LIFE AT A LOWER SPEED
General purpose: to inform.
Specific purpose: to inform my audience about the peculiarities of downshifters way of life.
Thesis statement: Downshifters way of life is quite different from the one which most of us are used to.
Introduction
Attention material: Whats the similarity between Leo Tolstoy, Uncle Fedir from Prostokvashyno and the Roman Emperor Diokletian? All of them were downshifters. (visual aid)
Relevance: The stress of a big city can get to all of us. Who hasnt thought of giving it all up and moving to some cleaner and quieter place? If the same ideas sometimes get into your mind, it will be useful to get to know something about downshifting.
Credibility material: While preparing the speech, I made an investigation about the downshifting movement. Ive watched several videos about this tendency, read some articles and interviews with its representatives.
Thesis statement: Downshifters way of life is quite different from the one which most of us are used to.
Preview: Today Im going to tell you about the meaning of the term downshifting. Then Ill analyze the main motives of people who become downshifters and, finally, we will consider the difficulties of such a way of life.
Lets now define what downshifting is and see whether it is a new phenomenon.
Body
I. Downshifting is a conscious decision to live a simpler life, followed by moving from a big city to countryside. (definition, examples)
Now that we know what downshifting is, lets define why people decide to escape from a city life.
II. There are psychological as well as physical reasons for becoming a downshifter. (visual aid)
A. People feel inner resistance to modern social values.
B. There are also lots of problems in big cities which people face every day. (statistics Russian research of happiness)
1. Firstly, its the ecological problem which makes people escape from city dust and noise.
2. Moreover, transportation problems sometimes make big cities impossible to live in.
3. Finally, a problem of crime contributes to a persons decision to become a downshifter.
All these motives urge people to give it all up and move to some place cleaner and quieter. However, is it really so easy to live in a cleaner and quieter place?
III. Downshifters life has some difficulties too. (visual aid)
A. Village life often lacks conveniences.
B. Good health care and schooling may be hard to find in the countryside.
C. Options are certainly more limited when it comes to culture and entertainment.
Now lets sum up what we have covered about downshifting.
Conclusion
Summary: Now you know what the term downshifting means, what the main reasons of becoming a downshifter are and which problems downshifters can face in countryside.
Restated thesis statement: As you might have already understood, the life of downshifters is very specific and, generally, its not so simple to live a simple life.
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Clincher: Think about your everyday life for a moment. You spend 8 hours a day working and studying, it takes you 2 hours to get to work, University and then back home. You cant remember when you had a gulp of fresh air last time. If this is true about you, you should think of downshifting. Maybe, we wont see you at classes tomorrow as you will be digging manure in Romashky village.
Sources:
1. . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AUGRtgHq7I&feature=related
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFsydsdPIe8&feature=related
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC1TpXG1gLc&feature=related
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmARF_n7wO4&feature=related
Practice Assignments
Task 1. Edit the following outlines according to the demands for informative speeches. Correct grammar and vocabulary mistakes.
Sample 1
Informative Speech Outline
ICE WORLD
Topic/Title: Ice world
General Purpose: To inform
Specific Purpose: To inform my audience on general knowledge about ice, to point out the uses of ice in human world and to describe some negative effects of ice.
Thesis statement: Not only well-known nature forms can be named like ice world, but it is also numerous cultural applications and even damages.
Preview: Today Im going to share with you some general information about ice; after that well try to find out the ice contribution into the human world and at the end Ill describe how ice can be dangerous.
Introduction
Attention getter: [ Action eat an ice-cream]
Credibility: For me it becomes a hobby to eat more than three ice-creams at one time and nearly 40 ice cubes every day. But Ive never known that during World War II, Project Habbakuk was a British programme which investigated the use of pykrete (wood fibres mixed with ice) as a possible material for warships.
Relevance: So I ask myself a question: You eat ice every day and dont know where it also can be found?
