The Thesis Statement by: Abbey Lovett

What is the point of a thesis statement? Is it valuable? Here, in this article, Abbey Lovett (soon to be Kish), briefly explores the topic of the thesis statement for Speech and Debate. For more of Abbey’s awesome teaching- join her this Fall as she brings students on a deeper understanding of Impromptu,  through her – Lasting Impact! Online Impromptu Club. Sign up NOW! For more information, click here.

The Thesis Statement. Such an ominous and scary concept. Or at least that’s how I felt as a young communicator. In fact, I hardly ever used a thesis in my presentations because I couldn’t grasp the concept. What makes a good thesis statement? How do I make a thesis statement that fully grasps what I want to talk about? How do I present that statement in the speech?

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National Impromptu Prep Meeting – May 31

According to National Impromptu Champion, Abbey Lovett, “The most overlooked event heading into Nationals is Impromptu and yet, it usually has the most amount of competitors. If you want to climb the ranks in Impromptu at the National Competition, you need to go in prepared.”

This Nationals workshop will take you through everything you need to know to succeed at nationals from the moment you walk into the competition room to the moment you leave (and much more) through the excellent instruction of Abbey Lovett.

Impromptu Nationals Prep:
– Reflecting on the year: what has worked, what hasn’t worked, how do you improve on that? Nationals is all about taking your biggest successes and enhancing them so they stand against the most competition you’ll ever see.

– At home prep for Nationals: How to research, practice, and collect stories as you’re preparing to leave for Nationals.

– At tournament prep: How to best use your time before each round to make sure your mind is prepared.

– Creating content: Judges at nationals are looking for the perfect combination of content, stories, and humor. Learn how to best organize your prep to give you the time you need to bring all of that to the table.

– Standing apart from the competition: How to catch the judges’ attention and keep it.

– Organizing your speeches in a memorable way.

– Presenting under pressure: Nationals can be scary! Especially once you start competing in elimination rounds. We’ll discuss some of the top strategies for not cracking under the pressure.

– Storytelling: How to tell compelling and inspiring stories that grab your audience’s attention and makes them remember your speech long after you’ve left the room.

WHEN: Thur. May 30

TIME: 7:00-8:30pm CT (PLUS a half hour one on one session with Abbey)

WHERE: An online Zoom meeting.

FOR: Nationals prep, but all are welcome.

COST: $25 members/$40 non members

Note:  If you purchase the session but are unable to attend,  we can still send you the link!

Register here!

 

Online Impromptu Class – Fall 2018 – Register NOW

Are you looking to start the next speech season off in the right direction? Have you wanted to learn how to better prepare for Iimited prep type speeches… specifically impromptu?

Lasting Impact! is where it is at! Every Thursday evening 7:00-8:00 CT, Abbey Lovett (soon to be Kish), 2016 NCFCA Impromptu Champion, will guide beginning and advanced competitor’s through the basics of impromptu. Learn techniques, gather information, and analyze ideas in an online community setting. There will be guest speakers, activities, and practical application to have you ready and more prepared to compete in the up coming Speech and Debate Season.

Sign Up NOW! Space is limited.

$50 for Lasting Impact! members
$75 for non members
Fall 2018 Semester- Sept. 13 – Dec. 13

Online Impromptu Workshop- April 13

Come join Lasting Impact! and our very own 2016 Impromptu Champion, Abbey Lovett for an must do impromptu workshop! Whether you need some fine tuning before Regionals or you want to get a jump start on next year, this is something you do not want to miss! This online workshop is for beginning and advanced students, as well as coaches.

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Impromptu – Practicing (part 3) By: Kaitlyn Butts

“Prepare to be Unprepared:” Practicing Impromptu Every Day

In the world of speech and debate- Interpretative speeches require hours of cutting, blocking, and intensive rehearsal. Platform speeches require brainstorming, editing, memorizing, and regular repetition to keep them stored solidly in your mind. Apologetics requires studying theology and searching for Scriptures. Extemporaneous, at least theoretically, requires surveying the weekly news highlights and becoming familiar with the political mindset of various sources. Impromptu offers the luxurious opportunity to compete in a speech event without doing a lick of work. Wrong. Participating in impromptu offers such an opportunity. The entire point of speech and debate, however, is not mere participation, but visible growth both in character and capability. Mastering impromptu and honing your ability to think on your feet requires rigorous practice. While you can never prepare for a specific impromptu round, you should be perpetually preparing to be unprepared. Practice impromptu every single day.

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Impromptu – Storytelling (part 2) By: Kaitlyn Butts

“Once Upon a Time:” Storytelling, Impromptu, and Human Interaction

Once you’ve caught the vision and built a system, it’s time to develop a confident and persuasive impromptu style. It’s quite likely that if you’re just getting started with impromptu, you’re also new to the very idea of delivering speeches. The good news is that impromptu is the best way to improve your vocal and physical delivery. Storytelling is the powerful key in speech and debate that will simultaneously unlock your impromptu potential in four ways…

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Impromptu- Mind Mapping (part 1) By: Kaitlyn Butts

Impromptu Intimidation

Impromptu strikes fear into the heart of almost every speech and debate competitor when they begin their speech journey. I remember being handed a slip of paper with the word “joy” on it one day in speech club when I was twelve years old. After two minutes of preparation time, I stood in front of my peers and mumbled about how joy was different than happiness for approximately thirty seconds. Sound familiar?

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