Informative Speech
“Obviously, a man’s judgment cannot
be better than the information on
which he has based it.”
-Arthur Hays Sulzberger, publisher
New York Times
Informative Speeches
Begin Next Week
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2nd Year Speech Students
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1st Year Speech Students
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Not less than 5 minutes
Pick a topic, make sure it is not persuasive
Not less than 3 minutes
Inform about a person you admire; must have
known the person
Audience will complete evaluations
Introduction
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Daily talk = much is giving instructions,
providing facts, or clarifying ideas
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Directions to the office
Tell friend what missed in class
How to do something
Explain what something is
How it works
How it’s used
You provide information to others every day
in a hundred different ways.
Introduction
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Simple to Complicated
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Basic to Complex
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Where’s the library vs. What is photosynthesis
Details about dance vs. giving oral presentation
based on research
Emphasis is on statements of fact
Goal is to make listeners understand
Types of Informative Speeches
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Describe an object
Explain a process
Clarify a concept
Opportunities for giving Informative Talks:
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Public Lecture
Status Report
Briefing
Fireside Chat
Chalk Talk
Public Lecture
Status Report
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Public Lecture
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Community group or club might want to hear
about your area of expertise or experience
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i.e. Garden Club/research on the super tomato
i.e. American Legion Auxiliary/Girls’ State experience
Status Report
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Businesses & Social Groups keep up to date on
various projects
What has been accomplished and plans for future
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i.e. Senior citizen group/senior social
Briefing
Fireside Chat
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Briefing
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Tell members of a group about changes in policy or
procedure
 Swim team/how-to order team shirts
 Yearbook staff/new layout plan
Fireside Chat
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Named for a series of radio broadcasts given by President
Franklin Roosevelt
Group leader addresses concerns, worries, and issues of
the moment
 Principal with parents/review school goals and policies
Chalk Talk
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Chalk Talk
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Speaker relies on a visual aid (like a chalkboard)
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Coach/shows team defense plan
Six Cs of Informative Speaking
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Be CLEAR
Be CONCISE
Be COMPLETE
Be CORRECT
Be CONCRETE
CONNECT
Goal response from listeners: “I understand
what you said.”
Be CLEAR
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Q: Is my speech so clear that everyone will
understand?
Being clear is neither easy nor simple
Define important words or phrases
Purpose of a definition is to create some
common ground between speaker and
listener.
BUT keep terms to a minimum
Be CLEAR
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Make distinctions
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Say what something is and what it is not
i.e. Space shuttles liquid fuel engines, which can
be turned off vs. solid fuel booster rockets, which
can’t
Anticipate ambiguous remarks
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“Can this point be taken more than one way?”
Be CLEAR
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Use compare/contrast technique
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i.e. Movies about Stephen King’s books
Compared to horror films of past: Phantom of the
Opera or Dracula
Contrast them with sci-fi films: Aliens or Star Wars
Be sure what you use for a comparison is
FAMILIAR to your listeners
Finally, balance the time spent to be clear
with other, competing values (like being
concise)
Be CONCISE
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Is my speech so concise that no one’s time
will be wasted?
“Please repeat that again.”
“These two are both alike.”
“These pens are identically the same.”
“She arrived at 8 a.m. this morning.”
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These phrases say the same thing twice.
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Be CONCISE
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Make each word count; use precise and
specific language.
Don’t say tree if you mean oak
Don’t say temporarily reassigned if you mean
fired
Increase your vocabulary
Be COMPLETE
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Is my speech complete?
Impossible to cover all possible material
related to a topic
You can, however, create a sense of
completion in the minds of the audience by
raising certain expectations and then
satisfying them.
Be COMPLETE
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Tell the audience you have three major
points.
Use transitions to highlight
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“First”
“Third”
Be COMPLETE
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Forecast what the audience can expect:
ADVANCE ORGANIZERS
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“I’m now going to present the three reasons local
officials have tried to censor rap music…”
The audience is listening for how many chunks of
information?
Introduce each reason with a reinforcing
statement, “Now let’s look at the first reason…”
Be COMPLETE
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Working from a plan forces you to put your
info in order
Helps listeners distinguish major from minor
points
Be CORRECT
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Am I confident that my information is
absolutely correct?
There is no substitute for being accurate.
Check and double-check accuracy of info
which goes to heart of your credibility
Convince your audience by telling them
where you found the info
Writing: footnotes/in-text citations
Speaking: must be more subtle
Be CORRECT
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Identify source briefly at end of info
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Or before the info
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“The verdict in the subway shooting trial was an
outrage to justice, according to an editorial writer
in this morning’s paper.”
“In an article in the February 27 issue of U.S.
News and World Report, we read that cheating on
standardized tests is widespread.”
You don’t need all the info that would appear
in a bibliographical citation.
Be CONCRETE
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Have I provided concrete examples so that
the audience can see my point?
Talk in terms of people, places, and things.
Avoid abstractions and generalities
Candy vs. Reese’s Pieces
Instead of general women’s soccer, focus on
a particular player.
Filmmakers vs. Spike Lee
Be CONCRETE
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“Most accidents happen at home.”
Only a vague idea at this point; immediately
followed by an example.
“Kerry Shea, a 14-year-old, said she ‘just lost
control’ of her toothbrush and swallowed it. ‘I
was brushing the back of my tongue,’ she
added, ‘because I saw on TV that it helps to
get a lot of sugar that way, when the
toothbrush slipped and I swallowed it.”
Be CONCRETE
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Concrete examples contain physical details.
Series of short examples
Long story-like example
NEVER let a general statement stand alone
without a supporting example
CONNECT
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Can I connect my speech with what I know
about my audience?
Analyze the people who will be in your
audience.
What do they know? Not know?
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If audience full of experts on how-to water ski, you
would find a way to highlight some less well
known aspect of the sport
CONNECT
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You can make some assumptions about an
audience by studying their demographics:
social, economic, and cultural characteristics.
CONNECT
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Checklist of Questions
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How many people will be present? What will be
the ages of most of the people in the audience?
Will the audience be mostly male, female, or
mixed?
What are their interests, attitudes, and beliefs?
What do they know about the subject?
What is their attitude toward it?
CONNECT
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Wrap-up:
Sensitivity to audience is one of the keys to
successful communication
Can’t choose audience, but can choose
speech to fit a particular audience.