Please reflect on your first speech by writing one well-written and thought out paragraph. Upper class students should be writing paragraphs with compound and complex sentences that are a minimum of six sentences long. Use complete sentences and correct grammar.
Things to consider (you do not need to include all of them)
*eye contact
*nervousness
*audience feedback
*preparation (enough? not enough? What will you change for next time?)
*voice (rate, variation)
*gestures
*poise
*confidence level
*introduction and conclusion
*organization
What went well? What do you need to work on? Be as specific as possible.
Reflection: 20 points
Feedback: 10 points each
I thought my speech went better than I expected. I was extremely nervous and it was a bit noticeable because my voice was shaking during some parts. I feel I prepared well enough in advance, I just need to make myself more comfortable before an audience. I also did not really know what to do with my hands. Once I get more comfortable I am sure ill be able to do gestures and feel okay doing them. Lastly, I needed a stronger closing. I just need to make it more known that I am finished.
ReplyDeleteI really liked Katelyn's speech. She sounded very confident and you could tell she was very well prepared. Her thoughts were organized and everything flowed nicely. The only thing I noticed was that she looked up at the ceiling a lot.
Brandin's speech spoke to me also. He really opened up and I leaned so much more about him. I feel he needs to organize his thoughts more to make it all flow together. Overall I enjoyed it.
Hailey- I thoroughly enjoyed your speech. It was well written and very well rehearsed, i think it helped me get a better grasp on your personality and who you are in general.
DeleteBrandon L- Your speech was very powerful and moving when you were able to open up to the class like you did. That took a lot of guts and i have to give you props for that.
ReplyDeleteI thought that my speech could have been better considering that when I practiced, it was very clear and I felt comfortable saying it. I think that my eye contact could have been better and that I could have used more hand gestures although I did attempt to use them but I felt like I was shaking too much. I feel that I prepared good enough before my speech so that I felt confident with it, but I didn't think that I was going to feel so nervous like I did when I gave my speech. I was really nervous and my voice was shaking a lot but I know that as I get more comfortable doing speeches, I will feel more confident. I think that my opening and my closing was good but I know that it could be a lot better as well as my transitions. In general, I feel okay because I know that it was only my first speech and as I do more speeches, I will hopefully improve in all these areas.
ReplyDeleteBrandin L - I really enjoyed Brandin's speech because he really opened up to the class about his life and about things he has gone through. I really respect him for that and I know that he made a lot of people more comfortable with getting a little personal on their speeches also. He did really good but I felt he was more story-telling than giving a speech. I know that if he organizes his ideas and perhaps practice more he would have an amazing speech.
Kaitlyn C - I really enjoyed Kaitlyn's speech and I thought she did very good. She was very relaxed and it showed that she practiced good enough for her to know her stuff and be confident while giving her speech. She didn't seem nervous and she organized all her ideas good. She also didn't say words like "umm" and she was very clear. I also thought it was cute how she wanted to be a cat. In general, I thought that Kaitlyn did very good and I look up to her when it comes to giving a speech.
brandy i liked your speech because you told a story. You got a lot out in that little limited amount of time. You made it natural for the most part. It showed off your personality. You handled being nervous better than I did!
DeleteI think that my speech could have been better. When I practiced my speech it was close to two minutes long and then when I gave my speech in front of the class it ended up being less than a minute. I need to work on my pace and not let my nerves get the best of me. I know that my eye contact was not the best, and I knew that it wouldn't be, but I felt it getting worse as the speech went on. I definitely need to work on my eye contact and not relying so much on my notes or note card(s). I was actually less nervous than I expected to be, but that is not to say that I wasn't nervous. I did feel like I was organized and prepared enough I just need to work on getting my confidence level up so that I can give my speeches to the best of my potential.
ReplyDeleteBrandon A.- I enjoyed listening to your speech. I could tell that you spent time on it. The advice that I would give you would be to stay away from saying "umm" a lot and to change the pitch in your voice a little bit. It might also be helpful for you to practice using your notes a little less and focus on your eye contact. Other than that, not bad for your first speech!
Megan K.- Your speech was honestly my favorite. I could tell that you worked really hard on it and your hard work payed off. You made it look easy up there, especially when you started to move around a little. I liked that you involved definitions and sources in your speech, it made you sound like a professional. Your eye contact was great. I don't have any critiques to give you, all I can say is that by the end of this semester I hope that my speeches can be half as good as yours!
I thought my speech went well for the first time giving one in the class. To be honest I only practiced about 2-3 times a day. I could have defiantly practiced more than that, but I didn't. So for now on I will practice 3-6 times. My 2-3 times did not seem to help. I practiced in front of my whole family. Next speech I will defiantly practice more. I was very, very nervous about this speech. As most of you could tell. My voice started to get very shaky. I hope that as the semester goes on I will get more confident with my speech's. During my speech I didn't know what to do with my hands while talking. I hope as the semester goes on I'll know what to do with my hands. Last thing, is I need to work on my confidence level when giving speech's. I wasn't very confident while giving my speech.
