You are graduating in a few weeks. Here is your opportunity to talk to your class about your thoughts on the past, present, and future. Construct a speech to present to our last English 12 class. If you’re not sure where to begin, the links below provide both examples and tips on how to write a graduation speech. These may be some of the last words you share with me and your classmates, and it is always important to be memorable, so keep that in mind as you write.

You will be graded according to 5 focuses on a 10 point scale (10=perfect, 8=mostly accurate, 6=somewhat inaccurate, 3=inaccurate/inappropriate).

1. Length (300 or more words)

2. Meaning (fits the intention of a graduation speech)

3. Organization (uses paragraphs effectively to create a unified, logical speech)

4. Grammar/Spelling (does not contain errors)

5. Language Usage (effectively uses words to achieve desired effect)

Examples of speeches:
http://teens.lovetoknow.com/Sample_High_School_Graduation_Speeches (high school speech samples)
http://www.dominik.net/thoughts/valedictorian-speech.php3 (another sample)
http://teachers.mpcsd.org/whaug/Downloads/GraduationSpeechOutline.pdf (speech outline)