Hurrah! A first place in the HKSMSA. How we did it

I had a wonderful piece of news from one of my students today: she had won first place in one of the poetry reading categories of the HK Schools Speech festival.

Here are some of the reasons why:


1: She knew her poem. This sounds basic but it is easy to forget words under stress unless you know them back to front, inside out and upside down! Choose a poem which offers you scope.

2: We talked about the meaning of the poem. Unless you understand the theme and story of the poem, it is almost impossible to convey the meaning.

3: We worked and worked to add variety of pace, pitch and volume. A poem is a conversation between the poet and the audience which is interpreted by the reader. Make your listeners want to happen by adding colour.


Most importantly, she practiced! A lot.

A wonderful student who worked incredibly hard and received an excellent reward. Even if you don't win, entering the competition with the three key steps in mind will ensure that you have learned a valuable lesson and acquired some skills which will last forever.

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