Success Over the Weekend

6 members from the speech team competed in the WACFL 2 speech tournament at Rock Ridge High School on Saturday. At the speech tournaments there are 7 events which students can choose a max of 2 to compete in for the day. Students have the option to compete in declamation, dramatic performance, duo performance, extemporaneous, impromptu, oral interpretation, and oral oratory.

1 of the team members competed in extemporaneous speaking which requires students to perform a speech on an original synthesis of the current fact and opinion on the designated topic they are given as presented by numerous sources. Students are given a 30 minute time frame to prepare themselves using news clippings and other resources they have spent compiling prior to the tournament. They are not granted internet access or access to other resources during their preparation time. Once the 30 minutes have elapsed, students then perform their speech and are given a 7 minute time limit. Each round of competition (4 in total), they are given a different topic to speak on.

1 of the team members competed in oral oratory which requires students to prepare in advance a persuasive essay on a topic of interest which they believe they can get the judge to agree with. They practice and memorize the speech leading up to the tournament and then perform the same speech 4 different times and are given a 10 minute time limit to perform the speech each time.

The other 4 members competed in impromptu which requires students to prepare their speech on the spot without consultation and without reference to prepared notes or research materials. Speeches are of the persuasive nature. There are a total of 4 rounds they compete in, and each round will be on different topic that could be on quotations, proverbs, ordinary objects, events, and famous people. Students are given a total of 7 minutes which they must use time management to prepare what they want to talk about on a note card, as well as orally perform their speech.

Of the 6 students who competed, 4 of them placed in the top 6 of their respective categories.

• Sofia Perrone (junior) 1^st place in extemporaneous speaking
• Matthew Hauser (senior) 1^st place in impromptu speaking
• Anton Sheriden-Kuchmek (senior) 6^th place in impromptu speaking
• Delaney Parks (junior) 6^th place in oral oratory

All 4 of these students are now eligible to compete in the WACFL Metro-finals at the end of February. If the students in extemporaneous and oratory place in the top 6 at metro-finals, they are then eligible for nationals. Unfortunately, impromptu is not a national event at this time in the NCFL in which WACFL is a part of.