ReplyDeleteCurtis P. - Curtis I really enjoyed you're speech. You're speech basically, summed up my life to. With going to a public school (Greenfield School District). I had the choice to go to either Greenfield High School or Martin Luther High School. I choose Martin Luther, just like Curtis did. For a better Education and sports. What stood out the most to me was how confident Curtis was. It feels like Curtis practiced the minimum 3-6 times. Overall, I really enjoyed Curtis speech.
Cyrus G. - I also enjoyed listening to Cyrus's speech. To me it also felt like Cyrus's confidence level during the speech was very high. He looked comfortable during his speech. One thing that he could work on is making eye contact. I didn't know that about Cyrus that he finds so much comfort in music. It was a great thing to learn about Cyrus.
I really enjoyed your speech Chance! I could tell you were a little nervous during this speech, but you did a good job of working through it. They say the first one is always the hardest, so the next one will be even better. Now that you have one down I know you will be much more confident next speech.
DeleteYou did a very nice job on your speech. At times your nerves seemed to get to you which lead to speaking fast at some points, but you were able to reign it back in. I liked the incorporation of your life verse and including that added a sense that your speech was real. I can already see that you are very talented at presenting and I am looking forward to your next speech.
DeleteChance, I could tell you weren't totally confident during your speech, but I still thought it was good. I think you are being a little harsh on yourself, and I'm sure you would progress throughout the year. Have a little more faith in yourself and I'm excited to hear your next speech!
DeleteI think my speech went really well seeing as it was my first one. I have to admit I practiced more then 6 times but I think it was okay that I did, seeing as I did good. As far as eye contact goes I think I really did well on that. I practically had that speech memorized - which is okay for short speeches but the long ones I will have to stick to the standard 3-6 times. Overall I am really happy with my speech, I like the theme I chose and how I interwove it into the beginning, body and end.
ReplyDeleteKatelyn C - I really liked your speech, the cat bit was really funny and being the second person up there I really think you alleviated the pressure on not only yourself but on the audience as a whole. Your speech had a good flow and sounded rehearsed.
Trevor - Your speech was great. It was nice getting to know you better seeing as I've never talked with you before. You have an air of confidence about you that really made you stand out and seem at ease. You gripped the podium a bit but I think it made you look more powerful and convincing then it did nervous.
Alexis B- Megan i thought your speech was great. The fact that you made it clear you didnt care what people thought of you was cool. Your speech was natural and really good. It wasnt fake at all. You had great eye contact too! Over all i loved it!
DeleteYour speech was my favorite. You were so confident and everthing flowed so nicely. It kept my attentiont the entire time and you spoke so well. You really knew what you were doing!
DeleteYour speech really stood out to me. Your speech is the one I can remember the best and the reason for that is that you presented very well. You were in control on any nerves you may have had and spoke in a clear and precise matter. Overall it was a very smooth speech.
DeleteI think my speech went okay. I was really nervous going into in wondering if people would judge me. I know i had good eye contact cause i didnt look down once. I practiced the speech about 4 times, then i changed it and practiced that one about 4 more times. I liked my topic of "change" because some people got to hear how much change I will be enduring the next couple of years.
ReplyDeleteI thought my speech went pretty well for the first time. I practiced probably 5 times and i also practiced in front of Kyle, so that helped. I wrote on four note cards but I probably could have only used one because i had my speech memorized for the most part. I think I could have done better about being more comfortable while doing my speech. I was swaying and looking at the ceiling.
ReplyDeleteAbbi- Even though i know everything about Abbi, I still liked her speech. She had a lot to talk about and only had one note card! She sounded well rehearsed. The only critique I have for her is maybe to stop swaying, like i did, but overall, I think she did a great job!
Chance- I thought Chance did a really good job! I could tell that he practiced and I thought he sounded natural.
Katelyn I thought your speech was very well done. Your intro was awesome and you added some humor which made the speech much better. You seemed extremely poised and confident.
DeleteMy first speech went as I expected it to be, it wasn't perfect but it was pretty good for the first one. I didn't practice very much for this speech. In fact, I only practiced about three times. I was not very nervous for this speech, but my eye contact could improve. I think I did a good job tying in the intro into the conclusion . Finally, the last thing I need to improve is more gestures in the speech and making it a very natural flow.
