The goal of public speaking games is for children to develop the ability and confidence to communicate efficiently in front of people. This can be gradually achieved by presenting low-risk games that help them gain confidence, and conveying the idea that there is nothing inherently frightening about speaking in public. Low-risk games include those where students are not put on the spot if they feel insecure. Cooperation among peers, seating in groups, or sitting in a circle can be a great approach to begin public speaking games. Oral presentations in front of class can start with groups of three or two students and gradually encourage individual participation.
This game allows kids to be creative and requires them to describe an imaginary creature. Teachers can present a set of questions to help students express the characteristics of the creature. For example, what does it look like and how big is it? Does it fly, swim or walk? What kind of sounds does the creature make? What makes the creature laugh? Teachers then ask students to talk to the class about the creature they have imagined and take turns so everyone in class gets a chance to speak.
This exercise can be used for classes where children are getting familiar with the dynamics of speaking in public. The game consists of allowing each child to speak for one or two minutes with the rule that they can not use filler words, such as "um" or "and" more than twice. The teacher chooses the topic, which can be something currently being studied in class or a random subject. Additionally, other students can participate by ringing a small bell every time the public speaker says a filler word. The atmosphere of the activity should be relaxed and friendly, and not be treated as a competition.
The impromptu speaking allows students to develop the ability to respond quickly and be creative. This is a timed game where the teacher presents a question or topic and chooses the student that will speak, just a few seconds before starting the stopwatch. Each child gets to speak for one minute. If the student is able to continue speaking for one minute, he gets ten points. If the student only speaks for 45 seconds, he gets eight points and six points for speaking under 30 seconds. This requires children to pay close attention to the teacher at the time the topic is presented. Topics or questions presented by the teacher could include the following: If you could choose to be an animal, which animal would you be and why? What characteristics make a great hero and why? What is the difference between talking to someone and talking with someone?