By Honey Waheed, Year 7
Our second annual public speaking contest – The Manor Chill & Chat 26 – was a great success.
Students ranging from Year 5-12 signed up to compete, and demonstrated great pride and resilience.
Students were split into two divisions – junior (Year 5-6) and senior (Year 7-12) – and were judged based on their presentation, content, and the organisation of their speech.
The audience was engaged and showed respect, and everyone learned or picked up something about public speaking.
Junior winners
1. Ayrris Alagh (Year 6)
2. Rithik Pramod Kumar (Year 5)
3. Prayanshi Padhy (Year 5)
Shoutouts to Tanishka, Ritesh, Mounisha, Vennapusa, Eva, Aarohi, Dhanen, and Harinee for participating and trying their best.
Senior winners
1. Honey Waheed (Year 7)
2. Maria Vasilchenko (Year 7)
3. Aaritsai Ramayanam (Year 7)
Shoutouts to Sayana Soondrum, Rajvi Patel, Shayna Ramchander, Nanthana Subharan, and Anayya Kasi for participating and trying their best.
Thetop three place-getters received medals and gift cards, and every participant earned a certificate.
Many students, despite being nervous, continued to power through and accomplish something that day, learning that the audience is always supporting you.
Another highlight was Year 7 students Honey Waheed and Sayana Soondrum singing the national anthem.
Special mentions to our judges/helpers: Braidan Pace, Gordon Webb, Des O’Shanassy and, of course, our executive principal Tori Mulligan.
Here’s a personal account of the event.
Harinee Mishra, Year 5
When I participated in the Manor Chill & Chat 26, I felt a great deal of anxiety. Having to speak in front of a group of people I don’t know was very scary.
I was nervous: my heart was pounding so hard that I felt like it would burst out any second. I thought that I might mess up a word, forget part of my speech, or not use enough emotion and receive a poor score.
As I waited for my turn, my head raced with thoughts about how I would do and I kept thinking about what could go wrong. To my surprise, I started off well.
I used emphasis to engage the audience and maintained eye contact. My speech ended with a great round of applause.
I might not have done as well as I had hoped but, in the end, all that matters is that I gave it a good shot.
At the start, I was feeling very worried and uncomfortable. When I got called up, I didn’t want to get up. My friends said my speech was good but I didn’t feel the same myself.
When I stood up I felt embarrassed, and when I got to the front, my legs were wobbling. I felt like I was going to be judged for my speech. However, as I concluded, I had the feeling that maybe I didn’t do as badly as I had thought.
To say the least, it was a great way to boost someone’s confidence and help them overcome a fear of public speaking. I don’t have one myself, although it is a bit nerve-wracking.
I felt like this was a great way to help me improve the way I project my voice and my fluency.
