Let's get to know each other......Introduction Speeches

Introduction 

Meg jaunted to the front of the classroom—her trusty index cards in one hand and her water bottle in the other. It was the mid-term presentation in her entomology class, a course she enjoyed more than her other classes. The night before, Meg had spent hours scouring the web for information on the Woody Adelgid, an insect that has ravaged hemlock tree populations in the United States in recent years. But when she made it to the podium and finished her well written and captivating introduction, her speech began to fall apart. Her index cards were a jumble of unorganized information, not linked together by any unifying theme or purpose. As she stumbled through lists of facts, Meg—along with her peers and instructor—quickly realized that her presentation had all the necessary parts to be compelling, but that those parts were not organized into a coherent and convincing speech. 

Giving a speech or presentation can be a daunting task for anyone, especially inexperienced public speakers or students in introductory speech courses.  Speaking to an audience can also be a rewarding experience for speakers who are willing to put in the extra effort needed to craft rhetorical masterpieces. Indeed, speeches and presentations must be crafted.  Such a design requires that speakers do a great deal of preparatory work, like selecting a specific topic and deciding on a particular purpose for their speech.  Once the topic and purpose have been decided on, a thesis statement can be prepared.  

After these things are established, speakers must select the main points of their speech, which should be organized in a way that illuminates the speaker’s perspective, research agenda, or solution to a problem.  In a nutshell, effective public speeches are focused on particular topics and contain one or more main points that are relevant to both the topic and the audience.  For all of these components to come together convincingly, organizing and outlining must be done prior to giving a speech.

1. Interview Introductions

Interview Introductions are a great way to break the ice with a new group of people. The exercise will allow you to find out about each other, Each of you will introduce the person you interviewed to the class.

Remember, it's a lot less threatening or scary to talk about someone else rather than yourself.

Instructions

• Divide into pairs.
• Each person interviews the other in turn. The information gained forms the basis of a brief introduction speech that you'll give to the whole group when the interviewing process is complete.
• Write out your questions and answers on paper.
• Find out your partner's name, where they live/work, what hobbies they have, what their favorite book, film, song, class...is, what they're most proud of (an achievement perhaps), what they hope for from the class, something funny that happened in their life, where they go for holidays/ vacation, what they think about the latest news/ trends ...
• After the interview, you will organize your answers and write up a short speech introducing your partner. ORGANIZE is the key term.  Create an outline.  You may use your outline during your presentation.  (Remember to maintain eye contact) 
• Remember to begin with a strong introduction that clearly lets the audience know who your person is, and what they are all about. 
• "This is Mary  Jones from Nescopeck. When she's not studying Bio, she's collecting batteries. Her favorites are ..."
• Turn your questions/ answers and speech outline in to www.turnitin.com

CC.1.5.11-12.D
Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective; organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.