THE SPEECH

Purpose

The purpose of this speech is to explore, identify, and express 1 of your core personal values as it relates to your life and your community. This speech is primarily about how you live your values everyday (provide specific examples, stories, anecdotes)and secondary to this is where/how/from whom you learned them.

Your goals with this assignment

You are to clearly illustrate your value and discuss how it shapes your life and your world in a socially significant way. 

Your speech should speak to issues of social, community, political or cultural relevance and be something that your audience will find meaningful.  

This speech serves as first major step in establishing your credibility and style (conversation and performance), and in practicing the speech writing process.  

Development:

Your discussion of your value will form the main points of your speech. Consider the following questions for this 3 – 4 minute speech:

How does this value guide your everyday choices?

1. Why is this value important to you?  Where do this value come from?
2. How does this value shape your life and your community?  (Use specific examples to demonstrate this value and its implications.)
3. It is not sufficient to talk to use about why this value is important, why we should adopt it, or other general advice regarding it.

Need some support understanding what we mean by “Core Personal Values”? See:

8 Benefits Of Identifying Your Values (Links to an external site.)

List of Values (Links to an external site.)

Organization

1. The introduction and conclusion should be fully developed.
2. There should be a definite, logical transition bridging each component of the speech.
3. Each main point should be clearly stated and developed.

Adhere to the principles of clear explanation; use definitions where appropriate.

Use organizers (signposts, enumeration, acronyms, slogans), emphasis cues, and figurative analogies.

OUTLINE: You  must submit the Outline prior to the speech.

Outline:

Purpose and outcomes

As you work on your outline remember that this is a guide for your actual extemporaneous Value speech delivery, not a manuscript–the outline need not, and should not be word-for-word what you say during the actual speech. Go slow and allow yourself to write and rewrite (perhaps intermittently saying it outloud to feel the flow). You will convert this full-sentence outline to brief speaker notes on 4×6 cards that you should then use to practice).

This assignment meets this learning outcome:

Organize, compose, present, and critically evaluate informative and persuasive presentations appropriate in content and style to the audience and situation  

Outline Template

I recommend that you use the following template to complete your full sentence speech outline; if the file is cumbersome for you to use you should at least pay attention to the elements laid out in the template (I’ve included notes with helpful reminders). 

Value Speech Outline templateLinks to an external site. (downloadable Google doc)Links to an external site.

Feel free to only use as much “depth” with the sub-points as you need.  Delete the numeration you don’t use, and delete the reminders I have in the file. AND you don’t need to include references from outside sources in this speech (as it’s primarily about YOU). 

• Criteria for Evaluation:
• use the rubric visible below as a checklist to ensure you’ve covered every item in your outline.
• Use the “Next” link to on the bottom right of this page to continue.
• View Rubric
• Value Speech OutlineValue Speech OutlineCriteriaRatingsPtsI have used full, single sentences (not paragraphs) on all components (you may use multiple sentences in the intro & conclusion).
• view longer description