outlining your speech

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Here is a general method of outlining your speech that I urge you to use:

                                          Outline Format

Hook – this is the opening statement to your speech. It should be a statement that arouses interest and makes your reader/audience want to read or hear more. You pique their interest and they want to know more!

Thesis Statement (TS) – this is the main focus of your speech and I suggest it always be explicit. You want to first tell the audience what you are going to tell them and this is done in the TS. Make it explicit by listing the three points of your speech, not just by stating something like this: There are three reasons why cars are necessary, but rather like this: The three reasons cars are necessary are they are used to get people from point A to point B, they are used in emergencies, and they are useful for family transportation. See the difference between explicit and implied? Making your TS explicit is the best way to inform your audience in beginning speeches.

Support – These are the words in at least three body paragraphs that follow your TS in order of what you have listed for the three points. Use one paragraph to write about each point. Please have at least five sentences per paragraph since that can help ensure that you have enough support for that point. 

Conclusion – In the conclusion, you will want to restate your TS but not in the exact same words you used in the introduction paragraph. Just use slightly different wording to say the same thing without boring your readers/audience with the same words from the introduction. Then you will want to end your conclusion with the last statement that will leave the audience with a warm and fuzzy feeling that appeals somehow to the emotions. We suggest this technique because it is known that folks remember the first and last of speeches, most times, and you should always want to make your speech memorable, so end with a memorable statement.