Demonstration Speeches
The most practical of all informative speeches, a demonstration speech shows listeners how some process is accomplished or how to perform it themselves. The focus is on a chronological explanation of some process (how potato chips are made), procedure (how to fight fires on a submarine), application (how to use the calendar function in Outlook), or course of action (how court cases proceed to Supreme Court status). Speakers might focus on processes that have a series of steps with a specific beginning and end (how to sell a home by yourself) or the process may be continuous (how to maintain the hard drive on your computer to prevent crashes). Demonstration speeches can be challenging to write due to the fact that the process may involve several objects, a set of tools, materials, or a number of related relationships or events (Rinehart, 2002). Nevertheless, these types of speeches provide the greatest opportunity for audience members to get involved or apply the information later.
When preparing this speech, remember first to keep the safety of the audience in mind. One speaker severely burned his professor when he accidentally spilled hot oil from a wok on her. Another student nearly took the heads off listeners when he was demonstrating how to swing a baseball bat. Keep in mind also that you may need to bring in examples or pictures of completed steps in order to make efficient use of your time. Just think of the way that cooking demonstrations are done on TV—the ingredients are pre-measured, the food is premixed, and the mixture magically goes from uncooked to cooked in a matter of seconds. Finally, if you are having your audience participate during your presentation (making an origami sculpture), know what their knowledge level is so that you don’t make them feel unintelligent if they are not successful. Practice your speech with friends who know nothing about the topic to gauge if listeners can do what you are asking them to do in the time allotted.
SAMPLE DEMONSTRATION SPEECH OUTLINE
Title: How to Survive if You Get Stranded in the Wilderness (U.S. Department of Defense, 2006).
Specific Purpose: At the end of my speech my audience will understand what to do if they unexpectedly become stranded in the wilderness.
Central Idea: You can greatly improve your ability to stay alive and safe in the wilderness by learning a few simple survival techniques.
- Size up the situation
- Size up the surroundings
- Size up your physical and mental states
- Size up your equipment (handout “What to Include in a Survival Kit”)
- Survival Basics
- Obtaining water
- Acquiring food
- Building a fire
- Locating shelter
- Finding help
- Call or signal rescue personnel
- Wilderness navigation
- Leaving “bread crumb” trail
- 5-7 minutes
- Check Blackboard on 3/30 for updated due dates
