speech description

Persuasive Speech:

You must plan and deliver a speech in which you will try to sell the rest of us an unappealing product. Think about the “As Seen on TV” advertisements that you see on late-night television selling things like the Wax Vac (ear wax suction cleaner), the Potty Patch (a patch of fake grass that allows your dog to go to the bathroom inside the house), or the Tush Turner (a lazy-Susan-style seat cushion that makes it easier to swivel to get out of your chair).

Some tips:

• This speech should be delivered “TV-style”; you should be very animated and theatrical—really sell it
• Having an image or a prototype model of your product would be very helpful—even just a poster sketch would help us—a demo would be even better!
• You must make this product seem like something we NEED and can’t live without—help us to understand how our lives will be better with your product

Visual aids would be very helpful in this speech—we should know just what you’re trying to sell us

You absolutely MUST practice and plan outside of class

You may pre-record this speech and play it in class

You must stay within time limits

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Persuasive Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Persuasive Speech
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performers skip details that are crucial to the sales pitch. Listeners gain nothing from performance. No thought about audience was given.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performers seem lost at time or struggle to recall details. Listeners are not engaged. Little thought about audience was given in preparing.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged. Topic is audience-appropriate.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive. Very appropriate for audience. Funny.
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used. It was impossible to follow the advertisement. I don’t know what they were trying to sell.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward. It was sometimes hard to understand their product. I can see that they were selling me something but I’m not sold.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. This felt like an advertisement. I might actually consider buying this product.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction draws in the audience and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. They totally sold me! This was a great example of an “As Seen on TV” advertisement
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading from a paper. No regard for time constraints.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. A lot of reading from notes. Some regard for time constraints.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a spontaneous talk than a speech. Speech given within time constraints.	Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels just like an “As Seen on TV” advertisement. Speech was within time constraints. I wasn’t bored.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. No visual aids.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of tone and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Visual aids were present but not helpful.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Good use visual aids.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions. Excellent visual aids. Felt like a real advertisement.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performers trip on words, lose place, or completely forget what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performers make some mistakes or lose place at times. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performers do not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performers do not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice. Planning is clear and performance is outstanding.

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Demonstrative Speech:

For this type of speech, you will choose something that you are very familiar with and describe for the audience how it is done. This can be playing a sport, sewing a blanket, writing a poem, driving a car, playing an instrument, doing a task for your job, etc. This is a basic “how-to” speech. To prepare for this speech, ask yourself a question (How do I cook a gourmet meal?) and then use your speech to answer it. By the end of your speech, the audience should know how to do what you explained. NOTE: Your goal is to explain HOW, not WHAT. For example, How do you ride a horse? instead of What is horseback riding?

Good topic starters:

• How to make something
• How to repair something
• How not to do something (this could use humor to demonstrate what not to do)
• How to do an everyday task that no one thinks about
• How to do something only you know how to do (like talk to your mom)

Visual aids would be very helpful in this speech, especially if your topic is abstract or very detailed. Don’t, however, let your visual aids do the talking for you. Remember, if technology fails, you should still be able to deliver.

Think about your audience and what knowledge they come to class already having. (Would you want to teach a room full of college students how to write a paper?)

Be creative and be sure to practice what you will say and how your slides/visuals will move forward.

You will turn in an outline at the end of your speech.

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Demonstrative Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Demonstrative Speech
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performer skips details that are crucial to story line. Listeners gain nothing from performance. No thought about audience was given.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performer seems lost at time or struggles to recall details. Listeners are not engaged. Little thought about audience was given in preparing.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged. Topic is audience-appropriate.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive. Very appropriate for audience.
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used. It was impossible to follow the steps of the demonstration. I don’t know how to do what they explained.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward. It was sometimes hard to follow the steps they explained. I don’t know well how to do what they described.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. The steps were mostly clear. I think I could do what they described.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction draws in the audience and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. The steps were very clear. I could do exactly what they described.
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading of a paper. No regard for time constraints.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. A lot of reading from notes. Some regard for time constraints.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a spontaneous talk than a speech. Speech given within time constraints.	Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a truly spontaneous talk, not just a speech. Speech given within time constraints.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. No visual aids.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of language and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Visual aids were present but not helpful.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Good use visual aids.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions. Excellent visual aids.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performer trips on words, loses place, or completely forgets what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performer makes some mistakes or loses place at time. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performer does not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performer does not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice.

