Building an Expository Speech

Year 9 Power of Speech • Expository • Workshop

This workshop brings the unit together. It moves from a broad interest to a delivered explanation of two to three minutes. The aim is a clear, accurate speech that leaves the audience able to explain the idea to someone else.

The workshop at a glance

Stage	Time	Output
1. Question	5 minutes	One explanatory question.
2. Audience	5 minutes	A short audience profile.
3. Research	15 minutes	Three sources and a source log.
4. Structure	10 minutes	Frame, three steps, close.
5. Example and visual	10 minutes	One example, one visual or demonstration.
6. Draft	15 minutes	A spoken-style draft.
7. Mark and cut	10 minutes	A marked script at target length.
8. Rehearse and deliver	15 minutes	Two timed runs and a short delivery.

Step 1: Question

Start with an interest, then narrow it to a question that can be answered in two or three minutes.

Interest	Too broad	Explanatory question
Space	“The solar system”	“Why does Venus have a runaway greenhouse effect?”
Sport	“Basketball”	“Why does a basketball bounce higher when it is warm?”
Food	“Bread”	“How does yeast make bread rise?”
Technology	“Artificial intelligence”	“How does a recommendation system decide what to show you?”
Local place	“My suburb”	“Why does the creek flood after heavy rain?”

Write the question at the top of every planning page. If a fact does not help answer it, cut the fact.

Step 2: Audience

Answer four questions: What do they already know? What do they need to know? What misconceptions might they hold? What access needs do they have? Then decide on the level of detail and the best example.

Step 3: Research

Find three sources: one authoritative overview, one specific study or report, and one example from practice or lived experience. Record each in a source log. Check one claim in a second independent source.

Source	Claim used	Verification

Step 4: Structure

Use the explanatory frame: orientation, mechanism, example and close. Write one sentence for each step before drafting.

Model skeleton: “Why does bread rise?”

Question: Why does a lump of dough become a light loaf?

Orientation: Flour, water, yeast and salt become bread through a biological process.

Step 1: Yeast feeds on sugars and releases carbon dioxide.

Step 2: Gluten traps the gas in small bubbles.

Step 3: Heat sets the structure and expands the bubbles.

Example: Compare a flatbread with a sourdough loaf.

Close: “The loaf is full of holes because the yeast was breathing before it was baked.”

This is an original teaching example, not a transcript of a real speech.

Step 5: Example and visual

Choose one example that makes the mechanism concrete and one visual or demonstration that shows the relationship. If the visual does not add something the voice cannot, cut it.

Choice	Question	If no
Example	Does it follow the same steps as the mechanism?	Replace it.
Visual	Does it show a shape, trend or relationship?	Cut it.
Demonstration	Can it be done in under a minute with clear sight lines?	Use a diagram.

Step 6: Draft

Write for the ear. Use short sentences, active verbs and concrete nouns. Read each sentence aloud as you write. If you run out of breath, split it. If a term is unfamiliar, define it.

Written	Spoken
“The combustion of fossil fuels results in the emission of carbon dioxide.”	“Burning coal, oil and gas releases carbon dioxide.”
“A significant proportion of the population ...”	“Most people ...”
“The implementation of the process ...”	“When we do this ...”

Step 7: Mark and cut

Mark breath points, stresses and pauses. Then cut ten per cent. Most first drafts contain throat-clearing, repeated ideas and one example too many. Removing them usually improves clarity.

Step 8: Rehearse and deliver

Read the speech aloud once without stopping.
Time it at performance pace.
Record one run and watch it with the delivery checklist.
Practise the visual or demonstration in the real space.
Ask a partner to explain your idea back to you.
Choose one change and rehearse again.
Deliver, answer two questions and reflect.

Reflection

Write 100–200 words:

What question did your speech answer?
Which explanation move helped most?
Where did the audience look confused, and what did you do?
What changed between the first and final version?
What would you research or explain differently next time?

Planning template

Element	Your notes
Explanatory question
Audience
Orientation
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Example
Visual or demonstration
Close
One likely question and answer

Common errors

Writing a report and reading it aloud. Spoken explanation needs shorter sentences.
Too many steps. Three is usually enough.
No example. The mechanism stays abstract.
Visuals that repeat the speech. They should add shape, not text.
No question practice. The explanation is not finished until it survives a question.
Reflecting only on delivery. Reflect on whether the audience understood.

Next, read the teacher notes for planning and differentiation. The sources and provenance page records what is original and what is excluded.