INVITING AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT

pulling transitions
1) silence
2) movement/gestures
3) internal summaries

pushing transitions
1) visual aids
2) questions
3) sequences/numbering

HOLIDAY DANCE PARTY

was my table topic, this morning so I did a commercial for the Diggers Christmas Concert and for Hillside (which should be a holiday).

The speech I had to evaluate was called "The Birth Partner" and I commended the speaker for his pre-home-birth-planning as the husband/father/birth partner in the home birth I was lucky enough to be present for was soooooooooooooooooooo ILL (non) prepared. I also suggested that they were in it together for whatever the universe has in store for them (vs. speaker's perspective of his job being to support his wife in the birth she desires) and was a little surprised when ppl laughed. And the General Evaluator said that the the suggestions I made to the speaker about his presentation skills were two pieces of good advice... I was glad I actually hauled myself out of bed on time to make it to the meeting!

TABLE TOPICS MASTER ROLE:

When introduced, you walk up smartly to the lectern at the front, smile and shake right hands with the Chair person. When he/she is seated, you address "Chair, Toastmasters and Guests" and say your brief introductory piece.

If the Chair has not said these things already, tell us (making necessary changes to fit your TableTopic plan):
"You have less than a minute to prepare.The goal is to have an "opening", a thought or two, and an "ending" within one minute. When finished, we vote for the best presentation. The winner gets a Trophy -- to keep for the rest of the meeting. You will receive an envelope with topics in it...
Guests should feel free to take a topic, look for a good one, or just pass it on if they would rather not speak. Speakers and Evaluators have the privilege of passing.

No-one should pick a topic until the person next to them has stood up to speak -- so everyone will have the same time to prepare.

The Timer will turn on the "green" light at 30 seconds, the "amber" light at 45 seconds and the "red" stop light at 60 seconds -- when we will applaud.

Use the word of the week a few times and you may earn two trophies!"
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There are many variations in how to do Table Topics.

One way is to write the topics on small pieces of paper and put them all in an open box or envelope for easy access. If the topics are not folded it is easier for people to "peek" at several before they take one. This is a mixed blessing.

Another way is to have a big bag of objects (or envelope of picture clippings) which apply to the meeting Theme and ask people to pull one out to talk about.

Hand around a book or dictionary. Have us open it at random, announce the first significant word on the top left page, and speak on it.

HARVEST

"Maybe "Communicating on Television" is one of the Advanced Manuals that you would find interesting. They are listed in the Communications Manual and on the Toastmasters International website at //www.toastmasters.org"

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its true that i thought i was attending as a spectator for the humour contest and ended up accidentally re-joining the cult -- taking on a role for next week no less... ha!

dues are due, so i guess you could say i am on hiatus.

VOICE PROFILE

Loudness or Volume
Too quiet 1 2 3 4 5 Good Projection
Inaudible 1 2 3 4 5 Easily Heard
Flat 1 2 3 4 5 Vibrant/Dynamic

Pitch
High 1 2 3 4 5 Low
Shrill 1 2 3 4 5 Full
Monotonous 1 2 3 4 5 Varied

Voice Quality
Nasal 1 2 3 4 5 Open
Breathy 1 2 3 4 5 Clear
Harsh/raspy 1 2 3 4 5 Mellow
Lifeless 1 2 3 4 5 Enthusiastic

Articulation/Word Usage
Slushy 1 2 3 4 5 Clear
Lazy lips 1 2 3 4 5 Crisp
Tangled tongue 1 2 3 4 5 Controlled
Tight Jaw 1 2 3 4 5 Projection
Mumbling 1 2 3 4 5 Pronunciation

Timing/Rate
Jerky 1 2 3 4 5 Smooth
Slow/plodding 1 2 3 4 5 Fluent
Unvaried 1 2 3 4 5 Varied/exciting
Hesitant 1 2 3 4 5 Deliberate

Vocal Variety
Emotionless 1 2 3 4 5 Conveys emotion
Unfriendly 1 2 3 4 5 Genial
Strained 1 2 3 4 5 Natural
Dull 1 2 3 4 5 Vital

EVALUATING THE BODY'S SPOKEN IMAGE - Judge Worksheet

Posture
Nervous/Uneasy 1 2 3 4 5 Poised
Uncertain 1 2 3 4 5 Confident
Uncomfortable 1 2 3 4 5 Comfortable
Slouching 1 2 3 4 5 Erect
Stiff 1 2 3 4 5 Relaxed


Gestures
Artificial/Wooden 1 2 3 4 5 Natural/Spontaneous
Random 1 2 3 4 5 Meaningful
Passive 1 2 3 4 5 Lively
Furtive 1 2 3 4 5 Expansive
Vague 1 2 3 4 5 Precise
Detacted from verbal message 1 2 3 4 5 Enhanced verbal message

Body Movements
Lifeless/dull 1 2 3 4 5 Fluid/animated
Awkward 1 2 3 4 5 Graceful
Random 1 2 3 4 5 Purposeful
Drew attention away from speech 1 2 3 4 5 Enhanced attentiveness to speech

Facial Expression
Deadpan 1 2 3 4 5 Animated
Unfriendly 1 2 3 4 5 Friendly
Artificial 1 2 3 4 5 Natural/genuine
Incongruent 1 2 3 4 5 Appropriate to content

Eye Contact
Forced/artificial 1 2 3 4 5 Natural/smooth
Followed set pattern 1 2 3 4 5 No set pattern
Did not establish visual bonds 1 2 3 4 5 Established bonds with listeners