4-H to host public speaking contest for youth

Youth from Bureau, La Salle and Marshall-Putnam counties will put their public speaking skills on display during the 4-H Public Speaking Contest.

The contest will take place from 2 to 5 p.m. March 8 in the CTC conference room 125 at Illinois Valley Community College in Oglesby. This event is open to the public.

Youth who participate in this event will present their speech to a live audience and receive professional and peer feedback in a safe and encouraging environment. Participants ages 8 to 18 will get the opportunity to share their skills in organizing, preparing and delivering a speech.

Youth can register in the following four divisions under beginner (8 to 13 years of age) or advanced (14 years of age and up):

• Formal Speech Division: Youth share their perspective on a topic of their choice with a speech intended to motivate, persuade or inform an audience.
• Illustrated Speech Division: Speeches may inform, persuade, or motivate the audience with the use of a visual aid and may include audience participation.
• Oral Interpretation Division: Presentations must be previously published works or manuscripts.
• Original Works Division: Presentations must be entirely written by the presenter.

To register for this event, visit FairEntry.com.

Contact your local Extension office; Bureau at 815-875-2878, La Salle at 815-433-0707 or Marshall-Putnam at 309-364-2356 for more information.

If you will need an accommodation in order to participate, contact Shasta Hladovak at shlad@illinois.edu or 217-244-5812. Early requests are encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet access needs.

To learn more about 4-H opportunities, call University of Illinois Extension at 217-244-5812 or email Shasta Hladovak at shlad@illinois.edu.