It is a dream giving a great Valedictorian Speech at the end of high school.  But sometimes it is scary too. Students get scared of the fact that they can suddenly forget their speech or can go through some grammatical errors and many get scared to say something wrong or inappropriate. At the end of the day, the students want to tell about the journey and thank everyone with their great words.  

  1. Try Reading Various Graduation Speeches

The best way to get ready for the speech is by reading the speeches of others who are in a good position in the present date. Try to find speeches that are filled with emotions and humor. Try to find a speech that reflects the student’s personality. 

  • There are many great mentors who gave great Valedictorian Speech. Some of them are J.K. Rowling and Steve Jobs.
  • There are many speeches given by great NBA players standing in the hall of fame. Their speeches are worth every second to listen to.
  • A great speech by David Foster Wallace at Kenyon in the year 2009 made people get Goosebumps and even laugh out of its crazy humor. That was a speech to always take note of. Students can take the content and the sense of humor from the speech if the story isn’t theirs. It will help them a lot.
  1. Communicate with Other Students and Friends    

In the program, there will be many other students who will write a speech. Try to talk to them. They will surely help and there can be great changes in the speech. Listen to their experiences and feel every word. There can be students who are not very close friends but they can help and won’t deny.

  • Try to keep the speech simple but common keep it updated so that when the speech is delivered, it doesn’t look copied or boring.
  • Try to include every bit of the experience in the school. It can be small memories but do include it. It will surely make a difference.
  1. Try to Keep the Speech Shot

The ceremony will have a lot of things in it. All of it includes all the speeches from the students and some performances by the students and the staff. There will be speeches by many senior members and guests that will take a lot of time. So always keep in mind to keep the speech as short as possible, without losing its effect.   

  • Try to get an idea of how much time will be there for each and every student. Try to keep the speech for around 3-7 minutes if no one gives an exact time for the duration of the speech.
  • Try to keep the font bigger as it may get difficult to read and will take more time.
  • Don’t eat up words. Speak slowly and clearly, keeping in mind of the time duration.
  1. Appreciate People in the Speech

The speech is all about the personal experience but never forget to thank all the people who helped to reach each and every student to the position at where they are now. Take some time to thank all of them who made a difference in the file of the student.  

  • Try to make a list of all the names of the people who helped the student. The list includes teachers, parents, friends, and even the people working at various departments like the attendants.
  • The best way to end this is by asking the other classmates to thank them in their speeches too. This will make a great impact.
  1. Have a Great Sense of Humor

Always try to add a lot of jokes and positive sarcastic comments for a few teachers and friends. This will make the speech more interesting and everyone will listen to the speech. Making jokes always lightens up the brain giving the audience a sense of relief to the brain. Just be confident and don’t forget to pull some legs.

  • There can be times when people won’t laugh at the jokes. In that situation, try to move on. This will divert the audience.
  • Saying funny inspirational jokes is the best way to make people laugh. This will keep them laughing as well as give them an inspirational idea to think positive.
  • Think about some shot funny incidents or stories that happened. Talk about it confidently. The audience will surely laugh at the story.
  • Make jokes about some people in the audience you know, without hurting them.
  1. Talk about the Past

Talk about the incidents that happened in the class or the premises that no one knows of. This will give the audience a moment of shock and will make them want to listen to the speech. Talk about the day when all the friends went out together for the first time and how everyone got to know each other.

  • Keep in mind that when we talk about the past, we try to include all the parts of it. This includes all the accomplishments. This can be the student’s accomplishments or the whole class’s achievements.
  • It is always better to talk more about what the class gained rather than just the student.
  1. Talk about the Future

Every student has plans for their future. Talk about the future and tell the audience about what the student wants to pursue. Tell them about the time the student is planning to do. This part of the speech can be a bit boring for a lot of people, so try to be positive at all times.

  • It is not important that the student will have plans for the future as they can be still taking time to think about it. This is not a bad thing. So in that situation, talk about the classmate’s future. Talk about someone’s future planning, which is really different from others. 
  • If the student has no idea about the students too then that can be a great thing to talk about to the classmates. It is not important to add it in the speech.
  1. Keep Practicing the Speech

Try to prepare the speech a month before the final day. This will give time to be confident with the speech. If the preparation is not done properly, then the student won’t be confident and the loudness won’t be there in the voice which will lead to a bad speech.

  • Try to practice the speech while standing in front of the mirror. This will boost the self-confidence, eventually giving them time to practice more and they will be loud too while saying their speech. 
  • Try to imagine the place in the school’s auditorium. Wear the uniform or the gown with a cap to make the environment exactly like the final day. This will make the student more comfortable and confident.
  1. Use Friendly Words

It is good to go with the theme but using too much of the lines like “the future belongs to” or “the real world” will take the interest away from the audience. People will get bored. They will look at the student but with no interest.

