WRITING POWERFUL INTRODUCTIONS
OVERVIEW
This activity helps students to create
powerful and memorable openings for their
speeches. Valuable to any students who need
to deliver a speech and ideal preparation for
the ESU’s public speaking competition.
TASK
OBJECTIVES
• To understand the importance of a
strong introduction
• To have an opportunity to practise
preparing and delivering
introductions
• To have an opportunity to learn
through giving and receiving peer-topeer feedback
Lead a short discussion with the class about what a good speech opening might be like. What
should it be trying to do? How might we go about achieving this?
A good opening should try to grab the audience’s attention, make them listen and want to hear
more. We can use both content and delivery to achieve this.
Try to have one clear idea in an opening. This might be something small, like a specific fact or
a story; it might be something big, a broad, sweeping concept. Whatever the content of the
opening try to make it clear and interesting. Dress it up with words and imagery that are
attention grabbing.
Next, think about delivery. Use body language, eye contact and variations in the voice to grab
attention and reinforce the thrust of the opening.
Now ask everyone in the class to choose an everyday object. This can be big or small, common
or very rare, something from the home, from school or from round and about their community.
Next they are going to prepare the start of a speech, and their topic is their chosen object.
Give the class a few minutes to prepare, bearing in mind the points discussed above. No
matter how ordinary their object try to find something that can make it sound interesting.
Divide the class into group of 4 or 5. One at a time students should deliver their opening to the
rest of their group. The rest of their group (the audience) then have to discuss and find 3
pieces of feedback to give to the speaker. They need to find 2 things that they liked and that
worked well, and 1 suggestion for something that could be improved. Encourage students to
write down ideas about all the different ways they can make an opening impactful.
Variation
Change things around by picking a different category than everyday objects. Countries,
activities, even abstract concepts could all work. For an even bigger challenge allow students
to choose for each other!