‭JH/HS Speech Competition 2024‬‭Thank you for your interest in the first annual JH/HS Speech Competition! We’re very excited‬‭to be able to offer all JH/HS students the chance to compete and show off the skills you’ve‬‭been learning throughout the years at KA. If you’re interested in participating in the‬‭competition, please read below for more information on category details and the competition‬‭itself.‬‭Your parents or guardians have received an email with a sign-up form. If they have not‬‭received it, please ask them to contact KA in order to sign up. The sign-up period is from‬‭August 18, 2024 (12 p.m. JST) to September 10, 2024 (10 a.m. JST)‬‭Time and Location‬‭●‬ ‭Location: KA Meguro Building A‬‭●‬ ‭Date: Monday, October 14 (National Holiday - Sports Day)‬‭●‬ ‭Time‬‭○‬ ‭Doors Open: 12:30 p.m.‬‭○‬ ‭Start: 1:00 p.m.‬‭○‬ ‭End: 4:00 p.m.‬‭Important Notes‬‭●‬ ‭All students must participate in the Traditional Speech category.‬‭●‬ ‭Participation in the Elevator Pitch and Prose & Poetry categories are optional.‬‭●‬ ‭Participants should stay for the entirety of the competition, and audience members‬‭are also encouraged to stay until the end.‬‭●‬ ‭Student entries must be uploaded to KA Connect prior to the competition. More‬‭information about the submission process and deadlines will be announced at a later‬‭date to participating students.‬

‭Prizes for Participants‬‭●‬ ‭All participants will receive a participation medal, as well as a Certificate of‬‭Participation, which can be used for college applications. Prizes will be awarded at the‬‭end of the event during the awards ceremony.‬‭●‬ ‭The top three point-getters from each category, and the top three point-getters of all‬‭categories combined, will receive a trophy and prizes.‬‭●‬ ‭Prizes include an iPad, Kindle readers, and various gift cards!‬‭Theme: Unity‬‭Textbook definitions‬‭1. Oneness‬‭2. A condition of harmony‬‭3. The state of being made one (unification)‬‭4. A systematic whole‬‭The theme is a general idea, and any pieces you use in the competition need to be related to‬‭the theme of “Unity”. However, the theme is very broad, so feel free to take artistic license‬‭and interpret it in your own unique way.‬‭【Required Category】‬‭To compete in this competition, all students MUST prepare and perform one of the following‬‭types of Traditional Speech.‬‭Traditional Speech (Time limit: 5 minutes)‬‭Students may choose between a Persuasive Speech or a Traditional Speech.‬‭●‬ ‭Persuasive Speech: A speech where the goal is to convince the audience to accept‬‭your point of view on a topic or idea.‬‭●‬ ‭Informative Speech: A speech used to inform the audience about a topic using facts‬‭and evidence found through research. There are no personal opinions used in‬‭informative speeches. Example: The unity of bringing together North Korea and South‬‭Korea for the Olympics.‬‭While these speeches do not have to be 100% memorized, they should be well practiced and‬‭rehearsed to meet the rubric requirements.‬

‭【Optional Categories】‬‭Along with the required Traditional Speech category, two more categories are available to‬‭compete in: Elevator Pitch and Prose & Poetry. While these two categories are optional,‬‭choosing to compete in one or both of them not only helps you educationally, but also‬‭increases the chances of winning one of the prizes.‬‭Elevator Pitch (Time limit: 60-90 seconds)‬‭A short description of an idea, product, or company that explains the concept in a way that‬‭any listener can understand in a short period of time.‬‭Example: A pitch for a new club activity or a fictional product, company, movie, etc.‬‭While these pitches do not have to be 100% memorized, they should be well practiced and‬‭rehearsed to meet the rubric requirements.‬‭The pitch should be read between the 60 second minimum and the 90 second maximum.‬‭Prose & Poetry (Time limit: 3 minutes)‬‭The art of performing prose (literature) or poetry out loud to communicate meaning to the‬‭audience.‬‭Participants in this category can use literature or poetry written by a published author or‬‭poet; for example Ernest Hemingway or Emily Dickinson. You can also use original literature‬‭or poetry that you have written yourself!‬‭For this category, you are allowed to have printed-out versions of scripts so that you can mark‬‭them in a similar way to the lesson from Week 1 lesson of Speak Like a Star. Usually, these‬‭scripts are kept in a small binder that can be held in one hand; however, you can use‬‭notebooks or anything that you feel comfortable with.‬‭While these scripts do not have to be 100% memorized, they should be well practiced and‬‭well rehearsed to meet the rubric requirements.‬‭Video-Only Competition (for DL Students Only)‬‭We would like to encourage DL students to attend our in-person event if possible. However,‬‭we understand that this is not feasible for some families, so we will hold a separate online‬‭competition for such students.‬‭For this competition, DL students can submit a video for each category that they would like‬‭to participate in. As a reminder, the Traditional Speech category is mandatory for‬‭participation. The videos will be judged with a rubric that is separate from the in-person‬‭competition. Winners will be announced by October 25th.‬‭Prizes will include digital gift certificates and a digital Certificate of Participation.‬‭Unfortunately, there will not be any physical prizes, trophies, or medals provided for students‬‭who enter into the video-only competition.‬‭Rules and Guidelines:‬‭1.‬ ‭The video must be submitted to KA Connect by 12:59 p.m. (JST) on October 14,‬‭2024.‬‭2.‬ ‭The videos need to fit into the time limits for each category, as mentioned above.‬‭3.‬ ‭While it is a video, you should still treat it like a formal speech and dress appropriately.‬‭4.‬ ‭Before making a video, your transcript should be submitted to KA Connect so that we‬‭can check it for appropriateness.‬‭5.‬ ‭The rubric for judging DL submissions and In-person submissions are a bit different.‬‭Look over the rubric before making your video so you can send us the best video‬‭possible.‬‭6.‬ ‭You are allowed to take multiple videos. However, you can only send us one, so make‬‭sure it is your best. Also, the video has to be done in one take, it cannot be edited‬‭together or have any editing done in general. This is to keep it fair to everyone.‬‭7.‬ ‭The video cannot be over 10GB in size.‬