Informative Speech

The purpose of this assignment is to provide you with practice writing and delivering an informative speech.

The informative speech is 4- to 6-minute speech that informs the audience about an object, concept, process, person, or place. Topics must meet the four Ns: The topic should be NEW to the audience, the topic should take place NOW (meaning timely), the topic should be NEAT to know, and this audience NEEDS to know about this topic.

For this speech, you will be required to use Voicethread. Voicethread can be accessed through the link on the navigation bar at the end of the instructions. Read Creating a new VoiceThread (Links to an external site.) for instructions on how to use Voicethread. Be sure to check the box to “share with class” so your classmates can view the speech. For more information on how to submit your assignment, watch the Voice Thread Assignments for Students (Links to an external site.)video.

Again, be sure to share with the class before you hit submit:

image showing where check box is to share with class in VoiceThread.

Importantly, this speech does NOT suggest any course of action or attempt to persuade. Following are the specific requirements for this speech:

Structure: Stay within 4-6 minutes. The speech should include a clear and complete introduction and conclusion and two to three main points in support of your thesis.
Support: The speech should verbally cite three to five sources from which you have drawn support for your claims. Verbal citations should provide at least two pieces of identifying information, such as the author name, publication name, name of title, and/or date. These sources should match the sources cited in the outline and on the References page.
Written Preparation: You are to prepare by constructing a full-sentence preparation outline that you will upload to Canvas via the assignment COMMENT. It should clearly express in written form the substance of the message that is presented in your speech video. A References page in APA format should also be included. Upload your outline with your reference page (as a comment to this assignment) and your speech video (which will be loaded in VoiceThread). A properly-formatted outline will be typed, single‑ or double-spaced, use Times New Roman font, 12-point font, and have standard one-inch margins. Typing begins at the top of the page. Label all major parts of the speech at minimum (intro, body, conclusion).
Presentation: A polished, extemporaneous delivery style is required using limited notes. Speeches that are read or recited cannot receive a passing grade. The purpose of requiring an extemporaneous method of presentation is to keep you in the mix. Read or recited speeches cut speakers off from their audiences, and this is not allowed. I will also comment on how well you maintain eye contact with your audience, your rate of delivery, the clarity of the presentation and your composure.
Additional Requirements:

Using Sources: The sources that you use should be diverse in the sense that they should come from different locations (websites, organizations, books, etc.) and represent at least three of the following types of sources:

Book: Full-length work on one subject by one or more listed authors
Pamphlet: Bound or folded article-length publication with one or several authors
Print Article: An article in magazine or edited collection published in a bound paper (I will accept materials accessed using Galileo under this category)
Electronic Article: Article or report published on a website, in an e-book, or on a CD ROM.
Personal: An interview or survey conducted by you (results of interviews and surveys published by others count under their medium of publication)
You may use other types of sources, such as commercially recorded music, art objects you may show us or cite from a publication, or commercially recorded video, however those items do not count as your three required sources from the above categories. Please also note that you must cite all sources, no matter where they are from. Again, you may use more than three sources, but you must have at least three and you must use sources from three different categories above. Please remember to cite all of your sources properly!

Note: Do not use Wikipedia as a source. I will automatically deduct 10 points from your grade if you do. However, you may use Wikipedia to find more reputable sources (check the sources at the bottom of the page).

Types of supporting materials you could use: examples, definitions, narratives, statistics, and testimony.

For example, a speech about Autism may contain the following main points and supporting materials:

Definition of Autism (definition, example, and peer testimony)
Causes of Autism (example, expert testimony, and statistics)
Treatments of Autism (definition, peer testimony and narrative [first person])
Remember to incorporate the following items as well:

Oral Citations (see Chapter 5: Using Supporting Materials Effectively of the textbook) must be utilized in the speech as well. Include at least two pieces of identifying information (author name, article name, book name, year of publication, website name, etc.). Points will be taken off if oral citations are not used throughout the delivery and if in-text citations are not used in the formal outline.
Organizational Patterns: Utilize a specific pattern for your speeches (i.e., topical, chronological, spatial, causal, or pro/con).
The fine print: Late outlines will receive 20% off if submitted within 24 hours after the due date. If speeches are more than 24 hours late, they will receive a “0.” Outlines without a proper APA References page will receive an F. Technological issues are not a valid excuse for failure to turn work in on time. If you have any issues with the recording process, visit the troubleshooting page for the media recording service you are using to record your speech. Plan ahead! Please let me know about any questions you have right away so that I can help.