not telling them how to think on the issue. You just want
them to give the issue their attention.
 To Actuate
o When you seek to actuate your audience, your goal is their
immediate decisive action on the issue.
 Here you need to tell them very specifically what
action you want them to take.
SPEECH #7: GROUP PRESENTATION ASSIGNMENT
 On the day of the presentation (Speech #7), you will be speaking to an
audience of potential clients for your consulting firm. You are at an
industry tradeshow, presenting the services of your consulting firm to
potential business leaders. Be very thorough. Plan for every detail, in
order to present your services in a way that will make them desirable to
business leaders, so they will contract your services to facilitate their
business goals.
 Develop your roles within your company. Create your ethos, if
necessary.
 This is a creative project. I am giving you complete creative
carte blanche. Use it wisely.
 Each group member is responsible for his or her own individual
Preparation Outline. Create a group overview as a cover sheet
3|Page
ENG111_FALL 2012
LCCC
KimAlyse Popkave, M.Ed., CMI, CPPC
for the pile of individual Preparation Outlines that your group
will submit.
 Have fun with this!!!
 CLARIFICATION OF STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES:
o Exchange contact information with group members.
o Meet at least twice a week to discuss project, division of labor, and
individual assignments within your project.
o Read Epilogue Section A in the text on Speaking In Small Groups.
o Discuss & agree upon the type of consulting firm you wish to open.
o Decide, as a group, who is the target audience for your consulting
firm.
o Decide on a location for your firm.
o Divide the research & development into individual assignments.
o Consider Finances, Marketing Plan, etc.
 Although you will not necessarily be presenting these to
potential clients, you need to understand them in order to
market your services.
o Develop an initial plan (a rough working draft of the group’s project)
& submit one copy (word processed) on the designated due date.
Submit further progress reports as required by your professor.
o Meet with your professor as a group if you have any questions or
concerns.
o Keep up with individual research & development of your portion of
the project.
o Develop your individual Preparation Outline.
o Develop a Group Overview (Cover sheet for stack of individual
Preparation Outlines)
 Title of Business, Group’s Specific Purpose, Group’s Central
Idea, & List of Principles & Roles within Company
o Develop professional quality visual aids (group & individual)
o Rehearse both individually & as a group.
4|Page
ENG111_FALL 2012
LCCC
KimAlyse Popkave, M.Ed., CMI, CPPC
SPEECH #8 –Final Exam Speech – Speech For a Special Occasion
 For your Speech For A Special Occasion, your final exam speech, you are to
pick any one type of Special Occasion Speech.
 Your goal is not to inform your audience about some special occasion that you
may have attended. Rather, your goal is to speak as if your audience is right
there in the occasion with you.
 I am giving you complete creative carte blanch. You are free to choose any
type of occasion. Take your audience into the occasion.
o You are free to create your ethos in this situation. You are also free to
take on the persona of another character for this special occasion.
 Be very creative.
 Dress for the Special Occasion in which you are speaking.
 You are free to get together with one of your classmates and do a Presentation
& Acceptance. Please let me know in advance if you are choosing to do this.
 The time frame for this speech is 2 to 4 minutes.
5|Page
ENG111_FALL 2012
LCCC
KimAlyse Popkave, M.Ed., CMI, CPPC