978-0133753820 Chapter 12

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

149

CHAPTER 12:

Organizing and Outlining Your Speech

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After studying this chapter, students will be able to:

1. List and explain five strategies for organizing the main ideas of a speech.

2. Explain six ways to organize the supporting material for a main idea.

3. Use signposts to organize your speech for the ears of others.

4. Explain the functions of, and several strategies for, speech introductions and

conclusions.

5. Develop a preparation outline and speaking notes for a speech.

TEACHING OUTLINE

I. Organizing Your Main Ideas

A. Organizing Ideas Topically

1. Recency

2. Primacy

3. Complexity

B. Organizing Ideas Chronologically

C. Organizing Ideas Spatially

D. Organizing Ideas to Show Cause and Effect

E. Organizing Ideas by Problem and Solution

II. Organizing Your Supporting Material

A. Specificity

B. Soft to Hard Evidence

III. Signposting: Organizing Your Speech for the Ears of Others

A. Previews

1. Initial Preview

2. Internal Preview

B. Verbal and Nonverbal Transitions

1. Verbal Transition

2. Nonverbal Transition

C. Summaries

1. Internal Summary

2. Final Summary

IV. Introducing and Concluding Your Speech

A. Introductions

1. Get the Audience’s Attention

2. Introduce the Topic

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

150

3. Give the Audience a Reason to Listen

4. Establish Your Credibility

5. State Your Central Idea

6. Preview Your Main Ideas

V. Outlining Your Speech

A. Preparation Outline

1. Use Standard Numbering

2. Use at Least Two Subdivisions, If Any, for Each Point

3. Line Up Your Outline Correctly

4. Within Each Level, Make the Headings Grammatically Parallel

B. Speaking Notes

1. Use Note Cards, a Smartphone, or a Tablet

2. Use Standard Outline Form

3. Include Your Introduction and Conclusion in Abbreviated Form

4. Include Your Central Idea, but Not Your Purpose Statement

5. Include Supporting Material and Signposts

6. Include Delivery Cues

CLASS DISCUSSION QUESTION SETS

When you organize a presentation, is it a logical process or a creative

process?

• Can it be both?

• How does the specific purpose influence the way you organize a

message?

• What is a chronological organization?

• What kinds of presentation topics would lend themselves to this?

• What is topical organization?

• Can you think of some topics that you might want to organize this way?

• What is recency?

• Do you agree, do we remember what we hear last?

• To what does “the primacy point” refer?

• If you feel like your audience might be resistant to your ideas, how would

you use this principle? Look for common values first.

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

151

• It makes basic sense, doesn’t it? Learn to crawl, then walk, then jump,

then run.

• What is spatial organization?

• What topics might be organized with a spatial organization pattern?

• What is cause-effect?

• Is this an informative or a persuasive strategy? (Both)

• The authors suggest you can reason from cause to effect or effect to

cause. Do you agree?

• How can you argue problem/solution in an informative presentation?

• So how do you keep the solution from falling into persuasion? (Cite the

sources.)

You obviously have to organize the main points, what about the supporting

evidence?

• What do the authors mean by organizing information by specificity?

• Which do you think is preferable? (Depends on the topic and situation)

• What is hard evidence?

• How much hard evidence can an audience consume in a fifteen-minute

presentation?

• What about information overload?

• So if you have lots of hard evidence you have to present, what’s one

strategy you might explore? (Visual aids)

Writing teachers tell us to make transitions subtle and flowing. Is this good

for a presentation?

• Why not?

• How do you know that a writer is moving on to a new point? (Paragraph

indention)

• How do you know when a speaker is moving on to a new point?

• If a speaker is too subtle are you really able to follow the ideas?

• What is a signpost?

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

152

How do writing teachers tell us to introduce a paper? (Attention getter and

thesis)

• Do you do the same things in a presentation? What may be different?

• How is the attention getter of a presentation different than a paper?

(Often elongated)

• Why must a speaker establish his/her credibility when writers don’t?

• What gives writers credibility?

• Why must a speaker relate a topic to an audience though a writer doesn’t?

(Captive vs. selective audience)

• Can you present the points in any order or must you state them in order of

appearance?

What strategies can a speaker use to capture an audience’s attention?

• What is an illustration?

• How do you find a story?

• Is it ethical to present another person’s story as your own without giving

credit?

might introduce Brummond’s idea that we are all story-tellers and that

stories are somehow naturally captivating when told well.

• What is a rhetorical question?

• Should a speaker seek audience interaction at the beginning of a

presentation? Why not?

• Who needs to be in control at the beginning of a presentation?

• What happens if you open things up to audience reaction?

• When are rhetorical questions best used? (Often when the audience is

resistant)

• What is a startling statement?

• What’s the danger in using a startling statement? (Cliché or using

something the audience has heard.)

