IEW Introduction to Public Speaking review -

Today I’m sharing an IEW Introduction to Public Speaking review, but before I do, I have a story. A few days ago I attended an awards ceremony for my daughter who is a senior in high school. There were about 500 people in attendance and a number of teachers stood up to announce their students’ awards. I was immediately struck by the variety in speaking comfortability that many of them had. Some didn’t understand how to use a mic and were so far away from it, we could hardly hear them. Some kept speaking when they turned their heads, so we missed every other phrase (reminded me of Lina Lamont in Singing in the Rain!). Others spoke too fast or too quietly. Others nervously laughed or mumbled their words. Some were simply so apprehensive they made mistakes without even realizing it.

My daughter’s teacher said my daughter went to a particular high school in our area instead of saying she was homeschooled. When he announced that she had won a prestigious honor — winning the state competition in Nail Care for SkillsUSA and will be competing for the national competition in Georgia in June, no one even heard it because he was so quiet. I asked my daughter about it after the ceremony, and she replied, “He hates public speaking.”

Well, you know what? That’s not a good excuse.

We ALL need to master the skill of public speaking, or at least get to the point where we can be confident enough to get in front of an audience of 500 and speak clearly enough to be understood.

Disclosure: I was provided this curriculum from IEW so that I could effectively and honestly review it here. I get commissions for purchases made through affiliate links in this post.

Fear of Public Speaking

Yes, I know that more people fear public speaking than they fear death. But, it is an essential skill in our society for this day and age. Our kids need to learn how to do public speaking and to practice it!

That’s where the new IEW Introduction to Public Speaking comes to our rescue! You will learn everything you need to learn about the skill of public speaking and get lots and lots of practice.

Introduction to Public Speaking from IEW

If you know anything about Andrew Pudewa, you know he is a master communicator. Yes, his curriculum at Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) is mostly about how to write well, but Andrew speaks all the time! He is at every homeschool conference (even many of the virtual ones), he can possibly be at.

And, he loves teaching students.

So, I was thrilled to be one of the early users of this brand-new course called Introduction to Public Speaking.

Would you like to win a set of the curriculum (value $99)? Scroll to the bottom to see the entry link!

IEW Introduction to Public Speaking review from I Choose Joy — My youngest daughter doing a book presentation

My Unboxing Video

Look inside the different components of the curriculum with my unboxing video. I show you what the Portable Wall guide includes, the scope and sequence, what’s in the student binder, and the teacher’s manual. Also part of the curriculum: 12 hours of streaming or DVD lecture teaching by Andrew Pudewa and his class of students.

Our Experience: Introduction to Public Speaking review

Since it’s so brand new, we’ve only been able to do the first two of twelve lessons. But, I’ve already added it to next year’s curriculum list because we will definitely finish it when we start back up in the fall!

I used the course with three of my kids, ages 12, 14, and 16. Each lesson has an online streaming video to watch plus a workbook that includes places to take notes, plus poems, speeches, etc.

How we used Introduction to Public Speaking

Each day that we worked on the course, we’d watch part of the video and then stop to periodically to discuss it. My kids wrote down answers and practiced the concepts being taught. We opted to spread out a lesson over several days, rather than following the specific schedule laid out in the teacher’s guide where they recommended watching the entire video lesson in one sitting. (See a sample of the Teacher’s Guide here –click Samples– which gives a suggested schedule to follow.)

What my kids have learned so far

In only the first two lessons, my kids have learned:

how to deliver a speech from a keyword outline
some really specific memory techniques to try out so they can decide which one works best for them
how to critique others’ speeches
Speaker Evaluation Techniques: poise, locution, contact, and content
how to organize a speech and how it relates to writing an essay
They have memorized a poem, delivered it, and gotten critiques on it
They have begun memorizing a speech from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar!

Here is some of the notebook work they did:

Creating a keyword outline from a speech to use as a cheat sheet during a presentation:

Learning to take notes from Andrew Pudewa’s lecture:

Techniques for memorizing a poem:

And, I just liked the pictures she drew on this page:

What’s still to come in the curriculum for us

We take off school for the summer, but when we get back to it in late August, we’ll work on the 10 final lessons of Introduction to Public Speaking.

Yet to learn and do:

the body of a speech
deliver one stanza “Friends, Romans, Countrymen”
the introduction and conclusion of a speech
deliver one stanza of “Casey at the Bat”
prepare narrative speech
present a five-minute self-introductory speech
two primary speech goals
prepare expository speech
deliver a seven-minute narrative speech
three modes of persuasion
prepare a persuasive speech
deliver a seven-minute expository speech
extensive memory techniques
prepare impromptu speech
deliver a ten-minute persuasive speech
various speech opportunities
present a five-minute impromptu speech

Exciting stuff, huh?

My Thoughts about Introduction to Public Speaking

One thing I really love about this course is that there are students in the class that Andrew Pudewa is interacting with. He’s not just delivering the lecture to my own students through the video. We see those other students ask and answer questions. It feels much more interactive and engaging this way!

This course would be perfect for teaching at a homeschool co-op or even just having one more family come over to your house to join you!

This is IEW’s copyright concerning copying:

Home use: The purchaser may copy this Student Book for use by multiple children within his or her immediate family. Each family must purchase its own Student Book.
Small group or co-op classes: Each participating student or family is required to purchase a Student Book.
A teacher may not copy from this Student Book.
Classroom teachers: A Student Book must be purchased for each participating student. A teacher may not copy from this Student Book.

**What do you think of this Introduction to Public Speaking review? Are you encouraged to try it? Have you already used it? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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