Non-Verbal Communication

1. Non-Verbal Communication Panther Prep (Public Speaking) North Central High School

2. Non-Verbal Communication • The words a speaker says are not the only way that he/she communicates with their audience. • Other things that speak to the audience during a speech are the speaker’s: • Body language • Gestures • Facial Expressions • Personal Appearance

3. Body Language • A speaker is a 4-D object. The audience perceives things about the speaker by how a speaker holds himself/herself. • The perception of the speaker by the audience has an effect on how the audience perceives the message. • The speaker can also make assumptions of how the audience is perceiving his/her message form their body language.

4. Body Language Clues • Speaker: • Arms folded = Closed/ Arms out = Open • Locked to podium = Nervous/ Mobile = Confident • Fidgety = Nervous/ Solid = Confident • Looking around = Uninformed/ Eye Contact = Well informed • Audience: • Leaning back = Unengaged/ Leaning forward = Engaged • Looking around = Bored/ Looking at speaker = Interested

5. Gestures • Gestures can help the speaker emphasis a point or bring attention back to the speaker from a disengaged audience. • They can also serve as a distraction to the audience. • Just as a speaker should choose his/her words carefully, so should he/she use their gestures carefully.

6. Using Gestures Gestures can be used as: • Descriptive Gestures • These gestures can be used to illustrate size, location, numbers, shape, relativity, etc. • Emphatic Gestures • These gestures are used to express importance, to synchronize, to call attention to something or someone, etc. • Distracting Gestures • These gestures do not match the speech or call attention away form the speaker of the main idea.

7. Facial Expressions • The speakers face is the focal point of the speech in the absence of a visual aid. • The look on a speakers face can set the tone and affect the audience’s mood. • A smiling speaker makes his/her audience more comfortable while a scowling speaker intimidates his/her audience and causes them to be on guard. • A speaker should make a conscious effort to smile and have a pleasant look to welcome the audience unless the tone of the speech is somber. • This can be difficult if the speaker is nervous or intimidated by his/her audience.

8. Personal Appearance • Being a speaker is like playing a part in a movie. • Wardrobe and overall look determine what the audience will think of the character and what they say before they say it. • RULE OF THUMB: Dress one step above what you expect of your audience. • Grooming should not be at issue.

9. Paralanguage • Paralanguage refers to HOW something is said. • These vocal elements include: • Rate • Pause • Volume • Pitch • Intensity • Force • Voice Quality

10. Rate • Rate refers to how fast the speaker is speaking. • The average person speaks at 125-150 words per minute. • The rate of speech can increase subconsciously because of nervousness, excitement and/or anger. • A decrease in rate can be caused by depression or boredom. • The rate of a speech should be as normal as possible while meeting the specifics of the speech.

11. Pause • Pause can be used to add emphasis, or to call the audience to action/thought. • Undue pause can indicate that the speaker is poorly prepared or is confused by his/her own content. • Verbalized Pauses: “Ums” and/or “Ahs” are most common. The repetition of a nonsensical word also qualifies. • Nonverbalized (Silent) Pauses: These are awkwardly long breaks in the speech that do not server a purpose.

12. Volume & Pitch • Volume • Volume is how loud the speaker is. • Fluctuation, loud, or soft volume can indicate nervousness and/or lack of confidence. • Increase and decrease in volume can also be used within a speech to make a point. • Pitch • Pitch naturally varies in speech (like at the end of a question.) • The lack of variance, or excessively hi/low pitch shows nervousness, or lack of confidence.

13. Articulation • Articulation refers to the placement of consonant and vowel sounds together to form words. • A speaker should articulate his/her words to avoid confusion and show education. • Common articulation errors include: • Running words together (“did you” or “dija”) • Substituting one sound for another (“Student” or “Stoont”) • Omitting necessary sounds (“Asked” or “Ast”)

14. Pronunciation • Pronunciation is articulation to the next level. • It entails using the correct consonant and vowel sound, but also the correct accent and manner. • Say “Emphasis” • Now, say “Emph`asis” • Say “Syllable” • Now, say “Syll`able” • Articulation and pronunciation are the background to communication because they determine what the audience hears and therefore what they decode.

15. Word Choice • There are three main areas to think about when considering word choice: • Oral Style vs. Written Style • No contractions in written, but ok in oral. Oral style is more conversational than written. • Concrete Language vs. Abstract Language • Specific words (concrete) the audience can relate to are better than abstract concepts that can confuse. • Passive Voice vs. Active Voice • Avoid wordy passive sentences like “The bone was retrieved by the dog.” Say “The dog retrieved the bone.”

16. Make it Interesting • Here are some tips on making your speech more interesting to your audience through word choice: • Call on the senses of your audience (imagine the smell of fresh baked cookies, imagine the sound of metal bending and glass breaking.) • Use descriptive language and adjectives. (“We stayed in a house.” or “We stayed in a gothic mansion, with tall dark windows covered by parapets of stone, and toped with ominously weathered gargoyles.) • Make it personal. (Avoid the used of vague or generic names over real names. “The dog next door”, or “Bruiser, the 100 pound doberman”.)

17. Appropriateness • Be sure to know your audience. • Avoid questionable or profane language. (exception: when the audience is familiar AND the point is better made by using it and/or it is quoting a source.) • Avoid off color topics or stories. It is impossible to know what will offend someone until it is said. • Avoid dialectical pitfalls unless they are clearly for effect and can be distinguished from the speaker and the content.

18. Impromptu Speech: “Children’s Story” • 8 speakers will be chosen • Preparation: Tell a children’s story (either published or original) with a clear beginning, middle, and end. • Delivery: You will have 3 min. to deliver the speech to an audience of children. (NO SCRIPTS) • Be sure to include all of the following in your speech: • Where? When? Who? What? Why?—elements of a story. • Cite the source if this story is yours (original) or published. • Begin with something other than “Once Upon a Time” • Use exaggerated facial expressions, gestures, body language, and vocal expression. • A “lesson” or “moral” to the story.