• When is a startling statement good to use? (Apathetic audience)

• Are quotations good to use?

• What do quotations do for a topic? (Add credibility or stature)

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

153

• Would it be good to begin with “Four score and seven years ago”? Why

not?

• So how do you make sure you have a good quotation? (Not

commonplace)

• How do you avoid plagiarism?

• So at the beginning of your presentation you cite Richard Nixon (negative

attribution), Isaac Asimov (unknown attribution), or Janet Reno (highly

• What’s the danger? (It must be appropriate to the topic and audience)

• What do we find funny? Freud argues we laugh at other people’s pain.

• So can humor be divisive? How do you overcome this? (Look to the

collective pain of your audience)

• If you decide to refer to a historical or recent event, will it attract the

audience? (If it is salient)

• So before using this technique, what must you do? (Analyze the

audience)

The conclusion is the speaker’s last impression, so is it good to end with,

“That’s it”?

• What is a summary?

• Isn’t this a bit overly redundant? (No)

• How do you re-emphasize the central idea?

What is a preparation outline?

• Why wouldn’t you want to just write out the whole presentation? (Using

literary style vs. speaking)

• How do you structure an outline?

• Why use Roman numerals, capital letters, Arabic numerals and small

• If you have a one, must you at least have a two? Why?

• Is it better to use sentences or phrases?

• Can you use a mixed sentence format? (Yes, provided you are consistent.

Roman numerals would have to be sentences and capital letters all

phrases)

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

154

What are speaking notes?

• How many note cards should you have?

• What’s the danger in having too many cards?

• Should you use sentences, phrases, or words?

JOURNAL QUESTIONS

1. Look at your plan and the organizational strategies provided by the authors.

Although you may have already chosen one strategy, take a moment to see

what the other strategies would work. Take three of the five strategies offered

and organize your main points accordingly. What does this exercise reveal?

Did you see a new way to organize your presentation? Would the new

methods be feasible? Should you always go for the most logical method of

over the next two days. Do they use the principles of primacy, recency, and

complexity? If so, how do these techniques enhance their lectures? If not,

what advice might you give them? Be a presentation coach for a moment

and write a critique for one of your professors of how they could organize their

lectures so that students could better remember the ideas.

3. Identify a person you consider to be a good speaker and that you listen to

often. The person may be a professor, member of the clergy, a supervisor

who is required to perform weekly briefings, or a public official who often

4. Look at an introduction you are currently writing for a paper and then develop

the introduction for your upcoming presentation. Compare and contrast the

two. How are they similar? How are they different? Which of the two

communication styles do you prefer? Why?

5. Look at your introduction and PLAY with the attention getter. Choose three

different techniques offered by the authors and try to develop attention getters

for your presentation. How does the tone of your presentation change if you

begin with an illustration vs. a startling statement vs. humor? Which of the

techniques creates the best atmosphere for your presentation?

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

155

6. Create the conclusion for your presentation. Be sure to include all four points.

Since you are working on an informative presentation, what action can you

7. Create the preparation outline using the guidelines given by your instructor

and the standard outline format. Did you find it difficult to outline ideas

8. Transfer your outline to note cards. Take the introduction note card and keep

it with you throughout the day. Whenever you have downtime, pull out the

card and go over the introduction. You can do this while waiting in lines,

before or after classes, while eating lunch or dinner, etc. What do you notice

at the end of the day? Do you know the introduction forward and back?

When you begin to present it, do you notice specific words and phrases

happening almost automatically? Do you have to rely on the note card to jog

your memory or are you fairly confident of the content? Based on this

experience, should you use the same technique to learn the body and the

conclusion of your presentation?

ACTIVITIES

Each of the following activities is designed to illustrate a variety of objectives from

Chapters 9 through 14.

Activity 12.1: Scrambled Presentation

The following activity may be done individually or as a group assignment. If done

individually, you will need to create copies for each student, if done as a group

project, cut the points up into strips and place them in an envelope. Have

students get into groups and assign a dealer who will hand out each of the strips.

Students will have to put the presentation in order. Depending on how the group

work is being done, you may require that students not directly trade their strips;

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

156

Activity 12.2: Construct a Presentation

Choose a topic that would be inappropriate for your class, such as why high

school students should stay in school. Together with your class, fill in the pieces

of the outline. Refer to the “Construct a Presentation Form”.

Activity 12.3: Creating Attention Getters

Divide your class into four groups. Give each group a different topic, but make

sure that no one will be using these topics for their presentations. Topics may

range from dog grooming to eliminating soft money in political campaigns. Tell

each group they are to create one attention getter for their topic with each of the

techniques offered by the authors. As a consequence each group will generate

an illustration, a rhetorical question, a startling statement, humor, a quotation,

and a reference to a historical or recent event on their topic. If groups have

difficulty with one, tell them to skip it and come back at the end. When all groups

have finished, have the groups share their techniques with each other. Require

each student to present at least one technique. This also helps to ease the

anxiety point for some students. The following list of topics is not meant to be

exhaustive, but may be a jumping-off point.