Other comments:

                                                                                                                                                                                             Score:_________

Creative Writing Speech/ Actor’s Monologue:

Creating Writing: For this type of speech, you will start by writing an original work. This may be a poem, a short story, an essay, or any other form of writing that can easily be presented in 3 or 5 minutes. The key to this speech is practicing your timing. While writing a poem may be simple for you, performing that poem in the given amount of time might be a challenge. The good news is that this is the only speech that you may read from a piece of paper or the computer screen during. The piece of creative writing must be entirely yours and should be entertaining enough to hold your audience’s attention for the duration of your speech.

Good ideas from past students:

• Write and tell a ghost story
• Write a poem about someone you admire
• Tell us a short story from your childhood
• Share an essay you wrote about a topic for which you have great passion

Actor’s Monologue: Modify and re-present/ perform a scene from a play or a movie. You may work with 1 person on this speech, if you choose, but you must double the time then!

Visual aids are not necessary for this speech, and, in fact, might take away from the power of your words. Use your discretion.  They are welcome, if helpful and required.

Think about captivating your audience with your language. This speech allows you a certain amount of artistic freedom. If you choose to share poetry, work hard at crafting your language to be precise and powerful. If you’re sharing a personal story, be sure to provide many details to bring your audience right into the setting. If it’s an essay, give us a reason to care with strong, vibrant language and purpose.

Be creative and be sure to practice what you will say. It will be obvious during this speech if you have not rehearsed reading your own creative writing.

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Creative Writing Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Creative Writing/ Acting Speech
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performer skips details that are crucial to story line. Listeners gain nothing from performance.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performer seems lost at time or struggles to recall details. Listeners are not engaged.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive.
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction draws in the audience and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions.
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading of a paper. No regard for time constraints.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a reading than a performance. Some regard for time constraints.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a performance than a reading. Speech given within time constraints.	Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a true performance, not just a reading. Speech given within time constraints.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of language and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performer trips on words, loses place, or completely forgets what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performer makes some mistakes or loses place at time. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performer does not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performer does not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice.

Other comments:

Score:_________

Advocacy Speech: 

For this type of speech, you will choose a topic that you are very passionate about and make a strong case for why you feel that way. This topic can be a cause you believe in (finding a cure for cancer), an organization you support (The World Wildlife Fund), a sports team you admire (Buffalo Bills?), or an ideology that your firmly follow (feminism, GLBTQ movement, environmentalism). The point of this speech is to present why you believe so strongly in this cause and why other people should do the same. To prepare for this speech, ask yourself the question, Why do I feel so strongly?, and then use your speech to answer it. By the end of your speech, the audience should have an understanding of how you feel, why you feel that way, and some people might even be persuaded to feel the same. You should choose a topic that you are passionate about and one that you know a fair amount about, some expertise, in a sense. Think of the saying, “Practice what you preach.” We should feel that you really believe what you say.

Good topic starters:

• Why _____________________ is so important
• _______________________ is better than _______________________
• I feel _______________________ about _______________________, and so should you
• ________________________ inspired me to _________________________

This is a classic speech that should follow a clear outline of topic, points 1-3, details on the points, counter argument, conclusion. This will sound much like the persuasive speeches we wrote in class on the day we practiced making outlines. You may present this speech digitally as a video that you have created, edited, and timed appropriately.

Think about what makes you feel so strongly and be sure to include evidence for why you feel you are right. Why should we believe you?

Be creative and be sure to practice what you will say and how your slides/visuals will move forward.

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Persuasive Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Advocacy Speech
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performer skips details that are crucial to story line. Listeners gain nothing from performance. No thought about audience was given.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performer seems lost at time or struggles to recall details. Listeners are not engaged. Little thought about audience was given in preparing.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged. Topic is audience-appropriate.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive. Very appropriate for audience.
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used. It was unclear what the speaker’s position was at all. No strong statement of position made. I couldn’t follow the speaker’s position at all.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward. It was difficult to tell what side the speaker was taking. Statement of position was weak.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. Clear position on the topic was made. Statement of belief was clear.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction draws in the audience and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. Speaker’s passion for this topic was clear. I know exactly how the speaker feels and I believe they are being heartfelt.
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading of a paper. No regard for time constraints.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. A lot of reading from notes. Some regard for time constraints.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a spontaneous talk than a speech. Speech given within time constraints.	Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a truly spontaneous talk, not just a speech. Speech given within time constraints.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. No visual aids.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of language and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Visual aids were present but not helpful.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Good use of visual aids.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions. Excellent visual aids.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performer trips on words, loses place, or completely forgets what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performer makes some mistakes or loses place at time. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performer does not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performer does not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice.

