Tips for High School Speech Team Competitors

If you're a member of a high school speech team, you already know the countless hours of practice and dedication that this activity entails. However, newbies to the team may need a while to get used to the lingo, rules, and hints that can make or break a competitor. As a former high school competitor, I too was in the position of having to learn the unwritten rules of speech. The following 20 tips will help to understand speech and know what to expect during the competition season.

1.Know the lingo! A "round" is a scheduled block of time when a small number of competitors will compete together in a room. A competition is usually 3 preliminary rounds, plus a final round. A "schematic" is a schedule of the speakers, with your speaker code and rooms where you will compete. "Double-entered," or DE, means you have two events meeting at the same time, so you will write on the chalkboard in one room saying you are DE and will be late. A "pop" is a quick switch from one character to another.

2.Know how events are scored. The best speaker in the room will receive a 1, and the lowest speaker will receive a 6 or lower. Therefore, the competitor with the lowest amount of accumulated points throughout the day will move on to final rounds.

3.Be nice to your judge! You never know who the judge is in the room, so be on your best behavior. During one competition, a competitor was incredibly obnoxious and bad-mouthed many other competitors. You wouldn't believe how surprised he was when he found out I was the judge.

4.But don't be overly nice to your judge. We can sense a suck-up easily. Sucking up won't hurt your score, but it won't help it either.

5.Guard your book with your life. With all the supplies you will bring with, it's easy to leave your book at home or misplace it during the competition. Double check that you have it when you leave each round.

6.Don't share Impromptu topics. Besides being cheating, it also doesn't leave you with any edge in the competition. Also, don't stand next to the door to listen to someone else's speech.

7.Buy plastic page covers for your book. It looks professional, it makes your page turns easier, and it will make your event much easier.

8.Memorize your prose or verse piece. Even though you're supposed to look like you are reading your piece, that's an illusion. You need to know your piece inside out so that you don't have to rely on the book.

9.Don't prep Impromptu for longer than 2 minutes. Before competitions, practice outlining speeches and time yourself. Also, make a list of topics you know a lot about that you can pop into any speech.

10.In timed events like Impromptu and Extemp, stop speaking at 8 minutes. If you're doing Radio, stop at 5:05. It's better to not finish than to be dropped to last place for going over time.

11.Practice page turns for your book events. Keep your finger tucked in behind the page to keep it easy. Also, convey emotion in your page turns. For instance, if you're angry, turn the page quickly.

12.Talk to the wall to warm up. The wall isn't going to judge you. Don't feel silly about this, as you'll see many people doing this as well. Go through all the motions of your speech to warm up.

13.Make great eye contact during your speech. Pick one member of the audience and speak directly to them, then move to the next one. Do a sweep of the room. Don't focus only on the judge. Conversely, don't only look at the judge. Also, don't stare at the ceiling, wall, or above people's heads.

14.If you mess up, pause and remain composed. You'll forget a word or line, and that's okay. Everyone understands and will wait for you to pick up where you left off. One of my friends messed up and swore in front of the room, which landed her in last place. Had she just started over, she may have had a much different placing.

15.Practice gestures in the mirror before you compete. Gestures don't always come naturally, so you will want to see what works in which part of your speech. Don't just leave your hands hanging limply; use them too emphasize your points.

16.Make character pops smooth and natural. Again, practice in front of a mirror. The best character pops happen so fast that you don't even see the competitor switch from one person to another. Also, make sure your character's voices are different enough so that the audience doesn't get confused.

17.Don't write a script with a million characters. Have a few major and minor characters, but don't get buried beneath all of them. Make sure the audience knows which ones are important.

18.Invest in a great suit. Part of speech is speaking well, but the other part is presenting a great image. A great suit helps make you look professional and prepared. Ladies, invest in great accessories as well. Guys, have a great, eye -catching tie, but stay away from the novelty ones.

19.For throat problems, bring water, honey, lemon, cough drops, candy, or throat spray. Speech is very hard on your vocal cords, so you need to rest and protect them as much as possible.

20.Be a gracious competitor. Speech is a competitive activity, but you should also strive to meet students from other schools. Shake hands, congratulate others when they do well, give hugs, and be nice to others.

These tips should help any newbie get acquainted to the speech world. Although the first few competitions can be nerve-wracking, you will become better and better over time. Good luck to all the competitors this season!