Teacher Notes
These notes support a five-week unit on persuasive speaking for Year 9. They cover planning, differentiation, sensitive content, controversial issues and classroom protocols. They do not prescribe a school program or a formal reporting instrument.
Purpose and scope
This packet is a teaching resource, not a faculty plan. It offers a sequence, explanatory pages, models and activities. Teachers should adapt the pace, topics and level of challenge to their class. The unit assumes no prior public speaking experience and no specialist knowledge of rhetoric or politics.
The emphasis is on honest advocacy. Students should speak in every lesson, even if only for sixty seconds. The final speech is an opportunity to integrate the skills, not a high-pressure test.
Planning the five weeks
| Week | Planning priority | Checkpoint |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Establish the difference between persuasion and manipulation. | Can students state a contestable claim? |
| 2 | Teach evidence, structure and rhetoric. | Can students build a case with a clear through-line? |
| 3 | Work on refutation and fallacies. | Can students steelman an opposing view? |
| 4 | Analyse audience values and design a call to action. | Can students adapt a case without changing the facts? |
| 5 | Deliver and reflect. | Can students explain one change and its effect? |
Creating a safe speaking classroom
- Establish norms: listen respectfully, disagree with ideas rather than people, no personal attacks.
- Start with pair and small-group arguments before whole-class performance.
- Offer choice in topic, format and audience size.
- Model disagreement and recovery.
- Separate practice from performance.
- Allow students to record privately or speak to the teacher only.
- Never require disclosure of personal trauma, health or family information.
Sensitive and controversial content
| Content | Consideration | Response |
|---|---|---|
| Political issues | Students may hold strong and opposing views. | Set norms; require evidence; distinguish argument from attack; protect minority views. |
| Identity and rights | Topics may touch on students' own identities. | Do not ask students to represent a group; allow opt-out; use respectful language. |
| Health and medicine | Claims can affect real decisions. | Require reliable sources; distinguish evidence from anecdote; avoid giving advice. |
| Violence and conflict | Examples may be distressing. | Use content notes; avoid graphic detail; provide support information. |
| Personal stories | Students may disclose grief, illness or family conflict. | Do not require disclosure; require consent for others' stories; respond privately and calmly. |
| Online campaigning | Students may want to publish or share. | Check school policy; require consent; discuss privacy and permanence. |
Handling disagreement
- Model steelmanning in your own responses.
- Ask students to state the strongest opposing view before rebutting.
- Separate the person from the position.
- Do not let a majority overwhelm a minority.
- Use structured turns and a chair.
- Allow students to change their minds without losing face.
- Stop personal attacks immediately.
Differentiation
| Need | Support | Extension |
|---|---|---|
| Confidence | Pair speaking, short turns, scripted opening. | Lead a debate or chair a discussion. |
| Reading and writing | Sentence frames, keyword cards, oral planning. | Write a longer case or a counterargument. |
| EAL/D | Pre-teach vocabulary; allow first-language planning; model pronunciation without erasing accent. | Compare rhetorical strategies across languages. |
| Neurodiversity | Clear steps, predictable routines, visual timers, quiet rehearsal space. | Offer a choice of format and extended thinking time. |
| Gifted students | Compress the basics; focus on nuance and refutation. | Ask for an independent case or a philosophical question. |
| Vision impairment | Large-print scripts, audio cues, described visuals. | Ask students to analyse a speech by sound alone. |
| Hearing impairment | Transcripts, captions, clear sight lines, microphone. | Ask students to analyse a captioned speech. |
| Physical access | Step-free space, seated speaking option, flexible microphone use. | Ask students to design an accessible campaign. |
| Anxiety or selective mutism | Non-verbal roles, written speeches, recorded audio, small audience. | Ask students to design and lead a low-stakes activity. |
Participation without performance
Students can develop persuasive skills without delivering to the whole class. Offer:
- pair or small-group arguments;
- recorded audio with no audience;
- a written speech read by someone else with permission;
- a support role such as research, fact-checking, timing or feedback;
- a design role for a campaign or visual;
- a chair or questioner role.
Formative feedback
- Focus on one or two choices per task.
- Use the “I noticed ... and it made me ...” sentence.
- Ask the student what they intended before offering a correction.
- Model the next step rather than rewriting the speech.
- Give time to try the change immediately.
- Record progress through a short reflection, not a score.
Classroom protocols
- Preview any audio, video or website before showing it.
- Check sources and claims for accuracy.
- Do not require students to disclose or perform personal material.
- Use a calm, predictable routine for speaking tasks.
- Offer a quiet space or an alternative task if a student is distressed.
- Check consent before recording or sharing student work.
- Follow school policy on political and controversial issues.
No assessment instrument. This packet contains no test papers, marking keys, scores, bands, weightings or reporting schedules. It is a teaching and formative-feedback resource. Teachers keep their own school instruments offline.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Possible response |
|---|---|
| Students choose one-sided topics. | Require a steelman and a refutation. |
| Students rely on emotion. | Require evidence and a warrant for each reason. |
| Students attack each other. | Revisit norms; separate person from position. |
| Students use fallacies. | Ask them to identify the flaw in their own draft. |
| Students run out of time. | Cut reasons rather than rushing the close. |
| Students panic at questions. | Practise hostile-question responses. |
| The room is too large or noisy. | Use a microphone, reduce audience size or move to a smaller space. |
Review checklist
- Do students speak in every lesson?
- Is every speech built around a clear claim?
- Are claims supported by evidence and a warrant?
- Do students steelman the opposing view?
- Is feedback specific and focused on one or two choices?
- Are there low-stakes alternatives to whole-class performance?
- Are controversial topics handled fairly and safely?
- Do students reflect on whether the audience was persuaded?
This page is a teaching support document, not a formal reporting instrument. It contains no scores, bands, weightings or confidential school material.