Thursday, March 29, 2018

[Assignment] 60 Second Speech #04: Personal Improvement Project

Background Info.

This is the final 60 Second Speech assignment for the year. This speech should demonstrate your growth as a public speaker. It should also show improvement in the quality of the PowerPoint you make as well.

For this speech, you will choose some aspect of your personal life that you want to improve. It could be your math grade, your ollie to kick-flip ability, how well you can cook a steak, or getting along better with your siblings. The point is to choose something that you will enjoy working on for this project.

Directions

  1. If you did not complete 60 Second Speech #02 you must complete this presentation.
  2. If you did complete 60 Second Speech #02 but did not do 60 Second Speech #03 you must do this one.
  3. If you did complete 60 Second Speech #02 and #03, you can do this presentation for extra credit.
This assignment will count as a Challenge Grade.

S.M.A.R.T. Goal

Regardless of which topic you choose, it must be stated as a SMART goal. This is a method of setting goals that makes it easier to define and meet those goals. The SMART acronym will be explained below with examples.

  1. Specific: Your goal must be specific.
    • Example: "I want to improve my 100 meter freestyle time." or "I need to get better at dividing fractions."
    • Non-Example: "I want to swim better." or "I need to learn math."
  2. Measureable: Your goal must be measureable in some way. You will need a baseline measurement when you start. You will need a measurement at the end of the project too.
    • Example: "My Fortnite win rate was 0.56 to start. After this project, my win rate was 0.75."
    • Non-Example: "When I started, fractions were hard. Now I think they're easier."
  3. Achievable: Your goal must be something you can actually achieve considering the time and resources available.
    • Example: "My goal is to get a 4 or better on my FSA Reading test." or "I want to learn how to cook chicken parmesan without burning it."
    • Non-Example: "I want to win a gold medal in Olympic ice dancing." or "I would like to bench press 350 lbs."
  4. Relevant: Choose a goal that is important to you. If the goal is not relevant you won't want to work on it.
  5. Time: You must establish a time frame to meet your goal. For this project you have approximately 7 weeks to meet your goal. Choose something you can accomplish in this time.
    • Example: "I would like to improve my sight-reading ability by May 1st, 2018."
    • Non-Example: "I would like to run faster this year."
Complete Example #01: "By May 1st, I would like to improve my current mile time of 6:36 by at least 15 seconds."
Complete Example #02: "I would like to reduce the number of times I fight with my brother from once a day to once a week by June 1st."

Expectations

The expectations for this project are simple:

  • You need to spend at least one hour a week working towards your goal.
  • You need to keep a Excel spreadsheet log that includes the following:
    1. Date you worked on the goal.
    2. Time you spent working on the goal. [In Minutes]
    3. What you actually did to work on the goal.

Writing the Speech

Using this information you will need to plan and write a speech that should take 60 seconds to present. Usually, five to seven paragraphs is required to discuss all of the required information. When planning and writing your speech please make sure that you:

  1. Introduce yourself to the audience.
  2. Tell the audience what your topic is.
  3. Provide details and support for your topic.
  4. Thank the audience at the end.

You are required to have a hard-copy of your speech when you present. You can either print it out OR write it down on index cards.

The PowerPoint

Students will also create a PowerPoint to present along with the speech.

Rule #1 of every 60 Second Speech assignment is DO NOT READ DIRECTLY FROM THE POWERPOINT.

The PowerPoint is meant to be a visual aid for the speech, not the focus of the presentation. Your PowerPoint should include the following slides:

  1. TITLE SLIDE with NAME, TOPIC.
  2. One slide that explains why you chose your topic.
  3. One slide that explains what you did to practice/improve.
  4. One slide that explains your final results.
  5. CONCLUSION SLIDE

Pro-Tips for Great Slides

  • Bullet points are usually better than sentences.
  • No more than three or four bullet points per slide.
  • Use a LARGE font so the audience can read it.
  • Make sure the BACKGROUND and FONT COLOR contrast. (e.g. dark background with light font OR light background with dark font)
  • No more than one or two pictures per slide.
  • Keep sound effects and crazy transitions/animations to a minimum.

Speech and PowerPoint Rubric

New rubric will be posted soon.

Presentation Dates

  • Presentations will begin the week of May 09, 2018.
  • A specific presentation order will be determined in class. Students will know at least one week before their scheduled presentation date.
  • Students that are absent on their scheduled day will need to make-up their presentation during the next class period.

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