1) The document provides guidance for constructing a written speech, outlining key elements like the thesis, preview of main points, main points with supporting evidence, conclusion, and final thought. 2) It asks a series of questions to check that each element is clear, direct, and follows best practices for structure and content. 3) The questions address ensuring a clear purpose statement and topic, revising lengthy or unclear elements, balancing support across main points, and properly citing sources.

1. Tonight:
Testing your speech construction
Do you have a WRITTEN SPEECH
with you?

2. • An exercise in reflective
learning
In communication you do something and then
stop to think about it to see how it can be
done better.

3. • Communication works for those who work at
it.
• John Powell

4. Pre-manuscript
• Do you have an informative topic?
• Do you have a clear purpose statement?
• Do you have a clear, direct, overt thesis?
• Do you have a written outline for the speech?
• Have you written a works cited page?

5. Thesis: One sentence that states your
entire message.
• Underline your thesis
• Is your thesis a simple direct sentence?
• Is it a statement and not a question?
• Does it have who, what, where, how, why?
• Does it contain multiple commas,
conjunctions, phrases, or clauses?
• If so, then your thesis needs to be revised.

6. Preview: Tells what is coming in
speech.
• Do you know the difference between thesis
and preview? (It will be on the midterm
exam).
• The preview should be immediately after the
thesis. Is that where your preview?
• Does the preview list the main points in the
speech in the same wording you will use in the
body of the speech?

7. • Did you incorrectly combine thesis and
preview? This is not Written English but
spoken message.
• Did you place the preview before the thesis?
• Is the preview overt, clear, and direct?
• If not, then you need to revise the preview.

8. Main points: 2-5 ideas which make up
the parts of your message
• Underline the main points in your speech.
• Are the main points written as statements and
not questions?
• Are the main points direct, or do they contain
multiple phrases, clauses, commas, and
conjunctions?
• Are the main points written as complete
sentence and not a phrases or just a couple of
words?

9. Main points
• Does your main point start with a question
word such as Who, What, When, How, or
Why?
• Please restate your main point as a sentence
rather than a question.
• Have you lead up to the main point with a
signpost to verbally signal your audience?
• Did you use generic signposts such as “now”
or “also” Please revise.

10. Signposts and transitions
• Have you lead up to the main point with a
signpost to verbally signal your audience?
• Did you use generic signposts such as “now”
or “also” Please revise.
• Have you transitioned between main points
by linking them together smoothly and
fluently?

11. Main points
Does the main point contain a statistic?
If so, you have confused supporting information
and your main point. You need to revise.
Does the main point contain the beginning of a
story?
If so, then you may have confused support with
main point. Please revise.

12. Main points and supporting info
• Does the supporting information under each
of your main points directly and clearly prove
the main point?
• Is the information generally related but not
exactly the main point?
• If so, then you have a supporting information
problem. Please note in the margin and revise

13. Supporting information
• Does each main point have supporting
information and not just a general explanation
of what the point means?
• Does each main point have a story, statistic,
question, and quotation to support?
• Label the types of support you used in the
margins next to each section of supporting
information.

14. Supporting information
• Compare the length of writing under each main
point.
• Compare point #1 to point #2.
• Compare point #2 to point #3
• Compare point #3 to point #1
• Is one point longer? One shorter?
• If so, you have a balance problem, or a lack of
support for at least one main point.
• Note and revise

15. • Do you have a source citation for supporting
information under each main point?
• Does the source citation contain enough
information that someone else can find the
same information?
• If not, revise

16. Support
• Does the first main point have support of a
story, statistic, question, or quotation?
• Does the 2nd
main point have support of a
story, statistic, question, or quotation?
• Does the 3rd main point have support of a
story, statistic, question, or quotation?

17. Questions about Support
• Have you used a book as support?
• Have you used an interpersonal support?
• Have you used mostly database support?
• Is you used a source from the Internet, did
you qualify the source? Did you proved the
source to be peer reviewed or professionally
edited?

18. Conclusion
• Does your conclusion contain a summary of
the main points?
• Does it parallel or use the same language as
the main points and the preview.
• Does it restate the preview in the speech

19. Final thought
• Do you have a vivid and compelling final
thought?
• Does it restate the thesis?
• Does it call for immediate action or ask for a
demonstration of understanding?

20. • Good communication does not mean that you
have to speak in perfectly formed sentences
and paragraphs. It isn't about slickness. Simple
and clear go a long way.
• John Kotte