Activity 12.4: Evidence: Soft and Hard

Have students conduct research (in groups or individually) on a topic of your

choosing. Encourage them to seek out both soft and hard evidence in their

research. Require each student or group to find a minimum of 8-10 references to

bring to class, requiring that HALF of the references must be SOFT evidence. In

the classroom, have each student or group offer their references to the rest of the

class, explaining which references constitute soft evidence, which constitute hard

evidence, and why each is soft or hard evidence.

Activity 12.5: Credibility Statements

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

157

Normally, speakers establish credibility with a topic through a statement of

expertise, experience, or interest. If time permits, have the groups create

credibility statements as well.

Activity 12.6: Presentation Workshop

Ask students to come to class with rough outlines of their presentations. Outlines

may be handwritten at this point and it is fully acceptable to have missing points.

The main thing is that they have some ideas on paper. Ask one student to write

their plan on the board, one an introduction, one the body of their presentation,

and one to put a conclusion on the board. Critique the four, identifying strong

elements and providing suggestions for improvement. Following this, ask

students to join together in groups so that they can evaluate each other’s work in

a peer evaluation.

Activity 12.7: Audience Adaptation

Have students identify ways that they can tailor their presentation to adapt to the

needs and interests of diverse audiences (e.g., college students, retirees,

religious organizations, government organizations, nonprofit committees,

teachers, scientists, farmers, male audiences, female audiences, highly educated

audiences, audiences with little formal education, etc.)

Activity 12.8: Recency or Primacy?

ASSIGNMENTS

Because students need time to prepare their presentations, I have found that

having too many assignments at this time can be counterproductive. The journal

assignments, however, can be restructured into daily work grades. If this is

done, the most helpful items are 5-8 as they directly relate to the assignment

itself. By assigning #8 as a response paper, ranging between one-half to one

page only, I have seen marked improvements in students’ work as it forces them

to actively work with the rehearsal process. This should be balanced, though,

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

158

Scrambled Presentation Form

D If the victim has swallowed his or her tongue, roll the entire body gently to one

side and it will reappear.

DD If the victim’s heart has stopped, you will have to act quickly or death will be

eminent.

E What do you get when you mix a thirty-five-year-old woman, nine brownies, a

gallon of glue, and 1,000 popsicle sticks?

EE Do not press too deeply or you run the risk of breaking the victim’s rib cage.

F Would you know what to do if a friend or family member needed help?

FF CPR saves countless lives per year and it is often performed by non-medical

people.

I You can remember these steps by simply recalling your ABCs: Airway,

Breathing, and Circulation.

II A stands for Airway, B stands for Breathing, and C stands for resuscitation.

J Having checked the airway, you are ready to check for B, breathing.

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

159

K If you have a barrier, place it over the victim’s mouth.

KK A broken sternum or rib cage can send shards of bone into the victim’s heart.

L Through this presentation, I’d like to share with you the three steps of CPR that

can save a person’s life.

LL Begin by placing your hands together in a cross pattern.

M Blow gently but firmly until you see the chest rise.

MM Let’s recap.

OO After all, my little darlings are much more likely to give me the heart attack, than I

am them.

P Next, look inside to see if there is an obstruction.

PP Of course, in my case, I think the Girl Scout Council has it backwards.

R Specific Purpose: To recall the ABC’s of CPR.

S With the victim on their back, place your hand on their forehead.

T Three years ago, I decided to take on the challenge of being a Girl Scout leader,

which I discovered, and continue to discover, is a wonderful experience

Y Sweep with your finger to feel for any foreign objects.

Z Once you have determined that the victim is unconscious and not breathing, you

must first check A, their airway.

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

160

Answers

F Audience Relation (Extended)

L Central Idea

I Preview

Z First Transition

C First main point I.

S Supporting A.

G Sub-point 1.

X Sub-point 2.

AA Third Transition

DD Third Main Point III.

LL Support A.

EE Sub-point 1.

KK Sub-point 2.

CC Support B.

Beebe/Beebe/Ivy Communication: Principles for a Lifetime 6e

Instructor’s Manual

161

Construct a Presentation Form

General Purpose________________________________________________________

Specific Purpose________________________________________________________

Introduction

I. Attention Getter_______________________________________________________

II. Credibility___________________________________________________________

B. Support__________________________________________________________

C. Support__________________________________________________________

Transition______________________________________________________________

I. 2nd main point_______________________________________________________

A. Support__________________________________________________________

B. Support__________________________________________________________

Signal of conclusion______________________________________________________