TED Talk Assignment

Public Speaking TED Talk Assignment

Choose a topic that you are passionate about and one that you want to share with others. Consider also how engaging your topic will be to your audience (your peers mainly, although the wider Cheshire Academy community could be included in your audience). Make sure your topic is narrow enough so your speech will not be too vague, but also make sure it is not too narrow so that you will have enough material to fill approximately 5 minutes of speaking.  There is a lot of freedom in choosing a topic, and your topic may get refined as you begin your research and consider what you truly want to say.

The video should be 5-10 minutes long, with about 5 minuted of speaking. A five-minute speech, spoken at an average rate, should be approximately 650 words long, so that should be your guideline for your TED talk. All talks need to contain the following elements:

1.       A title and an engaging opening strategy or “hook” that catches the audience’s attention

2.       Well-organized content (different and separate sub-topics)

3.       At least three credible sources on your topic, quoted  and listed in a works cited

4.       At least 7 interesting images or videos

5.       A clear “Takeaway” for the audience: boiling down your main point to a few sentences

6.       A strong closing strategy to leave the audience with something profound to think about

7.       Final credits/works cited

This project will be a multi-step process. First, you need to brainstorm and choose a topic. Then, you need to complete substantive research (the final calls for at least 3 credible sources, but you may need to consult as many as 10 sources until you find the appropriate information). Next, you will write and revise several drafts of your talk. Finally, you will turn your ideas into a multimedia TED talk using iMovie.

Due dates:

List of sources: May 5
Summary of research: May 7
1st draft (written): May 11
1st draft (video): May 14
Final drast: May 19