Leadership & Debate

Thursdays

11:00 AM to 12:00 PM EDT

What distinguishes leaders from followers? Are natural-born leaders and extroverts bound to succeed over the introverts of the world? In this weekly course, we'll enter the sprawling world of Speech & Debate as a medium to develop critical public speaking skills. We’ll analyze current events, master the art of charisma, and develop our own unique and powerful public speaking voices. And most importantly, taught by a former shy kid, students will gain the gift no one can take away from them: confidence.

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Solo project course - students will write their own speech. 

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Soft skills - public speaking & leadership

 

Hard skills - critical analysis & argumentative writing

 

No experience required; ages 11 and up.

Materials

June 4

Class One

  • Introductions 

  • Class objectives

    • Defining hard skills and soft skills​

  • Introduce projects

  • Q&A

June 11

Class Two

  • Ice-Breaker activities

  • Class Talk

    • Why do we fear public speaking?

  • Intro to Speech & Debate events

  • Optional: Project critique & evaluation

June 18 

Class Three

  • Perceptual Dominance & Gestures in speech

    • Hand gestures, eye contact, etc. ​

  • Practice

  • Cultural Discussions - American political parties

  • Breakout rooms - practice

June 25

Class Four

  • Resources & Reliable Sources​

  • Constructive Criticism

  • Confidence

    • Coping with anxiety​

  • Motivation

    • Why does public speaking matter?

July 2

Class Five​

  • Cultural awareness

  • Using humor

    • Offense/Risk graph​

    • Practice

  • Student panelists

    • Hand gestures, eye contact, etc. ​

  • Leadership Discussion - general advice

July 9

Class Six​​ - VIRTUAL CLASS FAIR

  • Virtual Class Fair

  • Mock debate tournament

  • Good-byes