Other comments:                                                                                                                                                                                 Score:_________

Special Occasion Speech/ Commemorative Speech:

This category of speech is relatively broad and consists of a variety of options, all of which should be about someone you know. This speech is what you would do if you were asked to “Say a few words” about someone in order to introduce, commemorate, or toast to them. This speech should inform your audience about the person you are referring to and should have a tone that is appropriate to the event you would deliver it at. For example, you wouldn’t make a joke about your boss’s pushiness at his funeral. This speech should include many facts about the person/people you are talking about and it might be helpful to tell a story about the person to outline your relationship with them (I first met Johnny when…).

Possible options include (but are not limited to):

• Toasting the bride (or the groom) at a wedding
• Introducing a famous guest speaker at a conference or event
• Eulogizing a friend at a funeral
• Presenting an award to someone at a banquet
• Delivering a graduation address to your classmates
• Professing your love and appreciation to a friend, a significant other, a pet, your mom, etc.

Visual aids would be very helpful in this speech, especially if you are introducing someone and you’d like to make a point that was captured in a photograph. Don’t, however, let your visual aids do the talking for you. Remember, if technology fails, you should still be able to deliver.

Think about your audience and what knowledge they come to class already having. (If we don’t know your mom, what should we know and why should we believe what you say about her?)

Be creative and be sure to practice what you will say and how your slides/visuals will move forward.

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Special Occasion Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Special Occasion/ Commemorative  Speech
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performer skips details that are crucial to story line. Listeners gain nothing from performance. No thought about audience was given.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performer seems lost at time or struggles to recall details. Listeners are not engaged. Little thought about audience was given in preparing.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged. Topic is audience-appropriate.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive. Very appropriate for audience.
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used. It was unclear what the speaker’s position was at all. Speech was not at all logical and it was hard to tell who the speech was about.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward. At times, the speech was not logical. It was sometimes hard to tell who the speaker was talking about.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. It was clear who this speech was about and it followed a logical structure.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction is clear and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. I knew exactly who this speech was about and I could follow every detail provided about this person.
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading of a paper. No regard for time constraints. I would never give this speech at a special occasion.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. A lot of reading from notes. Some regard for time constraints. I would fix this speech a lot before giving it at a real special occasion.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a spontaneous talk than a speech. Speech given within time constraints. I might give this speech at a special occasion.	Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a truly spontaneous talk, not just a speech. Speech given within time constraints. I would absolutely give this speech at a special occasion.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. No visual aids.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of language and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Visual aids were present but not helpful.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Good use of visual aids.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions. Excellent visual aids.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performer trips on words, loses place, or completely forgets what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performer makes some mistakes or loses place at time. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performer does not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performer does not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice.

Other comments:                                                                                 Score:________

Direct a Meeting or Chair an Event:

You must plan and direct a 3 or 5 minute meeting.  Create a setting for a mock meeting (at your job, as part of an organization, as organizer of an event). Tell us the reason why we are meeting, create an agenda, and take us through that agenda covering your major objectives in terms of information and collaboration.

Some tips:

• This speech should be delivered in a fashion where you are positioned as the boss or organizer of an event. The audience is “under” you. Ex. employees, members of a committee or club, clients
• Make sure you have a clear objective. WHY are we meeting? What are we supposed to get from and do as a result of meeting with you?
• While you should include a short amount of time for audience contribution, this time is yours, so don’t depend on the audience to direct the flow for you. You are conductor!

Visual aids would be very helpful in this speech

You absolutely MUST practice and plan outside of class

You must stay within time limits

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Persuasive Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Chair a Meeting
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performers skip details that are crucial to the meeting agenda. Listeners gain nothing from performance. No thought about audience was given.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performers seem lost at time or struggle to recall details. Listeners are not engaged. Little thought about audience was given in preparing.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged. Topic is audience-appropriate.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive. Very appropriate for audience. Uses different approaches of engagement, ex. humor, seriousness, understanding for listeners
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used. It was impossible to follow the agenda. I don’t know what they were trying to inform me about or lead me toward.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward. It was sometimes hard to understand their agenda.  I can see that they were telling me something but I’m confused about what the objective is.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. This felt like a professional meeting.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction draws in the audience and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. I was with them the whole time, and can leave the meeting knowing objective was met!
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading from a paper. No regard for time constraints.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. A lot of reading from notes. Some regard for time constraints.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a spontaneous talk than a speech. Speech given within time constraints.	Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels just like a professional meeting being chaired by an expert. Speech was within time constraints. I wasn’t bored.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. No visual aids.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of tone and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Visual aids were present but not helpful.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Good use visual aids.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions. Excellent visual aids.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performers trip on words, lose place, or completely forget what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performers make some mistakes or lose place at times. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performers do not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performers do not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice. Planning is clear and performance is outstanding.

