WEEK 1 Your Word is Your Bond!

10 schools are receiving the public speaking workshop: PS 6, PS 40, PS 11, PS 12, PS 9, PS 17, PS 22, PS 41, PS 27, and PS 23. 

I start by acknowledging, "Pubic speaking is the number one phobia! It's ok to be nervous. Everyone is. But we gotta do it anyway! You have to be able to express yourself, to talk FOR yourself in front of people so no one does it for you. It's your voice. A voice is an instrument and me must learn how to play it." You may ask me, "So, what's number 2?" Death. In America people are more scared of talking in front of people than dying. 

"Has anyone raised their hand to answer a question in class? Given a report in front of the school during a holiday? Presenting a book report or project? Been in a play? That's ALL public speaking." I start by giving the students tools they can use after our time together is finished. First we learn BODY MOVEMENT or GESTURE, POSTURE, VOCAL WARMUPS and FACIAL EXPRESSIONS. All these factors work in tandem with our WORDS and VOICE. 

We warm up our bodies to help blood circulation and speed up our heart rate which gives us more energy while speaking. Your energy must move your audience!

We learn how to stand in neutral position without swaying, no bent knees, tugging at our clothes or messing with our hands.  Head and chin up, shoulders, back, hands down, legs straight!

We practice warming up our voice to project, enunciate our words clearly so that we may be understood and exercise our mouths and tongues. We also learn how to breathe properly, from the diaphragm, to maintain breath over long sentences. I ask, "Why is enunciating important?" A student responds, "So people can understand what you're saying. If they can't hear you or understand you the message gets lost."

We warm up and massage our faces so that our expressions match the message. Our faces are great tools in communicating what and how we are feeling! For example, if you smile you'll begin to feel happier. Also, smiles are contagious. It's the easiest way to spread happiness to fellow citizens. 

Students are encouraged to do these warm-ups daily during their commute to camp!

One of our exercises was Firecracker Interview Questions.

I have a sheet with 30 numbered questions. "What's your favorite movie?" "Describe the qualities you like in a friend." "What annoys you?" "What would you save from your house?" Students must pick a random number. I ask the designated question. Students MUST speak for 1 minute. This sounds easier than it is. 1 minute is an awfully long time. We practice what a minute FEELS like. We organize our thoughts. I ask follow-up questions! I have a timer and give time-signals so they get a sense of budgeting their time. This is their first time up in front of the crowd! We applaud wildly! 





















One of our exercises was a theater improv game: FREEZE THEATER.

This improvisational, confidence-boosting game will challenge your child's ability to enter scenes smoothly and create continuing action.

What You Need:

• 3 or more kids or family members
• Sufficient floor space for active play
• Props such as pillows, chairs, books, and balls

What to Do:

1. Explain the concept of improvisational theater to the children. It is a type of acting that involves spontaneous action and dialogue. Tell them that the fundamental goal of freeze theater is to maintain the action, even if it seems silly. Remind them that freeze theater is not charades, so they can make noise and improvise lines during the scenes.
2. Select a volunteer to begin acting out a daily life action suggested by someone else. Simple actions, such as washing the car, brushing your teeth, waking up in the morning, or doing homework work well. She can also try more inventive actions, such as blowing out candles on a birthday cake, running through the sprinklers, or pushing a shopping cart with a bad wheel around a grocery store.
3. As the actor engages in the suggested action, the other participants watch the performance. At one point, an audience member will shout, "freeze!" The actor freezes in the current position. Either prompt the frozen actor for a line relevant to her current position, or have the child who shouted "freeze" join the scene and direct the current pose to a new activity.
4. The two actors continue until someone else yells, "freeze" and then taps one of the frozen actors on the shoulder. The actor will leave the scene as the person who froze the action joins it, assuming the same position. The new actor must provide a line or a new direction for the scene.

If you have a larger group, create a finale by having actors join the scene one by one until everyone is participating. Direct the final scene to culminate with a frenzy of action, such as a disco dance contest, an Olympic race, or clowns piling into a clown car.

The only thing it takes to be a great public speaker is PRACTICE. John Ritter, the late great comedian said, "Improv with an E is IMPROVE!"