ReplyDeleteI thought that my speech wasn't as bad as i thought it was going to be, I just wasn't prepared enough even though I had all weekend to work on it. I think that I made good eye contact with the audience, I think that my introduction was pretty good because it kinda grabbed the attention of the audience my conclusion was good I think that i could have done a little bit better with transitioning from my injuries to my future. Next time I have a speech im not going to procrastinate like i did with this speech.
ReplyDeleteBrandon A. - I thought that his speech was decent because he made good eye contact with the class and didn't seem all that nervous, a problem that I think that he needs to work on is preparation his speech seemed under practiced and he said um to many times, overall i thought he did well for his firs speech.
My first speech went as I thought it would go. I was very nervous getting up there and probably didn't give enough eye contact because of it. I think that i got my point across well but didn't seem as confident as i could have been.
ReplyDeleteCurtis P... I think that your speech went very well. I know that you told us that you where nervous, but I think that you kept poise and got your message through. The only thing that you could have done better was more eye contact to the whole room and not just a few places.
Trevor... You speech went great! You had a lot of hand motions and you seemed very confident. The only thing that you could change is to not use the podium as much.
Brandon I liked your speech you had a good message and you had good eye contact. The only thing is try not to say ummm a lot but I learned a lot about you and enjoyed it.
DeleteI thought that my speech went well, but also left a lot of room to improve. I was moderately nervous about going up to present and that was seen in the rate at which I spoke. I was able to notice at times that I would speed up and I would try to calm back down and speak clearly, but that did not always happen. Another area I have lots or room to improve is in my preparation. I procastinated on this speech to the tenth degree which I know only hinders the presentation. Along with the idea of preparation I only think through my speeches instead of actually saying them and that is something I need to change. The final thing that I need to work on is my over attachment to the podium. It seems that whenever I present I get glued to the podium which I feel may hinder my presentation.
ReplyDeleteYour speech went very well to me. You seemed so natural and already used plenty of gestures. I got to know more about you to because before i didn't know anything. I really enjoyed it!
DeleteTrevor- I really enjoyed your speech. You were really comfortable in front of the class. I loved all your gestures and your speech looked like you rehearsed it alot i loiked it.
DeleteTrevor you're speech was very good and calm and you talked very well. I was just a little distracted with you playing the stand and leaning on it but overall it was good.
DeleteI thought my speech went well. Though it wasn't as long as i had hoped it to be i was still satisfied with the end product.There are however a few things that i could have done better with. The first was how i stuttered a little and kept looking at the floor. I believe this was due to me being nervous and my fear of public speaking. But in the end i am pretty satisfied with my performance.
ReplyDeleteChance Berget- I thouroughly enjoyed your speech. It was easily relateable and i thought it flowed nicely. Despite your imense fear of public speaking i thought you did well overall.
Trevor Schmidt- Your speech was well written and well prepared. It was easily relateable and easy to understand.You seemed confident while speaking and your gestures were applicable to the subject. So in conclusion, nice job dude!
I think my intro speech was only okay. It was hard for me to keep good eye contact with the audience and I swayed back and forth a little bit. I'm not sure how my voice was exactly, but I probably could have practiced a little more to make it more clear. I didn't feel too nervous was I started, but I wasn't completely confident either. My intro felt alright, but I kind of forgot my conclusion. Overall, I think it was an okay speech but there is a lot of room for improvement.
ReplyDeleteFor the most part I thought my speech went well. I became nervous and started to speed up my speech which I was unaware of until I got my grade. I think my only downfall was not looking around as much as I should have. During my intro speech I was trying to set the tone for the rest of my speeches during the year as most of them will be about being Z strong.
ReplyDeleteI thought that my first speech did not go as plan while I was up in front of the class I got extremely nervous and I could not remeber how I intended my speech to go. I did practice about five times and when I got in frontof the class I just drew a blank. My speech was definatly far from perfect but I guess I can only go up from here. When i get nervous I like to sway so I know that is one out of many things I need to work on for my next speech. Also I think it would be helpful to practice in front of some one and ease my nerves a little bit. I can say that the jitters of the first speech are over and I realize everyone has to do the speech and I wont be as nervous.
ReplyDeleteKatelyn- Even though i have known Katelyn for most of my life I learned something new in her speech that she wanted to be a cat. I enjoyed Katelyn's speech a lot I thought it all flowed nicely and was a great introduction speech. The only thing I would critique is stop swaying/ shifting weight and i know that i also have to do the same.
Kellie_ i really liked Kellie's speech and how she talked about how life was growing up with four brothers. I learned something newe about her and I enjoyed how she opened up about her family life. The only Critique I have for Kellie is to limit the number of time you say Like and Um, but other than that I thought your speech as a whole was great.
