Speaking in front of a crowd is difficult, but, at the same time, it is a useful ability that Speech Club can help MHS students develop.

Speech club started in late January this year, with tournaments every Saturday. The final tournament occurred March 16th at Roseville High School.

“You should practice a lot and know what you are doing. You have to be confident. I think that helped me break into finals,” said Steven Wang, ‘21.

There are fifteen total categories in each speech tournament, as listed below.

1. In Creative Expression, competitors write their own story.
2. Discussion is a group effort to reach a solution to a problem.
3. Drama competitors create a speech using a play or other published work.
4. For duo interpretation, speakers pair up and interpret one or more selections from a published source.
5. Extemporaneous reading is where students draw a section of a book that they will prepare to perform in a half hour.
6. In Extemporaneous speaking, competitors draw a prompt.
7. Great Speeches present a historically great speech.
8. Humorous Speeches try to make the judges laugh in 10 minutes.
9. Speakers in the Impromptu category draw from three prompts.
10. Informative Speeches inform the judges about a certain subject using visual aids.
11. Original Orators write a persuasive speech from scratch.
12. Poetic Speakers have to deliver poetry with emotion, meter, beat, pattern or structure.
13. Prose speeches usually have a heavy and depressing tone.
14. Program Oral Interpretation is a combination of prose poetry and drama.
15. Storytellers draw a prompt and students make a five minute speech, pretending like they are speaking to a young audience.

“Speech is helpful because you can develop public speaking skills, and it helps you become confident. You get to express yourself in different ways,” said Priscilla Bunday, ‘21, one of the speech captains.

Speech can positively influence students by helping them to express and discover themselves. Everything students learn from Speech will be a huge advantage in their life.