Youth Leadership Program 2009

Jeanette and Brian Neary recently completed the presentation of a Youth Leadership Program at Brooklyn Public School on the banks of the beautiful Hawkesbury River.  It was the fourth such program presented by Jeanette and Brian to twenty-one Year 5 and Year 6 students  The program was adapted from the Toastmasters International program designed for High School students, which has as its objectives the development of the speaking and leadership skills of our young people, to better prepare them for the demands and challenges of today’s world.  Jeanette was the Co-odinator of the program on this occasion.

The Youth Leadership Program was conducted over eight weekly sessions of ninety minutes each and covered the following topics:-

· Introduction to Chairmanship;

· Introduction to Public Speaking;

· Impromptu Speaking;

· Organizing Your Speech;

· Listening;

· Gestures in Speaking;

· Voice and Vocabulary; and

· Debating.

The program culminated in a Youth Leadership Dinner, at which the students were able to demonstrate their skills to their Parents and friends, as well as representatives of the school and the local community.  Besides Brian and Jeanette, Judy Recher and Kathleen O’Rourke were also in attendance as representatives of Hornsby District Toastmasters and carried out the roles of Evaluators and Judges.  Judy had previously attended several sessions of the program and enriched them with her expertise and experience.  In his closing comments Brian informed the audience that the program was sponsored by Hornsby District Toastmasters, described the benefits of Toastmasters membership and invited anyone interested to contact him about attending a meeting or participating in a Speechcraft program in the New Year.

Jeanette and Brian reported that the students were an enthusiastic bunch, who participated in the sessions actively and conscientiously.  As a result their rate of improvement in public speaking and leadership skills over the course of the program had been quite remarkable.  In a self-assessment survey carried out at the end of the program, students considered that their greatest improvement had been in the area of “enjoyment in speaking before an audience.”  “They were a great bunch of young people – a pleasure to be involved with,” was Jeanette’s comment.