When you’re giving a speech, it’s essential to plan what you will say.
Curriculum
Informative speech topics
When you’re giving a speech, it’s essential to plan what you will say.
This helps you to deliver an effective speech that conveys the right message. When planning a speech, it’s also necessary to consider who your audience is. Doing this helps you tailor your speech to the audience so it’s informative, engaging, and simple enough to understand.
The first step to writing an informative speech is to choose a topic. If you feel uncertain about what to talk about, this guide is designed to help. Keep reading to discover valuable topics for informative speeches and hints on choosing the right topic for your speech.
Education resources
What is the purpose of an informative speech?
An informative speech is designed to share information and tell a story. This might be a story from your own life, that of a famous person, or something more general. It’s essential to recognize that this type of speech isn’t about making an argument or convincing your audience to agree with your point of view. Instead, it’s about sharing information. You might take a neutral viewpoint and discuss both positives and negatives.
The structure of these speeches usually involves an introduction, the main body of your talk, and then a conclusion. You might allow time for questions at the end. The goal is to share information clearly and give your audience something new to think about.
Choosing the topic for a speech
There are a vast number of topics that you could present an informative speech on. This might mean it’s tough to narrow down your options. Choosing an exciting topic that you can use to engage the audience successfully is essential. It’s also wise to pick a topic that you’re knowledgeable about. This will likely make it easier to think of ideas and respond to questions the audience asks. Following these steps can help you to identify a good topic.
Check any guidelines you’ve been given
You might have some guidance about the length or content of your speech. Check this before you choose a topic. There might be specific topics that should or should not be covered, or you might need your speech to be of a certain length. Knowing what’s expected of you can help you make a decision. If there’s little guidance, this gives you the freedom to make your own decisions.
Think about your interests and expertise
Consider where your interests are and what areas you have expertise in. These subjects will be the easiest for you to talk about compellingly. Your passion for the topic will also be apparent to your audience, which will help them engage more with your ideas. If you’re familiar with the topic, you’ll be able to present more in-depth ideas.
Know your audience
It’s also essential to know your audience. How you’d present a topic to high school or college students is likely different from how you might address older professionals. Understanding your audience helps you to identify with them and understand how to communicate with them effectively. This helps you to express your ideas and deliver a successful speech.
Ideas for informative speech topics
It’s helpful to get some tips for choosing an informative speech topic, but sometimes you might still find it challenging. If this is the case, getting suggestions for topics can be helpful. You might decide to use one of these topics, or they may give you some ideas. Once you know the ideal topic, you can start planning your speech in detail. These are some popular ideas for informative speeches.
Efficient ways to study for school exams
This speech topic is ideal for high schoolers, but you could also adapt it to suit college students. You can draw on your educational experience and share tips to help audience members. If you had trouble studying in the past but found ways to overcome these challenges, this can be an excellent basis for a speech on this topic. Exams are something every student has to deal with, and 31% of high schoolers say that exams are their most significant source of stress. If you discuss this topic, students can relate to and benefit from your ideas.
How to decide on your college major
This is another ideal topic for high school and college students. The topic is likely already on their minds, and your insight can help audience members make a decision. If you struggled with making the decision yourself or know some great strategies for making big decisions, this could be a suitable topic for you to discuss.
Is learning English essential to success?
This topic can be presented to a variety of different audiences. This is the type of topic where you can give arguments both for and against the idea without trying to persuade the audience of one argument. This topic can be a good choice if English isn’t your native language. You can share your own experiences, the experiences of others who have learned English as a second language, or more general examples.
Evolution of the human species
Talking about the evolution of the human species can be interesting for any audience. This topic might be particularly relevant if you’re addressing people involved in science or biology, whether they’re students or professionals. You can conduct plenty of research on this topic and deliver a very detailed speech. You can adapt the level of detail and complexity to suit the audience. This topic might be good to discuss if your expertise is in science or anthropology.
The importance of the student-teacher relationship
Discussing the importance of the student-teacher relationship is relevant for school and college students and teaching staff. This is also a great topic if you’re addressing future educators. Whether your experience is as an educator or a student, you can draw on your experience building relationships in education and discuss how it has affected your learning or that of your students.
What is a balanced diet?
This topic can be relevant for virtually any audience. You can adapt the content to be relevant to the audience depending on who you’re addressing. For example, if you’re talking to high school students, you can discuss how a balanced diet can improve their health and academic performance. If you have nutrition experience or have experienced the effects of changing your diet to be more balanced, this can be a good topic to choose. You can use your experiences to communicate why a balanced diet is essential.
The adverse effects of steroids on athletes
Talking about the adverse effects of steroids on athletes can be relevant if you’re addressing student-athletes at a school or college. This topic can work well if you’re a sports coach or a current or former athlete. You might discuss your own experiences with steroids or those of others and more general science and information about steroids and their effects. You can talk about some ways that steroids can enhance athletic performance and present the adverse effects they can have.
Pros and cons of medical marijuana
As medical marijuana becomes more accepted, this topic is highly relevant. It’s suitable if your audience is involved in medicine or healthcare, but it can be relevant for any group if you want to give a speech about current events. Discussing the pros and cons gives a balanced view without arguing for or against the use of medical marijuana. This allows your audience to get information and form their own opinion.
The use of imagery in Shakespeare’s plays
For an audience involved in literature or theatre, discussing the use of imagery in Shakespeare’s work can be relevant and exciting. This can be appropriate if you’re talking to students studying Shakespeare. If you talk about this topic, it’s helpful if you already have some knowledge and experience of Shakespeare’s work. You can also conduct a lot of research into this topic and adapt how much detail you talk about to the needs of your audience.
How to be friendly to people you hate
If you want to deliver an informative, lighthearted, entertaining speech, talking about how to be friendly to people you hate can be a good choice. This topic imparts information that can be useful without being too serious. It’s a versatile subject that you can use with various audiences. You can give general information and talk about examples from your own experience.
Should assisted suicides be legalized?
Assisted suicide is a more serious topic that can be controversial. It’s important to consider whether this is an appropriate topic for your audience. For example, it may not be suitable for younger audiences. When you discuss this topic, you can share ideas for and against legalizing assisted suicide. Giving an informative speech on this topic means sharing a balanced view so the audience can form their own opinions.
Choosing a topic for your speech
Planning an informative speech might seem daunting, but there’s no need to be intimidated. By thinking carefully about the right topic, considering who your audience is, and planning carefully, you can write and deliver an engaging and intelligent speech that communicates your ideas. You might then find it easier to come up with more ideas for informative speeches in the future.
