Confidence through words
By Chris Simon

Innisfil Central Public School Grade 4 student Jordan Singh shows off the silver medal he won during the school's public speaking contest recently. Thousands of students across the Simcoe County District School Board are participating in public speaking events. Local winners will move on to an area-wide competition.

Public speaking ability has come easy for Jordan Singh.

The Grade 4 student, who attends Innisfil Central Public School, has spoken aloud at Kingdom Hall worship services, and discussed academics with classmates and teachers for years. It's poured over into the public speaking realm, with Singh capturing second place in his school's speech contest.

"I go to (Jehovah's Witness) meetings every Tuesday and Sunday. Sometimes, I go to the platform and read from the Bible to over 50 people," he said, smiling, a silver medal hanging from his neck. "That's why I'm not scared to do my speech. This is my first time (in the competition) and I won a medal."

Across the Simcoe County District School Board, thousands of children in grades 4 to 8 are participating in public speaking competitions. Students are required to write a speech, and present it to their classes. Winners move on to a school-wide competition, where they speak in front of hundreds of their peers.

Locally, school winners in grades 6 to 8 move on to compete at an area-wide contest, which is sponsored by the Lions Club.

At Innisfil Central, Singh was the youngest student to earn a medal. His speech on the history of dentistry both shocked and amused the audience and judges.

"It was interesting how the toothache (was treated). They pushed a red hot iron rod into the root canal and pounded hot metal into the cavity as a filling," he said.

"More gross means more chance of winning ... the more the people get into it."

Singh's older sister Lauren, now a Grade 9 student at Nantyr Shores, had previously done well at public speaking competitions, when she attended Innisfil Central.

She's proud of her younger brother's accomplishments.

"It's neat," said Lauren. "When I was in Grade 4, I didn't place second (in the school)."

Public speaking has become a part of the board's curriculum. It teaches students self confidence and other important communications skills, said the board's curriculum principal Anita Townsend.

"Across the board, local groups like Kiwanis and Rotary may have a community (competition) for promoting excellence. They do have opportunities where students can enter, to win an award for their speeches," she said. "It's very nice the community groups would support recognizing excellence. It helps children develop confidence and organizational skills. In creating a speech there's a format, so they learn procedural writing."