Our Public Speaking Hummingbirds workshop is a beginner level program.

It is designed for students with little (or even no) public speaking experience at a late primary school level, and is perfect for shy and confident students alike!

We generally recommend that students who have done our Marsupials programs (such as our Koalas and Kangaroos holiday workshops, or our Wallabies and Wombats term classes) still do our Public Speaking Hummingbirds course.

If your child has some public speaking experience and you’re not sure whether the beginner Hummingbirds or experienced Hawks public speaking program would suit them best, please get in touch and we’d be more than happy to discuss which is most appropriate for your circumstances!

Over the course of the workshop, students will be:

• exposed to techniques that help build confidence and overcome fears, particularly by changing the narrative around public speaking more generally;
• introduced to the key components for preparing a speech, with a focus on developing ideas (matter) and structuring them into a persuasive presentation (method);
• shown how to effectively speak in front of an audience (manner); and
• given various opportunities to present both impromptu and prepared speeches to the class.

Day #1

Beginning with a couple of activities to help settle students into the class environment, the first day centres around understanding the relationship between speakers and their audience, and what will best engage them.  Using a range of different activities, students are exposed to the three M’s of public speaking – matter, method and manner – in a practical setting.

Day #2

On the second day, students place a much greater focus on speech structure, and how best to craft a speech that engages their audience.  Covering the main elements of a persuasive speech – including introductions, bodies and conclusions – students are given all the building blocks they need to present a solid speech to their peers at the end of the program.

Students are also exposed to a range of other impromptu activities to help them develop their speaking manner and confidence.

Our classes vary in size every holiday depending on how many bookings we receive – however, the maximum size of our Public Speaking Hummingbirds class is 10 students with one coach, and 16 students with two coaches.

If there aren’t any spots left, it’s usually because we’ve hit capacity – please get in touch with us and we’ll see what we can do about either opening an extra class, fitting your child into the existing class, or putting you on a waitlist in case any students pull out!

After each program, students will go home with:

• a personal feedback sheet prepared by their coach, which goes through what they’ve improved on, and what still needs some work;
• a certificate recognising their achievements at the workshop;
• a booklet that includes all the concepts they’ve covered over the course of the program, as well as any notes that they’ve taken
• a completed persuasive speech, which they deliver to their peers at the end of the second day; and
• hopefully a changed narrative in their mind, where public speaking is something to enjoy rather than fear!

If you’re interested in doing another holiday program, we would recommend that students move onto either:

• our Debating Hummingbirds program, which covers the fundamentals of debating – a very different presentation style to public speaking; or
• our Public Speaking Hawks program, which takes things a step further, giving students the opportunities to develop their public speaking skills in a range of different contexts.

Alternatively, if you’re keen on a weekly term program, we would recommend either our Public Speaking Parrots program, or our Debating Parrots program.  Both programs go into more depth on persuasive speeches and policy debates respectively, and are the perfect way to ensure that students retain and build upon what they’ve learned over the holiday period!