Speech and debate. . .where to start?

[FourOaks]

Please help me get something started!! I want my kids in speech and debate. I will have a 6th grader this coming year and really want to get on the ball with this. How do you get involved in this if there is nothing already up and running? How helpful is Toastmasters? What do I need to do if I want to start my own Speech & Debate homeschool club? Any suggestions and ideas/experiences welcome.
Thanks!!!

[jananc]

My kids are involved in speech & debate -- ds for 3 years, dd had her first year this year. They absolutely love it, and it's one of the best things going in our homeschool.

We're involved in NCFCA (www.ncfca.org (http://www.ncfca.org)). I don't know if you're Christian, but this is a national, Christian homeschool speech & debate league. We're in the thick of tournament season, so maybe you can find a tournament to visit in your area. If you live near Atlanta, our Regional tournament will be held in Fayetteville GA, April 27 - 30. The NCFCA National tournament will be held in Greenville, SC, in June. You can get information about those and other tournaments from the NCFCA website.

As far as getting started goes, one thing you could do is find your Region contact (also on the NCFCA website) to find out about clubs that are already set up in your area. They would also be a terrific resource for starting your own club if you wish.

There is a list of books that are very helpful in teaching your students the art of speech and debate. See the Resources section of the website for those titles.

Have fun with it! It's quite a commitment for both you and your child, but one that is very worthwhile. The growth I've seen in my own kids is phenomenal and so worth the time.

[MommyThrice]

I agree that NCFCA is the best place to begin. It was started by HSLDA, so it is nation-wide. Where do you live? All of the regional tournaments will be occurring over the next month and would be great to visit. Also, when you find a local club, I am sure they would welcome you to visit. This is actually a great time of year to find a club, because all the kids' speeches & debates are at their best and you'll get a much better idea of what these speeches should look like than you will at the beginning of the year. Check out the age requirement. NCFCA will require the child to be 12 yo sometime during the year. Sept? Jan 1? I can't remember exactly. www.NCFCA.org (http://www.NCFCA.org)

Another place to check is Communicators for Christ. http://www.instituteforculturalcommunicators.org
They may also have a local club near you. CFC encourages kids to use their speaking skills out in the real world instead of competition alone. Of course, they don't do much with debate because most audiences would rather listen to a speech than a debate. They also have weekend workshops all over the county that are a great place to get your feet wet. My local club requires first year participants to attend a CFC workshop.

Both groups above has plenty of books to get you started, as well.

[FloridaLisa]

Yes, the easiest way to get started is to go through NCFCA and CFC. Both organizations should be able to give you the closest contacts and the names of current coaches who could mentor you through the process. Both are unapologetically Christian organizations. Additionally, to compete with NCFCA, the student must be 12 by January 1 of the competing year (so my son for example turned 12 in November 2008 and thus was eligible to compete for the 2009 season). Also, the student must be "homeschooled" per the HSLDA definition not your state statute -- not more than 1/2 of their classes through a public school or community college. Our club actually includes siblings from 7 - 11 and they participate fully in club and community speaking, just not the competition.

There will be many speech and debate camps this summer that might give you a jump start if you are considering coaching. www.trainingminds.org is well known as are camps through Patrick Henry, BJU, Liberty University and many others (Cedarville perhaps?).

You are more than welcome to call me if you'd like more information. My dc were involved from the ground up in starting our local speech/debate club 5 years ago. I coach team policy and we offer full speech events and Lincoln-Douglas as well. Just pm for more information.

Lisa

[FourOaks]

Thank you ladies for these suggestions! I already knew about these 2 organizations (both appear to be absolutely wonderful). I love that these are both such strong Christian organizations. Unfortunately, our state event has already taken place this year. I will try to get in contact with people in our state and see what they can help me with.

I was in speech throughout my school years, but I must admit that I was the comedianne -- I always did comic duets. I get how speech tournaments work, etc. However, I've never participated myself in any of the debate aspects, so that's a bit scary for me. Getting up in front of an audience is not a problem for me as I do quite a bit of public speaking. My kiddos have their dad's "terrified of public speaking" gene.

My oldest will not be 12 until next Feb., so if I am understanding correctly, she would not even be abe to compete until the following year. That's quite awhile, but I figure it's best to get something in the works sooner rather than later if I really want all 4 of my kids involved. We live in IN btw.

Lisa, I may contact you privately!

Thanks again and any other information will be greatly appreciated.
Angie

[Joan in Geneva]

home practice would be a good place to start for those who don't like to speak in public?

Here are some topics you could start with, or just google "debate topics"

http://www.middleschooldebate.com/topics/topicresearch.htm

Best,
Joan

[CAMom]

My oldest will not be 12 until next Feb., so if I am understanding correctly, she would not even be abe to compete until the following year. That's quite awhile, but I figure it's best to get something in the works sooner rather than later if I really want all 4 of my kids involved. We live in IN btw.



