STORY NO.

18

Breadmasters Club

Our plan

I wanted to expose middle school GATE kids (Gifted and Talented Education) to public speaking skills as well as share information with them about global warming. Kids at this age can be a bit awkward and I wanted them to be able to speak with confidence while teaching them about a very important subject for their future. I gathered lots of resources around global warming -- there are PLENTY of them out there -- and I contacted Toastmasters International to find out if there was a program suited to this age group (11-14). While there aren't many clubs, there is a Youth Leadership Program that can be delivered by a Toastmaster member wanting to gain additional program points.

What we did

We started the program in November of 2007, meeting every other week. The kids took a field trip to a local Toastmasters Club to see how a meeting is run, and they now run a meeting of their own during our program. They give mini speeches and give feedback to each other in order to help their classmates become better speakers.

Our results

The kids are very excited about this program and are learning interpersonal skills. In addition, they are learning how to speak confidently AND give constructive feedback.

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Mina Huh
Kensington, CA