Interactive Public Speaking Activities and Games for Students
- Rwiti Mukherjee
- Jul 6, 2021
- 5 min read
Updated: Apr 2
Public speaking, like riding a motorcycle, is a skill that is best acquired through practice. And what transpires when we have fun doing it? We do it more frequently. The benefits of public speaking are numerous and when you can make the process enjoyable why not engage yourself by practicing often. Being a good speaker is advantageous for your academics, social life, and personal growth. So, here are some engaging and interactive public speaking activities and games for students that one may perform at home with your family/friends or in the classroom.
Fun Public Speaking Activities to Try
There are a variety of games and activities available to help you improve your communication skills and become a motivational speaker without the need for a formal audience. Let’s dive into a list of games to help you with your oratory skills.
Photo Story
Storytelling is essential for captivating your audience and ensuring they remember what you're saying. Find an intriguing photo online and video yourself telling a story about it to practice building narratives. Discuss the history, who the characters are, their dreams, motivations, and everything else that will help you create a captivating storyline about them. For instance, one can randomly present a picture of a toy or any cartoon character and spontaneously tell a story about it.
Dragon’s Den
In Arabian countries, this is considered a classic lion's lair metaphor. Other nations eventually used the term "Dragon's Den" to describe the game. Dragon's Den is a cave where entrepreneurs and investors assemble. The name "dragon" refers to investors, and entrepreneurs must pitch their business proposals. Give students an everyday object, and the student who presents it pretends to have invented it and has to attempt to sell it to Dragon's Den. Three Dragons ask questions and make bids on the goods. In this way, they’ll develop not only communication skills but also strong marketing skills.
The Cooperation Game
In this exercise, each participant has to recite a narrative that should finish with a particular conclusion, for example: “... and then the rabbit lay an egg.” So, whatever the story may be, the last line must be concluded with a given phrase. This is an excellent way of enhancing one’s oratory skills and overcoming stage fright.
Balderdash
In this game, students make up bizarre terms and place them in a box. The speaker must choose a term and define it for the class before using it in a sentence. Example - A Coxswaddle (noun) is a made-up word for “a strap used to tie an ox to a wagon.” So, a sentence formation using the same word might be: "The ox fought the leather coxswaddle on the cart." This way, one gets prepared to speak in any situation.
Super Spies
In this activity, the pupils pretend to be members of the intelligence team for the government. They've arrived for a debriefing in which each super spy recounts how they utilized one of the objects in the room to save a life, rescue the country, or arrest a criminal. For instance: “There I was, gazing at my rival, Red John. He was up to his old antics, attempting to steal Olivia's newest tennis sneakers. He'd gotten away from me twice before, but this time would be different. I removed a stapler and sewed his two-tone shoelaces to the carpeted floor. He was discovered weeping beneath the table by the cops." This fun public speaking activity will ultimately improve an individual's thinking and negotiation skills.
My Fictional Friend
Like Speakolobe, many Public Speaking and Personality Development Workshops or Classes encourage students to introduce their friends. The sole purpose of this is to help students communicate with each other. However, a fun twist can be added to this activity. The students can be asked to introduce their friends, who should be entirely imaginary: “Hello, I'd like to introduce Bruce, a hockey player who also likes street dancing. His favorite meal is roasted vegetables. When he grows up, he wants to work at an elephant sanctuary.”
Narrated Drama
A narrated drama can be an interesting activity in which one narrates a story while others act it out. Bengalis in West Bengal (India) have a tradition of performing on stage at important events such as Durga Puja. People participate in recitation, singing, dancing, drama, and other activities. The most common activity is a person singing and reciting a Rabindranath Tagore tale or song, with a troop of dancers performing throughout the songs and a theatrical play during the recital. Students can modify this into a fun exercise in which one person tells a tale while the others play it out.
Commercial Act
Public speaking is all about persuading and selling a concept, so you should hone your advertising and organizational skills to be the best you can be. In this public-speaking game, make a one-minute ad about anything you have in your house. Record yourself explaining what makes it unique, how it can improve people's lives, and why everyone should have it.
Tongue Twister
One of the most essential exercises for improving oratory skills is Tongue Twister. Like many public speaking games, this one is also fun to play. The speaker selects a twister from a box and must pronounce the printed sentence three times without faltering over any syllables. Many students like to be competitive and practice it at home to beat their friends in this game.
An example of a tongue twister is: “She sells seashells by the seashore.” Practicing tongue twisters is a great exercise to control speech problems or even stammering. It not only improves one’s communication skills but also improves pronunciation. It can also be practiced right before an important event such as a webinar/seminar or talk show, where one is expected to be a decent speaker facing a room full of audience. This will also increase one’s confidence.
Impromptu Game
In this game, you stand out in front of a group of friends, and someone gives you something to say on the spot. It might be a topic, a sentence, a single word, or anything else, and the speaker is required to speak for five minutes on or utilizing the impromptu. It's engaging and entertaining to play and helps individuals build confidence and become wittier. For instance, one can be asked to speak on Independence Day for at least four to five minutes. They have to talk about the topic without prior preparation.
Much of what it takes to be a successful public speaker is the ability to tell stories. Teaching students how to create stories on the fly would improve their conversational skills. If we want to educate individuals to be excellent speakers, we need to practice speaking regularly and make it enjoyable. That's where technique enters, leading to the emergence of enjoyable public speaking activities and games for students.
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