Pitch Your Business/Product:

For this speech, you will be asked to spend 3- 5 minutes introducing the class to your business or product. You should research sales pitches. The goal here is to acquire clients and solidify contacts in any given field.  The more realistic the business plan, the higher your grade. Include business cards, make a fake website, include testimonials from clients, etc. This works great for people who will likely need to pitch ideas in the future or who currently have ideas and products they would like to expose to a group of people.

Some tips:

• This speech should be delivered in a fashion where you are trying to gain new clientele and convince us of the value of your product or business.
• Make sure you have a clear objective. What is your product, how is it different, why do we need it?
• While you should include a short amount of time for audience contribution, this time is yours, so don’t depend on the audience to direct the flow for you.
• You should have visual aides and a prototype/ brief demo of what you offer or are trying to sell.

You absolutely MUST practice and plan outside of class

You must stay within time limits

Use the rubric on the back of this sheet as a guide for how to prepare and deliver your Persuasive Speech.

Public Speaking Rubric—Pitch
Performance Criteria	No/Limited Proficiency (1)	Some Proficiency (2)	Proficiency (3)	High Proficiency (4)
Content	Content completely lacks coherence or doesn’t make sense. Performers skip details that are crucial to understanding what you have to offer to potential clients.  Listeners gain nothing from performance. No thought about audience was given.	Content lacks coherence and makes little sense. Performers seem lost at time or struggle to recall details. Listeners are not engaged. Little thought about audience was given in preparing.	Content is mostly coherent and performance follows a logical path. Details are provided and listeners are mostly engaged. Topic is audience-appropriate.	Content is clear, strongly linked, and interesting. Rich details are provided and there is a distinct story line or point made. All listeners are engaged and attentive. Very appropriate for audience. Uses different approaches of engagement, ex. humor, seriousness, understanding for listeners
Organization	Lacks organizational structure. Introduction and/or conclusion missing. No transitions used. It was impossible to follow the point or purpose of the pitch. I don’t know what they were trying to inform me about or lead me to invest in.	Organizational structure present but unclear with underdeveloped introduction and conclusion. Transitions are awkward. It was sometimes hard to understand the purpose of the product or business.  I can see that they were telling me something but I’m confused about what the objective is.	Appropriate organizational pattern used and easy to follow with developed introduction and satisfying conclusion. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. I am very interested in being your client.	Organizational pattern is compelling and moves audience through speech with ease. Introduction draws in the audience and conclusion is satisfying. Main points are smoothly connected with transitions. I want to be your client!
Style	No understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Little enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels like a dry reading from a paper. No regard for time constraints.	Some understanding of audience regarding topic or purpose of speech. Some enthusiasm and passion for topic. A lot of reading from notes. Some regard for time constraints.	Competent understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels more like a spontaneous talk than a speech. Speech given within time constraints.	Speaker is passionate! Thorough understanding of audience regarding topic and purpose. Clear enthusiasm and passion for topic. Feels just like a professional meeting being chaired by an expert. Speech was within time constraints. I wasn’t bored.
Delivery	No gestures or eye contact. Monotone voice or insufficient volume. Little poise. Reading directly from notes only. Abundant oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. No visual aids.	Some gestures and eye contact. Ineffective use of tone and voice. Little poise. Heavy reliance on notes. Multiple oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Visual aids were present but not helpful.	Adequate use of gestures, eye contact, language, and voice. Poised with minor reliance on notes. Limited oral fillers and nonverbal distractions. Good use visual aids.	Effective use of gestures, eye contact, vivid language, and voice to add interest to speech. Poised with minor reliance on notes.  No oral fillers and verbal distractions. Excellent visual aids.
Preparation	Performance is undoubtedly unrehearsed. Performers trip on words, lose place, or completely forget what was to be said. Little evidence of practice.	Performance feels unrehearsed. Performers make some mistakes or lose place at times. Could have benefitted from more practice.	Performance has clearly been rehearsed more than once. Performers do not lose place or forget what to say. Practice is evident from strong performance.	Performance is nearly perfect. Performers do not forget lines or lose place at all. It is clear that much time has gone into practice. Planning is clear and performance is outstanding.