Hi again:

Here you can find some examples of irregular verbs we saw in class (with similar forms in past), and a list of verbs that can be both regular and irregular (both forms are correct). CLICK ON THE IMAGES FOR BETTER QUALITY.

Hi!:

I found this information that can be useful for you to understand the use of these conjunctions:





http://englishmistakeswelcome.com/conjunctions.htm

Hi dear all: 

These are the writing models I told you about in class. You can print and analyze them for your writings this semester, and keep them for further reference in your life as graduate students (:))

Memos, e-mails, notes and notices 
Formal letters 
Reports 
Email 

See ya!

Hi:

I came across these useful tips for you to remember before the day of your final presentation. They were written by Naomi Rockler-Gladen, an instructional designer and a freelance writer, who has a lot of experience with public speaking classes.............................................................................................................................................................

Fear of public speaking: Overcome speech anxiety in your public speaking classSo how can students get over their fear of public speaking and enjoy their public speaking class (or at least not dread it with every ounce of their soul)? Here are a few tips that have been helpful to my students over the years.

First, make sure you are well prepared. No matter how much your prepare, you're going to be nervous standing in front of the class. However, you're going to be a whole lot less nervous if you know you've put a good deal of work into this speech. If you write a speech at the last minute, you're going to be nervous about standing in front of the room and because you're about to bomb an assignment. Here are some important ways to get prepared:


•Make sure you understand the assignment completely. Talk to your instructor if you have any questions.


•Make sure you do plenty of research on your topic and can talk about it comfortably. (Here's some ideas for persuasive speaking topics.)


•Make sure your note cards (or whatever you use to deliver the speech) are in order and very well organized. Number each card. If you have to fumble around looking for card #4, you're going to be way more nervous than if you know everything is in order.


•If you're using Power Point or other technical equipment, make sure it's working. Talk to your teacher ahead of time about how to set everything up properly. If you're especially nervous about the equipment, consider making your speech more low-tech. Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, and other great speakers throughout history did not need Power Point, and neither do you.


•Practice. Practice often, and preferably in front of an audience of sympathetic friends. (If this makes you too nervous, practice in front of a mirror.) If you give your speech for the first time in class, you're going to be way more nervous than if you've practiced.


•When you practice, time yourself and make sure your speech is within the prescribed time limit. If it's not, tweak the speech until it is. If you have no idea how long the speech will be, you're going to make yourself way more nervous than necessary.



Second, when you speak, pretend that you are confident. Pretend that you belong up there in front of the class. You own the class, baby. Trust me. You'll be surprised how much more confident you actually feel when you pretend. Besides, projecting confidence is an important part of public speaking, so these are good things to practice. Here are some ways to project confidence:


•Speak loudly.


•Speak slowly.


•Stand up straight (but not too rigid, or you'll look like Al Gore). If you have a podium, don't lean on it.


•Make strong eye contact with your audience. This is one of the more difficult parts of public speaking, but do the best you can.


•Project enthusiasm. Don't be afraid to go a little overboard. Think of how much more credible your enthusiastic professors sound than your bored ones.


•Never giggle. Ever. Well, maybe if you're giving a speech about giggling, but even then, giggle in moderation.


•Avoid disclaimers. Disclaimers are statements such as, "I know this is a really dumb topic, but..." or "I know this isn't a very good visual aid, but..."


•Dress nicely. A business suit is probably not necessary for a public speaking class, but be sure to dress like you take yourself seriously. No baseball caps, ever. Even if you're giving a speech about baseball.



Finally, relax. This is easier said than done, I know. But here are some ways to psyche yourself out to get rid of some of the anxiety.


•Take deep breaths. You'll be surprised at how well this works. If you know some special breathing techniques, use them, but all you really need to do is breathe deeply in and out for awhile.


•Do some simple stretching exercises before class.


•Avoid caffeine or any food or drink that makes you jittery. Drink something that relaxes you, like decaffeinated tea.


•The night before, close your eyes and visualize yourself giving the speech and everything going well.


•Make friends with your classmates, and you'll feel better about speaking in front of them. Make friends with your teacher too.


•Keep things in perspective. You do much more dangerous things every day, like driving a car or crossing the street. Chances are you've already gone through some stressful or dangerous experiences in your life, and you made it through, right?


•Keep in mind that everybody is nervous. You're not alone.


•Keep in mind that you rarely come across as nervous as you really feel. Unless you're shaking and stammering, the audience probably won't know how nervous you are.


•Just do it. Speak. Speak more. The more experience you have with public speaking, the less nervous you will feel.


Read more at Suite101: Fear of Public Speaking: Overcome speech anxiety in your public speaking class
Suite101.com http://suite101.com/article/fear-of-public-speaking-a11665#ixzz1wY4n1qzl

Hi there:

Here's and interesting article on how to speak and write good political speeches... it's part of what we've discussed so far in class.

Read it here and get ready to discuss it in class next Thursday.

Greetings!!

Hi again:

Here's another example of what we talked about this morning. The sections we mentioned are clearly defined here, in a speech delivered in February 2007.

Barack Obama's Official Announcement of Candidacy for the United States Presidency
(transcript)

Check it out and good luck with your own!
See you tomorrow!!

Hi:

Here´s a list of some topics you can use. Narrow them down to 3 ideas and decide on one. Remember it should be something you feel identified with, so you can transmit your emotional charge to your audience.

Persuasive speech ideas for 630+ speechwriting presentations:

20 Policy Questions
25 Opinion
30 Speech Class
15 Serious
20 Current
15 Fact or Value
15 Common
15 Cool
29 Popular
36 Original
32 Exciting
16 Strong
31 Easy
25 Possible
23 Unusual
36 List
38 Different
18 Light
17 Top
12 Ready Made Statements
How To Make The Overused Interesting
18 on Health
23 on Education
18 Environmental
25 Policy
16 Sports Related
13 Motivational

Hi, y'all:

Here are the links to the videos we watched last Friday, plus some others:

Gay marriage in America

Making a difference through special olympics

Types of persuasion for speeches

Tips on how to write a great persuasive speech

Be a Hero, Give blood

Thank you for smoking

Eliminate the fear of public speaking forever!

The girl that silenced the world for 5 minutes

Putting the brakes on teenage driving

Hi:

Here's the link to the presentation we had this morning, in case you wanted to see it again.

Bye!

Hi there:

This partial (second already!), we'll take a look at the different kinds of visual aids you can use as part of your presentations.

Here's a list of some interesting ideas to consider when planning a presentation with visual aids. Read them and feel free to print them out.

Visual aid speech topic samples

Tips for using visual aids in your speech

Effectively communicating with visual aids (pdf file)

Hope you find them useful!

See ya!

Hi:

As we were discussing in class, there are many ways to start your speech and grab your audience's attention, or to link your ideas with phrases.

Here are some interesting tips, check them out:

How to start your speech: tease 'em 5 ways

5 lessons for speechwriters

Inspirational quotes for speeches

Repertoire of presentation phrases

And some other things to consider:

Public Speaking, Effective Speech, Components of Public Speaking

Speeches

Dig in and enjoy!!