Year 10 - 2015/2016 Mr A.

Massé, Collège Parc Ar C’hoat

Learning to learn…
How to write a (good) speech
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT BEFORE WRITING YOUR SPEECH:
1. Choose your topic: A good speech is focused on a message. It should convey
something important.
2. Why are you giving a speech on this topic? (“My teacher told me to!” or “I have to” is
not a valid reason.) A great speech is made for a good reason: to persuade, to inspire,
to instruct, to advise, to inform, to analyse, to rally support, or to lead to action…

HOW TO ORGANISE YOUR SPEECH:

All great speeches require “shape”: the introduction (tell them what you are about to
tell them), the body (tell them), and the conclusion (the summary). A speech is not an
amorphous blob or tangled strings of thought. A powerful speech follows this pattern:
INTRODUCTION BODY OF THE SPEECH CONCLUSION
What What What New bliss
What is
 could be could be could be (recap & call
(cause) (solution) What is What is to action)
1ST ARGUMENT 2ND ARGUMENT 3RD ARGUMENT
Based on Resonate by N. Duarte (ed. John Wiley & Sons, 2010)
1. Introduction: You should:
• Get the attention of your audience: you can raise a thought-provoking question,
make an interesting statement, recite a relevant quotation or even a joke.
• Introduce your topic
• State your purpose (cf. “Why are you giving a speech on this topic?”)

2. Body: You must formulate a series of points that you would like to raise.
• What are the main arguments that you want to talk about? Make a list of all the
arguments than come to mind. Once you’re done with this, choose the best 3
arguments and organise them from the weakest to the strongest.
• For each argument, explain “what is” and “what could be”
◦ WHAT IS is the world now. It is full of problems that we have to solve.
◦ WHAT COULD BE is YOUR vision of a better future, where YOU (or WE) can
solve the problems of the what is part.
• In persuasive speeches, use Rhetorical devices to support your ideas:

◦ Repetition ◦ First person plural
◦ The rule of 3 ◦ Direct address to the audience
◦ Metaphors ◦ Link words (they are your friends! 😉 )
◦ Rhetorical questions ◦ Quotes
◦ Emotional appeal (pathos) ◦ Facts and statistics


3. Conclusion: General comments that summarise the main points of your speech. You
may also explain to your audience how much better their world will be when they
adopt your ideas (this is the NEW BLISS).

TIPS TO MAKE YOUR SPEECH EVEN BETTER:

1. Illustrate. Use visual supports to make the main points of your speech more
powerful. Images should be used appropriately. If you’re talking numbers, use graphs.
2. Think in pauses. The best actors make pauses in their lines. Write pauses when you
really want a point to sink in. This shows that you’re talking about it like a pro.
How to write a (good) speech