Villa Maria Academy
English Department
Name: _______________________________________________ Class: _______ Date: _______________
Writing a Persuasive Speech
What is the purpose of a persuasive speech?
The main purpose of a persuasive speech is to convince the audience to accept your point
of view on a particular subject through the use of supported ideas and arguments.
How do I begin?
First, choose a subject you care about. Next, brainstorm and make your subject more
specific.
For example, if you chose to explore the subject of AIDS, your brainstorm might look like this.
AIDS
Africa
Children
Cure
Adults
Prevention Worldwide
Teens
Prevention
How other countries can help Africa.
Debt Relief
Education
Financial Support
Thesis
Use your brainstorm to form a thesis statement. Your thesis statement should answer these
questions. What is your opinion? What are you trying to persuade the audience to believe?
For example, African Children need the help of the world community to prevent the spread
of AIDS.
Research
Once you have a thesis statement, research information about your topic. As you work, you
may need to revise your initial thesis statement as you discover new information.
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English Department
Writing Your Speech
1 Write a strong opening. Before you can begin persuading your audience, you need to
open the speech in a way that will make them want to pay attention. A strong opening has
five main elements:
 An attention grabber. This is a statement (or
sometimes a visual) that gets your audience's
attention. It can be a good idea to be a little
startling or dramatic at the opening of your
speech. For example, if your goal is to persuade
people to vote in favor of a city wide recycling
program, you might start with information (or
pictures) showing how a nearby landfill is nearly
full to capacity.
o Examples of Attention Grabbers: a short story (anecdote), questions, quotes,
statistics. Whichever method you choose should show the importance of your
topic.
 A link to the audience. This is a means of showing that you have something in common
with the audience. Show that you have a similar background or share an emotional
connection of some kind. This will really depend on knowing your audience. For
example, if you are a parent, speaking to other parents, you might emphasize the
concern for your own children's future. If you share a common interest or ideological
position with your audience, you can emphasize that.
 Your credentials. This is a means of showing that you are knowledgeable or an
authority on the topic of the speech. Highlight the research you've done on your topic.
If you have any personal or professional experience with the topic, be sure to
emphasize that, too. In the recycling example, you might say "I've invested many hours
studying the recycling issue and the types of programs available in other cities."
 Your goal. Explain to the audience what you hope the speech will accomplish. For
example: "I hope by the end of my talk that you will agree that we need a city wide
recycling program."
 A road map. Finally, tell the audience what the main points of the speech will be. For
example, "I believe we must start a recycling program for these three reasons...."
Villa Maria Academy
English Department
2 Offer persuasive evidence. The main body of your speech should contain the points you
outlined in Part 1. It should provide the audience with several convincing reasons to support
your viewpoint.



Arrange these points logically.
Don't jump from one point to the
next, and then back again.
Instead, complete an argument,
then move on to another the
flows logically from it.
Use credible sources from your
research to back the points you
are making. Even if your point is
more emotional (pathos),
introducing some factual
information will make your argument stronger. For example "Each year, 40,000
acres of beautiful forests are destroyed to make paper, according to a study
from the American Recycling Institute."
Use real life examples that the audience can relate to. Even an argument
based on facts and logic (logos) should relate to the audience's lives and
interests. For example: "In these hard economic times, I know many of you are
afraid that a recycling program will mean a costly increase in taxes. But, the city
of Springfield started a program like this one three years ago. So far they've seen
an increase in revenue as a result of the program. Many residents have seen a
decrease in their taxes as a result."
3 Address the counter-argument. Although it is not strictly
necessary, your argument may be stronger if one or more
of your supporting points addresses the views of the
opposing side. This gives you a chance to address your
audience's possible objections and make your argument
stronger.
 Make sure that you describe opposing views
fairly and objectively. Consider whether
someone who actually holds that view would
approve of the way you are describing their position. If you aren't sure, find
someone who thinks that way and ask!
 For example, you would not want to say: "opponents of recycling just don't care
if we waste our precious resources, or our money." That's not a fair description of
their opinion.
 Instead, you might say: "opponents of recycling are concerned that the cost
might be much higher than just using new materials," and then go on to offer an
argument about why recycling might be the more cost-effective option.
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English Department
4 Conclude with a call to action. The conclusion of your speech should remind your
audience of what you have told them. It should also make it clear exactly what you hope
they will do next.
 Don't just restate, verbatim, what you've already said. Instead, use this as an
opportunity to reinforce the way your
main points support your call to
action. For example: "To sum up, I've
shown you (points a, b, and c). These
three undeniable facts point to a
city-wide recycling program as the
most sensible and ethical step we
can take in helping create a more
sustainable future. Please, join in me
in voting 'yes' on this program in November."
Source:
How to Write a Persuasive Speech. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2015, from http://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-PersuasiveSpeech
Helpful tips for delivering your speech
 Know your speech and make eye contact with the audience, but leave room for
spontaneity
 Use an outline – do not read the speech
 Use 8 x 5 index cards or what feels comfortable for you
o Number your cards in the top right hand corner / large numbers for your key
ideas
o Leave a space between each line / use large type font
o Include reminders about your delivery (highlight certain words, mark slow down
here for effect or pause here
 Use pauses instead of fill-in words "uhm"
 Slow speakers are fine - develop your own rhythm
Prior to delivering your speech to the class, practice with a partner. Use the criteria below to
evaluate one another and give feedback.
Volume
How well can you hear the speaker? Does the speaker vary the volume
to emphasize her main points?
Pace
Is the speaker speaking too fast? Too slow? Does she vary her pace to
stress important points?
Tone & Pause
Does the speaker vary her tone of voice or is she speaking in monotone?
Does she raise or lower the tone to emphasize main points? Does she
pause for suspense or emphasis, or is it because she forgot the speech?
Pronunciation
Are all the words pronounced correctly? Which do you think might have
been pronounced incorrectly?
Body
Language
Does the speaker move around in a way that distracts your attention?
Does she use gestures to help you understand what she is saying?
Facial
Expressions &
Eye Contact
Do the speaker’s facial expressions match her words? Is she smiling
when speaking about something shocking or sad? Does she make eye
contact with you, her audience?