Persuasive Speeches

A 12 Lesson Unit Plan by Megan Colson

Contact: megan.colson@mail.mcgill.ca

Important Information About this Document

Dear Reader,
If there is one truth that I have learned about teaching, it is that there are rarely
enough hours in the day to accomplish everything we want to do.
In an effort to alleviate some of the stress of being a teacher, I have designed
this LES to be as user-friendly as possible. Some notes to be aware of are:

In order to properly view this document and all documents included in this LES
package, please download this awesome dyslexic-friendly font. Follow the
instructions in the readme.txt file to install it.

The Table of Contents is interactive; simply click the underlined section to be

immediately taken to that page.
o You can also click the title of the page (i.e. Competencies Concept Map
or Lesson #1) and be taken back to the Table of Contents.
o Similarly, clicking any of the lessons in the Unit Outline concept map will
take you to that lesson.

No more searching through appendices! If you keep the original folder intact,
simply click on a mentioned document (i.e. Final Rubric) to automatically open
it.

I have also included a blank template in this zip file for you to create your
own. With no modifications, it provides support for up to 12 lessons. Should
you want to add more lessons or sections, follow this link to learn how to
create your own bookmarks and hyperlinks.

If you have any questions, email me at megan.colson@mail.mcgill.ca.

We are all players on the same team. Lets go change the world.
Sincerely,

Megan E. Colson

Table of Contents
Section

Title

Description

Introduction

Rationale and Mission

Statement

A cursory overview of the unit

Concept Map

Competencies

A concept map of the key

competencies assess by the unit

Unit Outline

Unit Outline

A concept map of the sections of

the unit

Themes

Essential Questions, UKDs,

and Assessment Strategies

The core questions of the unit and a

list of all UKDs in all lessons

Lesson 1

What is a Persuasive
Speech

I Want YOUto Convince Me:

Unit Introduction and the Structure
of a Persuasive Speech

Lesson 2

How Do I Convince You?

Ethos, Pathos, Logos

Lesson 3

Analyzing Exemplar
Persuasive Speeches

What makes a great speech? What

traps do I have to avoid?

Lesson 4

Persuade Me!

Being a speaker, a listener, and

giving constructive feedback

Lesson 5

Check-In 1

Where am I now? Where am I

going?

Lesson 6

Persuasive Words

Learning and using persuasive

words to strengthen my speech

Lesson 7

Check-In 2

Where am I now? How am I going

to move forward?

Lesson 8

Body Language

How does my body language affect

my listeners? How can I use it to
my advantage?

Lesson 9

Rehearsals

What are my strengths right now?

What are my weaknesses?

Check-In 3

Where am I now? How am I

preparing for my final
performance?

Lesson 11

Peer Performance

What constructive criticism can I

give? What things do I have to
work on before the final
performance?

Lesson 12

Final Assessment

Performing my well-prepared
speech

Lesson 10

Introduction
Public speaking can be a difficult and scary thing for the best of us, but for Sec
1s, it is especially challenging. Educators must assume that their students have no
experience in public speaking beyond the occasional show-and-tell or project
presentation. Certainly, one cannot assume that they have been trained in the art of
public speaking.
This LES focuses on teaching the fundamentals of writing and performing a
persuasive speech in front of an audience of their peers. Over the course of this ~4
week unit, students will learn about the codes and conventions of persuasive speeches,
the Aristotelian model of Ethos/Pathos/Logos, the importance of tone and body
language, and using appropriate and effective vocabulary for their audience.
The culmination of this unit is an approximately 3 minute long speech, which must
be fully memorized and persuade an audience of their peers to change their actions or
attitudes about a problem of their choosing. There are several scaffolds leading up to
this point, including mini-speeches, workshops, peer feedback, and student-teacher
conferencing, to support and inform their final product.