  • Too much usage of these words and lines will decrease its meaning and no one will be interested to listen to the speech.
  • Try to use a few quotes and that too from the people whose quotes can be very useful. Try to make the speech a conversation and not a reading competition.
  1. Best for the Last

There are rare chances where the audience will listen to the whole speech. At that point, try to add some big ideas that the student talked about at the beginning of the speech. As it will be the last thing the audience will hear, so try to make an impact.

  • Don’t make it boring. If it is then the audience won’t be remembering it at all.
  • Try to keep the message to the point and very short. Shorter the message, easier it will be for the audience to remember. 

TIPS

  • It will be a big moment for the student and they should cherish it and enjoy the moment. This is the main reason to celebrate that day. 
  • Relax and keep in mind that it is even for the person who is reading. Take back the thoughts and words from the speech.
  • It is always good to jot down all the points first and then try to reframe everything as a speech. This way it will be easy to process everything and will remember all of it quickly.

What should be in a valedictory speech?

Great valedictory speeches follow a pattern. They offer a fond reflection on the high school years. With that in mind, the key to a great valedictory speech is to keep it simple, short (ten minutes is perfect), mention lots of people by name, tell stories, and practice it so much that you don’t have to read it.

What makes a good valedictorian?

A valedictorian should have a good understanding of the journey high school has been and how that relates to the future grads are about to embark upon. A valedictorian should be a person who can articulate a positive message as they reflect on the recent past and the near future.

Who gives the valedictorian speech?

The valedictorian is usually the student with the highest grades in a class. If the valedictorian of your class is someone you like and admire, you’ll enjoy listening to her graduation speech. At a high school or university graduation, the valedictorian traditionally gives a farewell speech, called a valedictory.

How do you begin a speech?

Here are seven effective methods to open a speech or presentation:
  1. Quote. Opening with a relevant quote can help set the tone for the rest of your speech.
  2. “What If” Scenario. Immediately drawing your audience into your speech works wonders.
  3. “Imagine” Scenario.
  4. Question.
  5. Silence.
  6. Statistic.
  7. Powerful Statement/Phrase.

How do schools choose valedictorian?

The chosen valedictorian is traditionally the student with the highest academic standing among their graduating class, and that standing is commonly determined by a numerical formula for Grade Point Average (GPA), but other methods of selection are also in use.

What GPA is required for valedictorian?

All seniors with a final Indexed GPA of 4.65 and higher will be honored as a Valedictorian upon graduation.

What was the highest GPA ever?

That helps those students accumulate a GPA way off the traditional 4.0 chart. While we are unsure if this is the highest GPA ever, we certainly can’t find any other press about it. Ravi Medikonda, then a senior at King High School in Hillsborough County, Fla., earned a 9.3079 GPA in 2012.

Is it worth being a valedictorian?

While being named valedictorian or salutatorian won’t factor into your college admissions status, there are still other benefits to the honor. In any case, this status will be a valuable addition to your resume, even if it won’t help you get into college.

Why is valedictorian bad?

Valedictorians: The Bad. Being a valedictorian is an accomplishment to be proud of, but it often comes at a price. Students often sacrifice their personal and social lives to focus entirely on academics. Quite simply, they lose treasured high school experiences.

Can you decline being valedictorian?

You can choose not to, but you have to tell the administrators and whoever is in charge of graduation as well as the people that select valedictorians. Granted that if you don’t speak, you might not be able to keep your valedictorian status.

Is being valedictorian a big deal?

I will say that while yes, valedictorian is a huge deal for some, it should not be your goal. If the only reason you apply yourself in school is to be valedictorian, you should re-evaluate yourself. Get involved with other activities that will boost your character.

Are valedictorians smart?

Valedictorians are not born smart, they are developed in the classroom. They are those ‘roll the sleeves up, gear down, and grind’ kind of students. Unfortunately, his daughter had always been told she was so smart that effort doesn’t matter to her.

What happens if there is a tie for valedictorian?

If there is a tie for valedictorian, it will be declared that there are co-valedictorians and there will be no salutatorian. If there is a clear valedictorian and a tie for salutatorian, there will be a valedictorian along with co-salutatorians. Math: Statistics.

Can there be two valedictorians?

Academic excellence can be achieved by more than one student in a class, and the numbers show that today’s multiple valedictorians are achieving more than the single valedictorians of yesterday.

How do you break a valedictorian tie?

To break any tie, the student with the highest total shall be ranked the highest, and the student with the lowest total shall be ranked the lowest.