Brandin C. Lezala-
ReplyDeleteI believe that i did well, considering how many times I practiced before, which was none. I did definitely feel like i had a great eye contact. Although i was a little nervous i think i did a good job in that as well. I fairly enjoyed it all together, because I know I did well. I got a lot of positive feedback, but also tips on what I can do better. I am well aware that i stuttered and slurred a little, while having bad organization, it doesnt make it look to good, but everything else i believe was just dandy. I did notice however that when i started the speech i got really nervous and talked really fast, but soon after about 20 seconds in to the speech i steadied the pace. My gestures and poise were alright i did do some hand gestures but i did not really walk around and stand erect. My confidence level was amazing i thought i would ace it before, but when I was up to give the speech, I kind of hesitated and froze but I knew i had to just keep it smooth. The introduction of mine i thought it was good bringing personal stories is a success story in the making, but my conclusion was horrible and unorganized, trying to remember the speeches is hard enough. so i hope i summed it up enough for you Mrs. Dennert
Trevor- I thought your speech was amazing, it looked like you have done this before, and im not just saying that. it looked like you weren't afraid at all, it seemed like u weren't nervous at all, which is a great skill to learn.
Cyrus- i liked yours, it was fairly similar to trevors, you had great confidence which i enjoyed watching it made me feel energized
Nick Berndt- I feel that my speech was okay. I thinks it would have gone better if I had thought of what i was going to say ahead of time. It also would have helped if i practice more. I feel like i made good eye contact with the audience and kept everyone enthralled.
ReplyDeleteMegan- Your speech was amazing and flawless. It seemed like you we;re practicing this speech ever since you left the womb
Brandin L - Your speech was truthful and I enjoyed how you really opened yourself up.
I thought my speech went extremely well. I practiced around two times and throughout that time I had to think to myself different ways I wanted to say things. I felt very prepared and very confident as well. I was also very proud of myself for not fidgeting with the stand. I felt I had great I contact and spoke at a calm rate. I think I could do a little better on transitions but they were pretty good overall. Overall for my next speech I will practice in front of people again but maybe a few more times.
ReplyDeleteMy speech wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I practiced two times and I thought I was going to choke and sound awful when I give my speech in class. I was surprised that I gave a short speech in class by only referring to two bullet points. Even so, there is still a lot of things that I need to work on like eye contact, but I'm sure that I'll do better on my next speech.
ReplyDeleteTrevor- Your speech was great. You were confident and comfortable while giving your speech. Just try not leaning on the podium so much.
Brett C.- Besides being ill-prepared on your speech and under-practicing, I think your speech went well. You made good eye contact with everyone, you didn't lean on the podium, and you were confident giving the speech. Just make sure you're prepared to give your speech and practice.
Cyrus, I thought your speech was good, you have a powerful voice that's entertaining to listen to. I think you could really use that to your advantage in your speeches. You seemed a little lost a few times in your speech but other than that I thought it was really good.
DeleteMy speech didn't go bad. I probably should have prepared more, but now I know. I still need to work on eye contact and gestures. My speech probably could have used a conclusion, which I forgot to include. Gestures are what I am really going to have to work on since I don't use them naturally in normal conversation.
ReplyDeleteKyle - Your speech was my favorite. You spoke naturally and I really enjoyed what you had to say. Keep it up!
Nick - You had the best intro, but you forgot a conclusion.
Independent Study Speeches:
ReplyDeleteCole
Cole your speech went pretty well but there are some things to think about for your upcoming speeches. Firstly, practice makes perfect. For not practicing much, this speech went pretty well. However, it also caused a big gap in the middle that can be avoided for your next speech. You also forgot an opening, so maybe include a quote or something next time. Finally, you really hit your stride on the second half of your speech and explained in good detail why Eau Claire was the perfect college for you in regards to swimming.
DeleteI thought my speech went okay. I forgot to practice the night before and did not have a lot of time to plan out what i was going to say in the morning. The worst part of my speech was easily the long pause in the middle where I couldn't think of what to say, but i believe that if I practice more before I can eliminate any pauses like that one in the future. Also I should spend more time on my note cards because I think I didn't value them as much as I should have and i could have done a much better job on them. In conclusion it was evident in my speech that I practiced very little for this speech and I will spend more time preparing in the future.
DeleteIndependent Study Speech:
ReplyDeleteNick
For my first speech it was not too bad. I practiced the night before a couple times, but I probably could have known my material a little better. I also did not have a very good opening, so I will work on that in the future. Finally I need to work on cutting down on "uhs" and "ums" and I can do that by knowing my material better as stated above.
DeleteNick, I thought your speech was well done with just a few small mistakes. First, I could tell that you practiced well and were prepared to give your speech because, you didn't have any pauses and you transitioned from each part of your speech to the next very well. The only mistake that stuck out to me is that you said "umm' and "uh" a few times but it wasn't to bad. In conclusion, I thought your speech was very well done, nice job Nick.
Delete