ProgramsAges 13–16
Confident Speaker
From a speech that works to a speaker who commands the room
Confident Speaker is where a student stops surviving a speech and starts owning it. Over the term, students learn to build a persuasive argument, tell a story that lands, and speak from a plan instead of a script. Every week centers on delivering and refining real material: a persuasive speech, a personal story, an impromptu answer under a short clock. Coaches push on the things that separate a good speaker from a nervous one: presence, pacing, and the ability to hold a room without notes.
- Level
- Intermediate
- Ages
- 13–16
- Format
- Small-group online
- Schedule
- Weekly 90-minute live class
What students leave with
Outcomes
- Build a persuasive speech that changes how a listener thinks
- Tell a personal story with timing, detail, and a point
- Speak from notes or from nothing, without reading a script
- Handle a hostile question or a curveball without losing the thread
- Read a room and adjust delivery in real time
Inside the term
What we cover
Persuasion
Building a case a listener actually moves on: claim, reason, evidence, and the "so what"
Storytelling
Structure, detail, and timing that make a personal story land
Speaking without a script
Working from a plan and a few notes instead of a wall of text
Impromptu speaking
A repeatable method for thinking on your feet under a short clock
Presence and delivery
Voice, movement, and eye contact that hold attention on camera and in a room
Handling questions
Staying composed and sharp when the audience pushes back
A typical session
How a class runs
0:00
Speaking warm-up
An impromptu prompt or delivery drill, so students are speaking within the first few minutes.
0:15
Technique focus
One craft skill taught and modeled: a persuasive structure, a storytelling move, a way to handle a tough question.
0:40
Build and deliver
Students prepare and give real material while the coach and the group respond as a live audience.
1:15
Targeted feedback
Specific, individual notes tied to the week’s skill, plus the one thing to sharpen before next class.
What is included
Every student gets
- Weekly 90-minute live small-group class with real speaking time every session
- Written feedback after every speech, focused on delivery and content
- A growing library of speech frameworks, story structures, and impromptu drills
- Recorded speeches when students want them, for review between classes
- A coach who competes and wins at a high level, coaching craft, not clichés
Good to know
Questions about Confident Speaker
How is Confident Speaker different from Foundations?
Foundations gets a nervous student to a first clear speech. Confident Speaker builds a real speaker: persuasion, storytelling, impromptu, and presence, with harder material and more speaking time each week.
Does my child need to have taken Foundations first?
No. Students who can already give a short, structured speech, from school, competition, or experience, can start here. A free consultation ends with a placement recommendation if you are unsure.
Will this help with school presentations and interviews?
Directly. The skills, structure, delivery, composure under questions, are the same ones that carry a class presentation, a student-council speech, or an interview. Students who want focused interview work can also add the Interview & Presentation program.
What comes next?
Competitive Speaker, for students who want to take speech and debate to tournaments, or the Interview & Presentation program for a specific high-stakes goal.
Free guides to go with it
Read these alongside the program, or just to get a head start on your own.
Next step: Competitive Speaker & Debate
Confident Speaker graduates often move into Competitive Speaker & Debate. A free consultation ends with a placement recommendation.