The mission of a Toastmasters club
is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in
which every individual member has the opportunity to develop oral
communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster
self-confidence and personal growth.
Perry, president of Peace Speakers, opens our meeting welcoming everyone. A perfunctory greeting it was not! (Perfunctory is the Word of the Day and means routine, superficial or mechanical; lacking in interest or enthusiasm.) Perry's upbeat approach is in part due to the fact we'll be voting in 2 new members to our Toastmasters club today. Julie and Anne Marie, we are so excited to have you join us!
Perry shares a summary of the Toastmaster's Promise, which is a good reminder of what's important for both new and established members. Abiding by these promises makes a club stronger and benefits all members immensely.
A Toastmaster's Promise (summarized):
- Attend club meetings regularly.
- Prepare speech projects carefully.
- Prepare and fulfill meeting assignments.
- Provide helpful, constructive evaluations.
- Promote a positive, friendly environment by arriving early to mingle and get to know members.
- Serve as an officer, as club meetings require teamwork and planning.
- Be respectful and courteous to everyone.
- Bring guests, so more can benefit from Toastmasters.
- Follow guidelines and rules to enhance everyone's experience in Toastmasters.
Our club is only as strong as its individual members. So please do your best to uphold these 9 promises. Let's not make perfunctory gestures and not follow through!
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| Members Eva, Julie (new), Megan and Anne Marie (new) |
Megan, our treasurer and past president, reminds members to get their dues to her no later than September 20. She has a deadline to keep, so sooner is better!
Our 2 members who were voted in today are pictured to the right (Julie and Anne Marie). We are fortunate to have such dynamic members joining Peace Speakers!
After our brief business meeting, President Perry welcomes today's toastmaster, Megan. The image isn't great, but it shows that the podium is never to be left unattended during a meeting. They shake hands during this greeting and Megan takes over at this point to run the educational portion of our meeting.
Megan shares that the image on today's agenda is of her in 1st or 2nd grade on the first day of school. Choosing to do a theme that relates to education and the start of school, she shares a Martha Graham quote:
“I believe that we learn by practice. Whether it means to learn to dance by
practicing dancing or to learn to live by practicing living, the principles are
the same. In each, it is the performance of a dedicated precise set of acts,
physical or intellectual, from which comes shape of achievement, a sense of
one's being, a satisfaction of spirit.”
This is the look Catherine gets
when she's seeking volunteers for Table Topics. She's created nearly a dozen prompts to get people talking...more than usual...because we have
additional time today to devote to this extemporaneous experience. Not
everyone loves it. However, we all agree that it gets us thinking on
our feet, and we always learn a lot about our guests and members who
participate. Ideally, it allows us to practice our communication skills
and connects us in fun and interesting ways. This is one way we grow our communication skills. "So who wants to start?" Catherine asks.
What benefits do you see of year-round schooling with two
week breaks interspersed throughout the year?
If you could choose, would you opt for year-round schooling or a one
with a traditional summer break?
Anne Marie shares that year-around schooling helps prevent the "summer slide" phenomenon. School and learning becomes more of a routine instead of students counting down until summer vacation. However, there seems to be benefits both ways regarding to time off when considering vacation possibilities. She admits that year-around school with its greater academic benefit would be best for her kids.
Anne Marie shares that year-around schooling helps prevent the "summer slide" phenomenon. School and learning becomes more of a routine instead of students counting down until summer vacation. However, there seems to be benefits both ways regarding to time off when considering vacation possibilities. She admits that year-around school with its greater academic benefit would be best for her kids.
What was the most recent class you took, and what did you
learn?
Katie admits that while getting a creative writing degree, the last class she took was Chicken Agriculture. It was her 3rd biology class, and she was interested in raising chickens in the city. She learned random things like chickens are very sensitive to red light, which increases their egg production. She also learned how to call a chicken. (I'm sorry she didn't give us a chicken call!) Katie adds that she has no chickens at this time and hasn't used these agricultural processes yet.
Kids come up with all sorts of creative reasons to miss a day
of school. When you were in school, what
was your most memorable reason for staying home?
Eva shares that this question doesn't fit her nature. As a student, she never broke the rules and did everything right. In all honesty, she never pretended to be sick. She didn't even miss many days and actually enjoyed a number years of perfect attendance. She concluded with the final comment, "Sorry! This is a rather perfunctory report!"
At this point, a vote is taken for the Table Topics speech that listeners liked the most. Our chicken girl, Katie, rises to the top! Now for a second round of questions to new participants.
