Video

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Who can participate? All Pioneer students are invited and encouraged to research, select an African-American figure, and perform a piece authored by that figure.

What is an Oratorical? A performance of African-American-authored poetry, speeches, and/or monologues recited by another person (In this case, a Pioneer Student). See a sample oratorical fest here.

How do you participate? 

• Fill out the participant form (this form includes info on how to submit your video).
• Submit video performance (up to 3 minutes for solos & up to 5 minutes for pairs/groups).
• Based on the number of submissions, all or some students will be invited to a live showcase.
• All submissions will be made available for community viewing via our website.

When is this taking place?

• February 5th: Video submission Deadline. Make sure to say your name and grade in your video (Sample video submission).
• February 10th: Videos posted for viewing & invites for live showcase sent.
• February 15th, 3:30 - 5 pm: Showcase practice
• February 22nd, 6:30-8:00 pm: Showcase

Places to look for texts:

• American rhetoric top 100 speeches- Please note, you'd have to filter for speeches given by African-American figures
• The History Place: Great Speeches Collection
• Poems, articles, and podcasts
• 34 Powerful Black History Month Poems for Kids of All Ages

Collection of Oratorical Videos (You can view them to find a text you like).

• 2019 MLK Oratorical
• 2018 MLK Oratorical
• 2017 MLK Oratorical
• 2016 MLK Oratorical

About Effective Performances

• Effective Qualities of Oratorical Performance: Our event is not a competition. Instead, it's a showcase, however, this is a useful link to think about ways to pactice your performance: MLK Oratorical score sheet
• TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design)- a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less) www.ted.com