This past Sunday, Future Leader Academy worked with OCEAN to host a Speech Class Gathering at the Cary Memorial Library in Lexington. This was a chance for students to show off the public speaking skills that they had learned and practiced over the summer and during the school year.

OCEAN representative Jin Zhao opened the gathering with a short speech commenting on the importance of public speaking and the value of public speaking instruction. Then, Future Leader Academy founder Colby Ye introduced the two instructors, Evan Zhang and Vivien Chen, who have been teaching classes this fall. Both instructors expressed how rewarding it was to see the students grow and improve in their presentation skills from class to class.

A total of 11 students presented speeches of their own choice of topic. Subjects ranged from hydropower and the importance of preserving water resources to the impact of television on our daily lives. Students made good use of note cards and visual aids, including Powerpoint and video. It was clear that they had been practicing the skills they had learned, such as vocal variety, eye contact, and gesturing.

Overall, the event was a great success. Turnout was much greater than originally predicted, and parents also had positive feedback for the students' presentations.

 

For those who missed the event, a video recap is available on the Academy Blog.