informative speech

Prompt

When we engage in "speaking to inform" our goal is to create / increase knowledge, awareness, or understanding  among our audience. 

For this assignment you are going to expand your knowledge about a topic of your choosing. In your speech you will convey that knowledge to your audience.

Remember that the topic must be of interest to you, but it should also be appropriate for:

• your audience: Take a moment to think who your audience is and what their attitudes / beliefs / values may be in reference to your topic.
• the occasion: this is an informative speech assignment. Make sure the topic is informative and not persuasive.
• the setting: this is a college class. We expect topics that are of a college level / academic caliber. 

 

Example Informative Speech Topics

You could give a speech about:

• Objects (tangible items) - seeing-eye dogs / the history behind High-Def TV’s / UFOS / a piece of art / etc.
• People (alive or from history. Those who contribute / have contributed positively or negatively to our society / world.) - Michael Jordan, the homeless, Mother Teresa, the Grateful Dead, Authors, Scientists, etc.
• Events (noteworthy occurrences) - Cuban missile crisis, Special Olympics, etc.
• Processes (the steps that lead to a finished product; how something is done, how it’s made, how it works) – Improving memory, Managing Your Time, Build Your Credit Score, etc.
• Concepts (abstract or difficult ideas that you can simplify) - Vegetarianism, Honesty, the American Dream, Happiness, Growing Up, etc.
• Issues (an overview of a problem that increases our understanding) - Cloning, Global warming, Genetic Modification, etc.
• Places - a Country / City / National Park / Wonders of the World / a place you don’t know a lot about, but would like to visit / etc.

 

Directions

• Select a General Topic with the general purpose of informing your audience. You should find the topic interesting, but also make sure the topic is relevant to your audience’s life.
• Once you have the General Topic, determine your specific topic and  decide how best to support the ideas and concepts you  choose to discuss in your speech. A good speech uses a variety of types of support material (facts,  statistics, testimony, and examples) that come from a variety of so urces (books, magazines, newspapers,  interviews, the Internet, etc.)
• 
  

Content

Introduction:

1. Starts with an attention getter or hook right at the beginning. Remember that having an attention getter is one thing, having a good one is another. You will not get full credit if your attention getter is ineffective. Engage in critical thinking to determine which type of attention getter would best suit your speech. 
2. Relate topic to audience by saying how relevant it is for them to know something about this topic. Consider including a fact or a statistic to illustrate how many people are effected by your speech topic. (Remember always to include source citations when you have outside research such as statistics or facts.) If you are talking about Disneyland, you can include a fact that tells us how many people visit Disneyland each year – this would illustrate relevance, because it shows that it is popular. If your speech is on a particular diet you can add a statistic regarding how many college students are considered overweight. It is important to convince the audience of the importance of your speech in the introduction because you want them to listen. If they do not think your speech pertains to them, they won’t listen. 
3. Explain credibility. How do you know the information you are about to share with us? Do you have personal experience? Professional experience or have you conducted research? In other words, why should we believe you know what you are talking about? (If my speech is on active listening I might say to explain my credibility, “I have studied communication for my undergraduate and graduate degree and I have been an instructor of communication for over 10 years. I have also conducted research on this topic for this speech.”) 
4. Provide a thesis statement. Tell us what the central theme of your speech is / what your speech is about. One sentence.
5. Purpose statement. In one sentence, state what your goal is with the speech. For example: "To inform my audience on ……..," or "To create / increase awareness among my audience on …….".
6. Preview your main points. “First I will tell you about…Then I will…Lastly I will…” 

 

Body: 

1. You should have 3 main points for the body of the speech.
2. Each main point should be supplemented with information that is easy to understand. 
3. Your main points should be connected with transitions, which include: a review of your previous point, a segue, and a preview of your next point.

 

Conclusion: 

1. Transition into the conclusion with a phrase such as “In conclusion…,” or “In closing…,” or “As I bring this to an end…”.
2. Summarize each main point in 1-2 sentences.
3. Tieback to your introduction by restating your thesis statement
4. Provide a Final Thought that provides your audience with a sense of closure and signals that your speech is finished, without saying, “I am done,” “that’s it” or something similar. Consider referring back to your attention getter by (for example) restating the quote / answering the question / restating the statistic / providing a follow up statistic / etc. 

 

Source Citation: 

1. At least THREE source citations are required within your speech, of which at least one (1) MUST be a non-internet source. (Think: book / periodical / research paper / news or radio broadcast / personal interview with an expert.)
2. Include oral source citations for each main point.
3. Sources must be credible (Wikipedia is NOT credible).
4. Remember to always cite your source BEFORE you present the evidence!

 

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