Thesis: And can you imagine, how shocked I was when I realize that not only well-known nature forms, but also numerous cultural applications and even damages can be named like ice world.
Preview: So now Im going to share with you some general information about ice; after that well try to find out the ice contribution into the human world and at the end Ill describe to you how ice can be dangerous.
Transition: Lets look at these three ideas a little more closely.
Body
I. Although there is no special ice science, there is a try to systemize the whole information about ice by giving a definition and organizing its forms in types.
A. Definition: Ice, technically speaking, is a crystalline phase of water. It occurs when liquid water is cooled below 0C (32F) at standard atmospheric pressure.
B. Types of ice: It appears in nature in the most common forms of hail, snowflakes and, of course, icebergs.
1. Hail: Hail forms in storm clouds when super-cooled water droplets freeze on contact with condensation nuclei, such as dust or dirt.
2. Snowflakes: Snow crystals (snowflakes) form when tiny super-cooled cloud droplets freeze.
3. Iceberg: An iceberg is a large piece of ice from freshwater that has broken off from a snow-formed ice shelf and is floating in open water. The tallest known iceberg in the North Atlantic was 168 metres above sea level, reported by the USCG icebreaker East Wind in 1958, making it the height of a 55-storey building.
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Transition: Now when we know the definition and types of ice we can move on and see another level of ice world.
II. While analyzing the human world I make myself to find the ice parts in it. And it was really unexpected to see the ice production, sport and art.
A. Iceproduction: As U.S. Census Bureau says, in 2002, there were 426 commercial ice-making companies in the United States.
1. For storage: As for storage ice has long been valued as a means of cooling such as icehouses and refrigerators.
2. For consumption: Speaking about consumption, we can find a lot of ways how to use ice effectively: Ice cubes, Ice makers, Ice cream, as the material for musical instruments, and in medicine.
B. Ice sport: A lot of sports activities rely on ice. Lets name some of them: Ice skating, Ice hockey, Ice climbing, Curling, and Ice yachting.
C. Ice art: But I should also stress the ice contribution into art both sculpture and architecture.
1. Sculpture: Ice sculpture is a form of sculpture that uses ice as the raw material.
2. Architecture: Ice architecture can be developed into ice hotels, ice bars and igloo.
Transition: Getting the point of general information about ice and its existence in a human world were ready now to see the negative effect of ice and understand in what way it can be dangerous.
III. Despite the positive uses of ice there are several problems that can be caused by ice:
A. For automobiles: First of allit can be threatful for automobiles. Ice forming on roads is a dangerous winter hazard. Black ice is very difficult to see, because it lacks the expected frosty surface.
B. For ships: Secondly, for ships, ice presents two distinct hazards.
1. Spray and freezing rain can produce an ice build-up on the superstructure.
2. And icebergs can be dangerous if struck by a ship when underway.
C. For aircraft: Thirdly, for aircraft, ice can cause a number of dangers.
1. As an aircraft climbs, it passes through air layers of different temperature and humidity, some of which may be conducive to ice formation.
2. If ice forms on the wings or control surfaces, this may adversely affect the flying qualities of the aircraft.
Transition: Even if I couldnt describe to you the whole ice world, I tried to give you the points that seems interesting to me and are necessary to know.
Conclusion
Summary of main points: So, during these 7 minutes I have given you my answer to the question that occurs in my mind at the beginning of my speech.
Restated thesis: I hope that now when you eat an ice cream or have a cool drink, youll understand that it isnt just a pleasure for you, but it is also a separate world with its definition and ice types, with its presence in a human world and of course with its negative influence on us.
Concluding remarks: But dont think about that too much. Just eat ice and have it nice!
Bibliography
Glossary of Meteorology (June 2000). "Diamond Dust". American Meteorological Society. http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary/search?p=1&query=diamond+dust&submit=Search. Retrieved 2010-01-21
Visual aids:
Photos
Model of an ice cream
Sample 2
