So I'm looking at the secondary requirements for PA and it says "English, to include language, literature, speech and composition" What would classify as speech? I remember in school having to get in front of the class and give different speeches, some how to type things and what not, but what would we do in a homeschool setting that would be classified as giving a speech? I'm sure I could have him give some in front of the family, but I don't see very many oppertunities for public speaking in our (near) future.
I know our co-op has offered speech classes before. Is there an opportunity for him to do reading or such at Church sometime?
No coops here and we do not go to church (not Christian). He used to be in scouts which offered some oppertunies but not any longer.
Our home school support group offers a debate team that is led by a local university professor. Maybe you can get something like that started in your area. The group was started by a local homeschooling parent whose child wanted to debate. Blessings, Susan
For Crystal we used Speech for Effective Communication. It is a public school textbook from 1999 that I got brand new at a thrift store. It covers The Communication Process, Interpersonal Relationships, Public Speaking, Speaking for a Purpose, Democratic Process and Performing Arts. I don't know if that helps you any but that is what is covered in this Speech textbook by Harcourt Brace and Company.
The book Beth talking about is great.. Or have him speak at a library story time we did that with the girls. Or a nursing home that works the old people love them coming in.
Thank you Beth!! I will look it up! Susan... homeschoolers (other than Amish) are very few and far between here, or so it seems. I'm not too worried about covering anything this coming year which will be 8th grade (provided he comes home, there is some things he has to meet in order for me to bring him home next year, but he is trying hard <at least for now>), but I never put much thought into the secondary requirements before.
Just found it on Amazon for 67 cents!!! Can't beat that! Now what does it mean by "language".... that is like grammar topics and maybe like a bit of vocab and spelling right?
Thanks Kris, never thought of a nursing home. Our library is kind of weird, but may lead me to other ideas.
When I was a kid, my parents signed me up for a local group called "Toastmasters". There was a monthly meeting, where you'd go and, in turn, make an impromptu speech on a randomly given topic. After the 5 minute speech, the others would tell you which bits they thought were good and how to improve the other bits. I (and my two friends who were there also) quickly became very good at impromptu speaking, which made future job interviews, arguments, and even high-stakes socialising a piece of cake. It was one of the most valuable things I did as a child, because when you think about it, a lot of important situations in life depend on how well you can speak when put on the spot. I say find a local debating club or similar. It really is an underrated skill. Doing spoken reports and presentations at home are a good idea too, especially if you can find a list of what makes a good and a bad speaker and apply it after a while. But do try to join a club, since speaking in front of family and speaking in front of strangers are quite different skills.
I completely forgot about Toastmasters until you brought it up! A previous workplace had an adult chapter for that group. I never had the chance to attend due to my particular position in the company, but I know it was very popular!
Boy I really live in a "behind the times" part of the country..lol never heard of Toastmasters either. It sounds really fun though.
Sommer I am with ou I never heard of the Toastmaster. It does sound fun. I wonder if we have one here. Sommer I also thought of FFA do you have anything like that in the area. The girls did that and they had speeches there.
My ds had the op to go to a coop speech class last year but he did not want to. He does how ever do acting and speaking at VBS to help out, I may give him a lesson to teach this year so that I can add that in. But I think his drama classes cover that if I get to teach it I add in a unit on public speaking and have them take the mic and sit/ stand in front of the class with a speech planned out and execute it. This really helped one young man come out of his shell.
Kris, FFA here is through the school, they actually can join extra curriculars, but I'm thinking 4H is something I want to look into, I want to raise a few more critters here.. some chickens and sheep, we have space for horses and cows but don't think I can afford to keep them.. so we will have to stick with smaller critters (and yes we need more animals like we need a whole in our heads...lol). I think 4H would give some oppertunities. Now to find a group that not everyone complains about around here.
4H sounds like a good option, Sommer. Maybe the library has a "book club" for discussions that would qualify? Drama (either a class or "Little Theater" group?) if there's one around you somewhere. I would think that he could produce his own videos at home -- write the script, perform it, video-record it, critique it himself; he could choose to do several different formats to get a balance: a commercial, a lecture (information about a topic you choose together, as though he were teaching a class), a book review with quite a bit of discussion (more like Book TV on C-Span than like Reading Rainbow on PBS), a news program (perhaps with sports and weather included), a comedy routine, a demonstration (like how to make something), reading aloud for young children, a soliloquy from a play or a dramatic reading of a work of poetry...
Lindina.. I'm glad you said that...lol I really thought about having him do some videos... but thought maybe I was off my rocker just a bit there. Not sure why, at first thought it was a brilliant idea, then I was like I bet it would be dorky and well maybe not quite countable as speech.
I just remembered about Toastmasters. There are groups all over the country. I would be surprised if there is not one some where by you.
I've heard of Toastmasters. The Optimist Club also does an annual oratorical contest that I participated in when I was in middle school. But...speech doesn't have to be "public" to be a speech. When we were studying Rome, my daughter dressed in a toga and read an "oration", and I videotaped it. We had a couple of those. (She does have other opportunities at church though.)
