Informative Speeches Barry 2010

Needs to be sufficiently narrow to cover in the time allotted Your speech will be four to eight minutes long! States your precise goal for the speech State in a single infinitive phrase: To inform my audience about... From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

To inform my audience about the benefits of music therapy for people with psychological or cognitive disabilities. Notice that the phrase includes “my audience.” Keep your audience in mind! From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Ineffective: Calendars Effective: To inform my audience about the four major kinds of calendars used in the world today From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Ineffective: What is Día de los Muertos? Effective: To inform my audience about the history of Mexico’s Día de los Muertos celebration From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Ineffective: To inform my audience about the benefits of volunteering in the Special Olympics and the history of the Special Olympics Effective: To inform my audience about the history of the Special Olympics From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Ineffective: To inform my audience about hot-air balloons Effective: To inform my audience about the scientific uses of hot-air balloons From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Ineffective: (Too broad to cover in the time allotted) To inform my audience about the rise and fall of ancient Rome To inform my audience about the role of technology in human history From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Full infinitive phrase Refers to audience/is suitable to audience Statement, not question Limited to one distinct subject Indicates precise goal Can be accomplished in the time allotted (4 to 8 minutes) From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Don’t choose a trivial speech topic; choose something that has some depth to it. Also, try to choose something that most audience members will learn from Examples of trivial purpose statements: To inform my audience how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich To inform my audience how to tie a bow tie From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Don’t choose an overly technical speech topic Make sure you can make your topic understandable, and avoid jargon Example of an overly technical purpose statements: To inform my audience about the methods of encryption technology From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Don’t overestimate what the audience knows. Give sufficient background in your speech For example, if you give a speech on Roth IRAs, define them first From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Relate the subject directly to the audience. Find ways to talk about your topic in terms of your listeners. Use the pronoun “you.” It is your job to keep your audience interested! From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Relate the subject directly to the audience. Compare these examples: I want to talk to you about chili peppers. Imagine your mouth is burning like wildfire, your eyes squirting out uncontrollable tears, and your face red and sweating profusely. Are you sick? No. You just took a bite out of a screaming hot chili pepper. From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Avoid abstractions. Use description: statements that depict a person, event, or idea with clarity and vividness Use comparisons: statements of the similarities among two or more people, events, ideas, etc. Use contrasts: statements of the differences among two or more people, events, ideas, etc. From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas

Personalize your ideas. personalize: to present one’s ideas in human terms that relate in some fashion to the experience of the audience. Entertain your audience as you enlighten them. From The Art of Public Speaking by Stephen E. Lucas