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Wingin’ It

Tips for Coaching Impromptu Speaking

SPEAK 2025

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LaRue Co. H.S.

Eric Cecil

I am currently a Chemistry teacher at LaRue County High School, where I have been a Speech and Debate coach for over 20 years. In that time I have coached Kentucky State Champions in Impromptu, Oratory, and Extemporaneous Speaking, along with an NSDA champion in International Extemp.

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Prior to that I competed at the high school and college level, bringing home a national championship in Impromptu for WKU (Go Tops!).

Contact�eric.cecil@larue.kyschools.us

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A few rules reminders

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  • prep and minimum speaking times vary
    • HS: 7 min. total, 4 min. speaking
    • MS: 10 min. total, 3 min. speaking
  • single 3x5 notecard is allowed
  • time signals (verbal and hand) MUST be given by judges

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“Winging It” is really hard

Students need to master…

  • Content
  • Structure
  • Theme
  • Fluency

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You have to deliver something to the table

  • Students will need ideas
    • more important the younger they are
  • Have a clear thesis statement
  • Need clear connections to the prompt

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Topic Ideas:

  • The old standbys:
    • explain what the quote says
    • give examples that illustrate the message

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Even better…

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  • Examples from personal experience
  • Variety of examples
    • books vs. movies vs. shows vs. …
    • real vs. fiction
    • modern vs. historical
  • Contrast using non-examples
  • Disagree with the author or critique the message
    • can be risky, but really sets a speaker apart in the round

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  • don’t preach
  • avoid overly controversial topics
  • don’t stereotype
  • remember your audience: give context, especially for niche examples

Go easy on the spice!

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Structure - You Gotta Have Good Bones

  • Clear thesis statement
  • “roadmap” that gives a preview of main points
  • summary statement

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Theme - Give It Some Flavor

  • establish during the Intro/AGD
  • ideally, relates to the tone or phrasing in the quote
  • a little goes a looooong way - don’t overdo it

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But what about…

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  • Gather as a group and discuss quotes
    • meanings, literal and figurative
    • authors
    • historical and societal connections
  • The broader the scope of topics, the better
  • Variety of authors

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  • Individual on-the-clock prep, but no speech
    • idea generation
    • what to write on the notecard
    • multiple rounds
  • Give full speeches - eventually
    • debrief after every speech
    • redo same prompt

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A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way. Mark Twain

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The voice you believe will determine the future you experience Steven Furtick

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Nothing comes from doing nothing. William Shakespeare