Address the public passionately
If you're a middle schooler… 👀 Just like your classroom declamation, you select an excerpt from a speech that was once performed in public and give your own take! Time requirements are much longer, up to 10 minutes.
Info speeches are written to inform. Within a 10-minute speech, students present a topic they’ve researched of their choice, oftentimes with physical, hand-crafted picture boards. Topic selection and speech uniqueness are as far and wide as interests can be.
OO speeches are written to persuade. In a 10-minute speech, students are given the chance to give a passionate presentation on a researched topic of their choice. The issue could conclude with a call to action, a moment of reflection, or something all the more resonating for the speaker.
Theatrical 5-10 minute masterpieces
Calling all theatre kids. Pick a play, short story, or any piece that sticks out, and take on the role. This event values expressiveness and an emotional connection and a golden opportunity for your personality to shine, uniquely blending with the voice of the chosen speaker.
Dramatic interp but with a friend. Monologue instead of a dialogue. Pick a piece that stands out to you and step into the role, with a focus on character relationships and dynamics.
As its name suggests, Humorous Interp is similar to Dramatic Interp, but more humorous. However, like all interp events, students are given the floor to enthrall and enrapture the audience, but this time, to make them laugh too—not a simple task, but infinitely rewarding.
Using a selection of poetry or prose (depending on your event), you have five minutes to give your own interpretation of your selection. You have the flexibility to choose from any form of poetry, or any genre of prose—in fact, you can even do multiple pieces! Unlike other speech events, aside from the tighter time constraints, you must also use a manuscript in the form of a 3 inch binder. Although a bit different from other interp events, it is still quite the dramatic experience.
If you can't decide what speech event to do, try POI! A mix of Poetry, Prose, and Drama. Construct a 10 minute long program using at least 2 of these three genres, highlighting your performative range while weaving a continuous narrative through multiple genres.
Storytelling at its heart. A five minute, manuscript-free event. The only event where young children are the intended audience—and both piece selection and presentation are catered to match. Some tournaments may request your story to fit a particular theme, from mysteries to heroism to fairy tales. Also the only speech event that explicitly states that “students may use a chair.” (Take advantage of that.)
Quick! Say something!
Adrenaline junkies and political fanatics, this is the event for you. You'll be given a question on current events. Then comes the fun part: compose and memorize a seven minute speech in thirty minutes. Don't worry novices, you will be allowed a note card! Everybody else, no dice. A great event if you're an ace at making up presentations on the fly for the class that you “forgot” to prepare for.
Are you good at quick analysis? Want to get your heart racing? Like making far-fetched conclusions? Try impromptu! You’ll be given a prompt and seven minutes to compose and deliver a speech about anything related to the speech.
Fulfill your dreams of being a weather boy. In this event, you will have 30 minutes to read through and carefully select from a packet of newspaper material to craft and present a classic news broadcast.