2025 Montfort EL P1 Speech Writing notes

Montfort Secondary School (Secondary 3) Page 1 SPEECH WRITING

Montfort Secondary School (Secondary 3) Page 7 Planning and Writing a Speech Step 1: Ask yourself these questions 1) What is the purpose of the speech? • To give information • To entertain the audience • To argue the case for or against something 2) Who is my audience? • Is the audience a specialised one? • Will they know the details I am going to say and hold strong opinions on the topic? • Is the audience male, female or mixed? • What is the average age of the people in the audience? • Does this matter for the topic of my talk? Step 2: Structure your speech 1) Your speech should have • An introductory statement • A series of arguments • A conclusion

Montfort Secondary School (Secondary 3) Page 8 Writing an Introduction 1. Begin with an interesting anecdote connected to the point of your essay/speech. I had a wonderful childhood. I was doted upon by my parents and grandparents. When I stepped into secondary school, gradually, in a very imperceptible way, I realised that I had left my childhood behind. (the opening of an essay on ‘The pains and joys of growing up’) 2. Start with a provoking idea or startling statistics By the time you finished reading the first paragraph of this essay, that is, the introduction – at least 200 people would have died of starvation. Every year over 4 million will die of hunger. (the opening of an essay on ‘The biggest problem the world is facing today’) 3. Use an interesting quotation or meaningful proverb. Before one seeks vengeance, one would do well to heed the old Chinese proverb, ‘Before you set off on revenge, dig two graves.’ (the opening of an essay titled ‘Do you agree with the statement that revenge is sweet?’) 4. Ask an interesting question or two, the answers of which will be the whole point of your speech/essay. How would you feel is you were taken against your will and caged up all day long for all to see? How would you feel if your freedom were removed from your existence, and when once you roamed the lands freely, you are now hemmed in by steel bars, with only a small square of sky above you? (the opening of an essay on ‘ “Zoos ought to be abolished.” Do you agree?’) 5. Make an appealing connection between current news and your topic. Recent news of Lance Armstrong’s confession of doping to Oprah on her talk show has stirred the sports world yet again. Armstrong is only one of the many sports casualties who have fallen to the clutches of steroids and drugs to win at all costs. (the opening of an essay on ‘Has sports lost its value and meaning?’) 6. Define key terms. ‘Emancipation’ means ‘freedom’ or ‘liberation’ and implies a release from old thinking and bonds to do as one wishes. There is no doubt that women today are more emancipated, that is, have much more freedom than in the last century. (the opening of an essay on ’What changes has the emancipation of women brought about?’) 7. Set up a ‘puzzle’ of details before revealing the topic. I bet you have it. Ten out of ten of your classmates have it. I bet again. From the humble ice cream man tot the all-important Chief Executive Officer of a mega- corporation, everybody seems to exude happiness at owning one. The ‘one’ I am talking about is the ubiquitous mobile phone. (the opening of an essay on ‘The mobile phone – is it a boon or bane?’)

Montfort Secondary School (Secondary 3) Page 9 Writing a conclusion End With a Bang! After you've laid out your ideas and arguments, it's a good idea to end your speech with a rousing conclusion. Leave people feeling excited and that's what they'll remember about you. For instance: "Together we can make this nation truly great. And togeth er we can build a better world for ourselves!" Transition • Think of a sentence that will make it clear to the audience that you have finished the body and are now coming to the end of the speech. Restatement of main points • Summarise your main ideas and think of which piece of information you really want the audience to remember. Close • Thank your audience for listening. • Think of a final sentence to help the audience remember your speech.

Montfort Secondary School (Secondary 3) Page 13 A Sample Speech Asthma Good morning to all students and teachers. My subject today touches on one of the most common everyday childhood illnesses in Singapore – asthma. Although I do not suffer from asthma myself, my own sister has had frequent attacks in the past and has been hospitalised twice. I want you to understand more about this illness so that, like me, you can support anyone you know who is a sufferer. If you do not know what asthma is, I will tell you. It is a lung condition that affects one person in every five families. It can affect anyone at any time and we are all at risk. Do you ever suffer from coughing and wheezing? Do you ever feel tight in the chest or short of breath? If so, you yourself may be suffering from this condition. The symptoms I have described are caused by the tubes in your lungs constricting and stopping the passage of air. This is what makes it difficult to breathe. As the airway tubes tighten, the wheezing and other symptoms start. I can tell you that it is extremely unpleasant to watch but even worse to suffer. If you suffer from asthma it may be because you have an allergy. The reason I say this is because research has shown that an asthma attack is triggered by certain things. These can be exercise, stress and excitement, or something as simple as dust mites in the atmosphere or animal fur from a cat or dog. My sister has severe asthma, and both my parents suffered mildly when they were young. I am lucky to escape because it is sometimes inherited. Unfortunately there is no cure. You may have seen people holding puffers and inhalers to their mouths. These devices help the sufferer to breathe more easily and relieve the symptoms. If you see anyone using an inhaler, spare them a thought, or if you see anyone in acute distress, after an asthma attack, call for help. You may well help them in a life and death situation. Thank you. Introduction Idea 2 Conclusion Idea 1 Middle Idea 3 Rhetorical questions Personal experiences Suggestions Personal anecdote Connect with audience Personal pronounce Hedging – use of modals to show probability Call for actions in the conclusion

Montfort Secondary School (Secondary 3) Page 14 Sample speech 2 Structure Speech Features / techniques Greeting and purpose Good morning Mr Lim and fellow classmates. As the ambassador for Fitness for Life programme in our class, I’m honoured to be sharing with you the upcoming campaign aimed at improving our physical fitness. It’s a known fact that the average sec ondary school student today is much less fit than he or she would have been 50 years ago. According to the results of a new World Health Organization (WHO) survey, about 76 per cent of Singapore adolescents aged between 11 and 17 years old do not get at least one hour of moderate -to-vigorous activity every day. Shocking, isn’t it? Most of us come to school by public transport, we sit at a desk all day, we go home again by public transport and spend the evening lazing in front of the TV or staring at the computer. Don’t you agree that such inactivity is not good for us? We can do much more to keep ourselves healthy, can’t we? Use of stats to make speech more reliable Quote name of organisation to make it sound credible Confirmation of the shocking stats Rule of 3 Use of personal pronouns – ‘we’ Tag question engage the listener or to verify that something has been understood. ‘But we don’t have time to keep fit.’ ‘But exercise is so boring,’ I hear some of you complain. Well, with the new