Share one way in which you continue to learn as an
adult. Do you take online classes,
participate in classes through the library or your church, or read books or
articles online?
Jewel shares
that she feels strongly that it's important to learn something new every day. She accomplishes this by taking classes online, participating in seminars and training to enhance her skills for her job. She's constantly reading all kinds of materials and books and loves the library. This is how she learns something every day.
Benefiting from your current years of experience and wisdom,
how would you prepare for the first day of your freshman year of high school -
commonly full of anxiety and emotions?
Kay shares just what she actually did as a freshman, admitting that she relied on her older sister who was popular, bosomy, and a cheerleader (all the things she wasn't) to help her pick a matching plaid skirt, knee-highs and mohair sweater to wear on the first day. Kay wanted to look good to avoid the nickname of Jolly Green Giant thrown at her in middle school. (And now utilizing my experience and wisdom, I would prepare with reminders to love who you are, be yourself, reach out in friendship to others, and don't take anything personally.)
School uniforms are required at some schools, but not
others. Are you in favor of or resistant
to school uniforms, and why?
Malinda shares that she was hired to prepare supper daily for a father and his daughter, who was very rebellious. She would change out of her school uniform before leaving school to go to her dental appointments. Malinda also taught at a Catholic school, and the kids hated their uniforms. She knows the uniforms were put in place to reduce bullying and level the economic playing field, but wearing uniforms squelches individuality. So, she's not in favor of them.
After these last 3 Table Topics speeches, a vote is taken for the most favored among listeners. Malinda rises to the top. Now for a 3rd round of questions between Katie and Malinda. They enjoy the highest level of practice today to hone their extemporaneous communication skills.
If you were a 2nd grade teacher, what initial
rules or guidelines would you want to setup for your class?
Katie shares
that she's never been a teacher. However, she bases her answer on her 2-year-old child, who gives her context for this task. She would insist that the children be kind, listen, and be excited about learning. She'd teach them that they have two ears and only one mouth, so they should listen twice as much as they speak. That's how she'd start the year with her new 2nd graders.
If you became a principal and could
choose either an elementary, middle, or high school to supervise, which would you opt
for and why?
Malinda shares that she taught K-12 music in a rural school and later subbed in a school district where those school levels were in separate buildings. She discovered that the H.S. kids made up their minds about her before she opened her mouth, and she worried that she'd send the little kindergarten kids home with the wrong parents. But the M.S. kids were different. It's as if space aliens inhabited the bodies of middle schoolers. When they streamed out of their classrooms, she was reminded of a verse in Genesis about the water teeming with living creatures. Malinda also liked that detention was a leverage she could use with them, so she'd choose to be middle school principal.
Today's extended rounds of Table Topics were educational and fun. It always is! Malinda garners the most votes and takes home a dark chocolate candy bar...a lovely substitute until our trophy gets returned. Thank you, Catherine, for preparing the thoughtfully crafted questions.
- How do you prepare and practice for a role or a speech?
- What strategies or tools have you found to be the most or least helpful?
Members shared that some find it helpful to just prepare speech notes in outline form or with bullets. They enjoy the flexibility of not having it all carved out on the front end. (Perhaps they have better memories and confidence.) Others admitted that they like typing out every word of their speech, particularly those who like to carefully weigh their choice of vocabulary. Even the selection of transition words can greatly enhance or detract from a speech, so having the speech printed verbatim works better for some. Both perspectives agreed that increasing the print so that you can glance at your notes once in a while is better, since reading a speech is not acceptable. That's why developing a speech well in advance and having time for adequate practice is so critical. That's how it gets finely tuned!
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| Anne Marie, Eva and Kay study the sign-up sheet |
If you're a visitor to this blog and have never considered dropping in on a Toastmasters meeting, we promise we aren't scary and will welcome you warmly. Until you confront your fears, they're yours to keep. That's not fun!!!!! We're here to support each other, and as a result, our communication and leadership skills plus confidence keep growing! Join us to see if we're a good fit for you.
OUR NEXT 2017 MEETINGS:
Wed., Sept. 6 - Conference Room B
Wed., Sept. 20 - Conference Room B
Wed., Oct. 4 - Conference Room B
Peace Speakers Toastmasters Club
1st and 3rd Wednesdays (usually)
1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
100 Witherspoon Street
Downtown Louisville, KY
Respectfully submitted,
Kay Chambers
Blogger for Peace Speakers
and VP of Education
