Public speaking facts for kids

Winston Churchill broadcasting in Quebec, 1943

Public speaking is speaking to a group of people in an organized way: to give information, influence or persuade, or to entertain the listeners.

In public speaking there are five important questions, which are often expressed as "who is saying what to whom, using which medium, with what effects?"

Good speakers are often able to change the way the listeners feel, and not just give them information. Public speaking can be a powerful tool to use for goals such as motivation, influence, persuasion, informing, translation, or simply entertainment.

The Ancient Greeks called public speaking rhetoric; the Romans called it oratory; it is also known as forensic speaking, or forensics. Propaganda is another name for speech in favour or against some point of view.

Images for kids

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  The orator Cicero speaks to the Roman Senate. Cicero Denounces Catiline (1889), fresco by Cesare Maccari

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  The Orator, c. 100 BCE, an Etrusco-Roman bronze sculpture depicting Aule Metele (Latin: Aulus Metellus), an Etruscan man wearing a Roman toga while engaged in rhetoric; the statue features an inscription in the Etruscan alphabet.

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  Ettus Ted Talk

See also

In Spanish: Oratoria para niños