# public speaking class



## barnabas (Apr 24, 2007)

I just realized I'm gonna have to take a public speaking class. Crap. :afr 









Maybe I'll put it off until next year. :b


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## lyssado707 (Oct 29, 2004)

Isn't life fun? Mine starts in a week :afr :cry


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## Demerzel (Nov 13, 2003)

*Re: re: public speaking class*



carry said:


> Isn't life fun? Mine starts in a week :afr :cry


 :hug


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## Lobster Magnet (Feb 7, 2007)

I had to take Public Speaking too, although my school had a dandy little loophole that made it easier. During intersession (winter break) you could take Public Speaking and the class met every day for 2.5 weeks. That's it. And it wasnt that bad, for me at least. Maybe because this class was so intensive that there was some kind of bond formed between all of us. 

The best advice I can give you is 1) just take it and get it over with, and 2) get to school early and practice giving your speeches in the empty classroom. Repeatedly. It helps.


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## BlueBamboo (May 8, 2007)

I had to do one...it actually wasn't that bad. She made us videotape ourselves and we were supposed to watch and take notes on how we could improve, but I could never bring myself to do that. I don't want to know how stupid I actually looked.

Use diagrams or a powerpoint presentation or something if you can, so people have something to look at other than you, and look at the tops of people's hair so they think that you're just looking at the person behind them (when really you're not looking at anyone at all). If you go towards the beginning, everyone else is probably thinking about their own speech, anyway. Public speaking is like the one thing that 95% of the people who take the class are going to be afraid of.

For me, the hardest part was actually thinking up speech subjects. The teacher told us we could do whatever we wanted as long as it was a certain "type" of speech....informative, persuasive, etc. I _hate_ that...I feel like I'm being judged by the students based on whether or not I picked an interesting speech topic, I'd so much rather have something picked for me. I'd be nearly in tears the weekend before, trying to think up what could be an acceptable topic. Hell, I STILL think I embarrassed myself with my second topic, two years later. But I'm weird like that.


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## barnabas (Apr 24, 2007)

> The best advice I can give you is 1) just take it and get it over with, and 2) get to school early and practice giving your speeches in the empty classroom. Repeatedly. It helps.


Yeah, I know. It's just that I'm particularly self-conscious about my accent. I still have trouble speaking English spontaneously, too. x]

I'm working on that.


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## 0rchid (Aug 19, 2006)

Ahh! I admire you guys, I could never do that. Videotape ourselves? I can't even stand to look at myself in the mirror, let alone stare at myself talking.


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## Gerard (Feb 3, 2004)

I had fun with it even though with the anxiety. Don't worry. I think you people will do fine. Look at it as a growing experience. I don't know. But good luck.

gerard


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## numbsmiles (Jan 2, 2005)

0rchid said:


> Ahh! I admire you guys, I could never do that. Videotape ourselves? I can't even stand to look at myself in the mirror, let alone stare at myself talking.


I rather videotape myself then stand in front of the room doing it live. Luckily for me I have not had to take a speech class but I probably will soon when I transfer to a 4 year school sigh Where's my meds.


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## Sopho (Jul 4, 2007)

I hated talking in front of people when I had to do that in high school. I almost had to do an oral presentation a few months ago but my head of year said I could submit written work instead, thankfully. I would probably have dropped out otherwise.


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## sweetxfracture (Feb 2, 2005)

I'm taking public speaking right now and next week we have a wild card speech. He gave us five topics to think about and on the day of the speech we are randomly assigned one of those topics that we have to talk about to the class. UGH! As if giving a speech is hard enough.

I find it easier to just get this class out of the way now and never think about it again.


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