That's right. With NCFCA, your oldest would not be able to compete until the following year. Frankly, anything younger than 12 is just sooooo young. I wouldn't even think about getting a kid involved in debate earlier than that.

My two older kids both compete with NCFCA and are having an incredible time! It is a great organization for those who are timid because the kids are so incredibly supportive of one another. Seriously! We're in CA so our state is it's own region. My kids, literally, have friends all up and down the state now and their "rivalries" are as friendly as can be. They all try to attend each others' events and they are genuinely excited for one another. My daughter usually doesn't even realize she didn't "break" (aka advance to the next level) until a while after the announcements because she gets so excited to hear her friends' names called and she's all over them congratulating them.

We have one last tournament this week and then our season is over for the year. But, our club continues to meet until nationals and then holds its own one week camp in August. My son will also be going to one of the Training Minds camps.

Put it on your back burner until that oldest one is of competing age. And, so you know, the younger siblings are able to be very involved as well. They usually work as timers at the events and, by the time they are ready to compete, the whole fear of public speaking is long gone!:)

[Nissi]

Ds. had a great first year participating in Debate. He has learned so much - public speaking skills, thinking on his feet, social skills, and friendships with kids who are likeminded. I am really pleased. Yes, 12 is very young to be competing against 17 and 18 yr. olds. I do wish NCFCA would have separate categories for 7-9th graders and 10-12th graders. It is really not fair to judge between a 12 or 13 year old and a 17/18 yr. old. Nevertheless, it has been a great opportunity.

[FourOaks]

Great suggestions. I am actually interested in speech and debate, realizing that debate comes later. Speech can be started now with my kiddos and I am seriously considering getting some type of club started up around my area. I am also a huge fan of choral reading/speaking and would like to do that as well. There are just so many options with speech and debate and I am very excited. I am looking into forming a Communicators for Christ group here. The eligible kids could then compete in NCFCA events, correct?

Do any of you know WHEN the CFC conferences are scheduled? I can't seem to glean that info from their website. I am VERY interested in having my children attend and attending myself as a parent/coach, but dont' know when and where they are held.

[Maverick]

I have been checking the CFC website every day waiting for the 2009 tour dates to be announced. They should be posted soon. Last Sept. we went to two of the four days of the Spokane tour and it was excellent--we'll definitely do it again. Also, you can read on their website about sarting your own CFC Chapter, and at the conferences there will be information and support on doing that as well. You can start a chapter with younger kids and then they can start the debate portion through NCFCA when they get older.

[FloridaLisa]

You might want to call and talk to someone at CFC. CFC may already have plans to be around your area even if it's not yet posted.

I think starting with a year of speech is an excellent idea. The whole thing can be very overwhelming, especially if you are founding a new club/chapter. Speech skills are essential for debating and getting some of those in place this year while you are forming your club will only help your students next year if you add in debate. While some kids devote much of their high school career to speech and debate, choosing and completing academics around that, I advise new families to choose either speech or debate for the first year. It's an enormous investment of time for either, and a family should be able to plan for and accomodate the commitment it takes to participate in both speech and debate, especially competitively. I understand why high school students used to earn a letter!

Plus, I can't imagine coaching both speech and debate. Starting a speech club this year might allow you to find other interested families and another parent willing to coach one of the areas along with you. We have three coaches, along with a cadre of helpful parents (treasury, facility coordinator, snack coordinator, tournament director, ect) and student leaders. Still, it's a lot. But well worth it! This summer would be a good time to hold informational meetings for prospective members, connect with other state clubs and coaches, and read up. :D Really, we found that once our organization was in place, there were many, many interested families. So much so that we barely *advertise* and keep an ongoing waiting list.

HTH!
Lisa

P.S. Are you close at all to South Carolina? The National tournament for NCFCA will be held at BJU.

[MommyThrice]

Yes, 12 is very young to be competing against 17 and 18 yr. olds. I do wish NCFCA would have separate categories for 7-9th graders and 10-12th graders. It is really not fair to judge between a 12 or 13 year old and a 17/18 yr. old. Nevertheless, it has been a great opportunity.

But my 12 yo debater learned the most while debating against the older, more accomplished teams. I was a little apprehensive seeing him under cross-examination from some 6' tall kid with facial hair - but they were all as helpful and sweet as they could be. Of course they beat my son, but I also caught them helping him in the hallway, asking about his progress, and encouraging him! Really great peers.

[FourOaks]

You're all getting me more excited by the minute! I know this would be a HUGE undertaking, that's why I am really starting to compile my lists and figure out what would be the best route to take, etc. My oldest is 11, then twins 9 yr olds and a 4 yr old. If we can get something in the works now, it could be a wonderful progression for my kids for the years to come. I am in IN and there is only one CFC group listed and they are in the south part of the state. I know that if I got something going, it would take off very quickly.

Lisa, you have some wonderful insight and I am going to be emailing you shortly!!