Public Speaking

Public speaking continues to be a cornerstone of the University of California 4-H Youth Development Program (UC 4-H). Over the 120 years of UC 4-H, the presentation program has expanded to include various public speaking formats and opportunities for members to receive feedback from evaluators. UC 4-H alumni will often mention that they learned how to speak more effectively through their participation in the UC 4-H presentation program.

Every 4-H member is encouraged to give a presentation each year.

4-H members practice by giving talks to project groups and at community club meetings, sharing information about the skills they learned in a project, and observing other people giving presentations.

To prepare for a 4-H presentation, youth learn how to:

Research a subject
Organize ideas in a logical order
Share knowledge with others
Create and use graphics to support their presentation

When youth teach project skills in a presentation format, it demonstrates advanced skills and a deeper understanding of what was learned.

2024 Presentation Cycle Flyer for Families

Impromptu Speech Categories - 2025

Impromptu presentations give presenters a chance to speak on a topic they've had some time to prepare for, but they don’t receive the prompt until right before they present. At State 4-H Presentations, only Intermediate and Senior 4-H members can participate in Impromptu Speeches, so categories are only provided only for those age groups:

Senior (14-19 years old)

Youth Activism (Civic Engagement)
Mental Impact of Bullying (Healthy Living)
Youth-Adult Partnerships (Leadership)
Food Science (STEM)

Intermediate (11-13 years old)

My Community
My Heritage

See the full descriptions of the 2025 Impromptu Categories

Prompts for impromptu speeches will be developed from these categories. Each presenter is assigned a random prompt, which can come from any one of the categories. Presenters are unable to choose a specific category.

Presenters are allowed a 5”x7” note card with pre-written notes on potential categories only located on the front side of their index card, which after the prompt is given the presenter is allowed to write-on, study, or change at their discretion in order to prepare for their speech.

For further details and clarifications, please refer to the 4-H Presentation Manual.

Types of Presentations

Presentations are not just demonstrations. You have many options ranging from traditional demonstrations for beginning members to persuasive speeches for more experienced members. All of the various presentation styles require similar skills and are designed to meet the interests and age-appropriate levels of the member. No style of presentation is better than any other. Choose the style that best fits you for your presentation and then try other styles as you advance in UC 4-H.

Demonstration/Illustrated Talk	Impromptu Speech
Science or Engineering Presentation	Interpretive Reading
Educational Display Talk	Share the 4-H Fun Skits
Persuasive Prepared Speech	Cultural Arts
Informative Prepared Speech

These are examples of different types of presentations.

4-H Presentation Manual

UC 4-H Presentation Manual [revised January 28, 2021]

The UC 4-H Presentation Manual is the consistent and standard guide for all UC 4-H presentations used by all county, regional, and state UC 4-H presentation events. The evaluation forms must be used at ALL UC 4-H presentation events.

Event Coordinators: Please use the Presentation Manual as a guide for planning your events, and ensure that all evaluators review the manual before your event.

Youth Participants: Please refer to the Presentation Manual as a guide when planning your presentation for competition.

State 4-H Public Speaking and Communications Advisory Committee

Please direct questions to the State 4-H Public Speaking and Communications Advisory Committee. Chair: Vera M Bullard at vmbullard@ucdavis.edu or Co-Chair: Steven Worker at smworker@ucanr.edu.

For Event Coordinators

County Presentations

Submit your County 4-H Presentation Event as a Regional Qualifier by February 24
In order for your county 4-H presentation event/day to be considered as a regional qualifier, information must be submitted by February 24 at County Presentation Event Notification as Regional Qualifier.

For questions, please contact Vera M. Bullard at vmbullard@ucanr.edu.

Invitation to participate in the public speaking youth outcome survey
We are inviting counties to administer a youth public speaking survey at your county 4-H presentation event! The survey is available on paper or online Qualtrics. We developed a 2-page youth survey we are asking you to administer before or during your county 4-H presentation event. The surveys are meant to be delivered during a county 4-H presentation event BEFORE youth learn their award. We are also asking that you submit the averaged evaluator scores – in addition to the gold, blue, red placings – for youth participating at your county 4-H presentation event when you submit results for eligibility checks for regional events. Please contact us if you are interested: Steven Worker, Yu Meng, Nicole Marshall-Wheeler, Roshan Kumar Nayak, Vera M Bullard.

Virtual Format

Learning to present virtually is becoming an important skill in the workplace and useful in their careers! However, youth will need to adapt their presentations to take advantage of the technology, including designing slides, keeping the audience’s attention, and handling technology problems. The revised UC 4-H Presentation Manual (2020) offers tips for youth presenters on presenting virtually (page 11).

How To Guide for Virtual 4-H Presentation Events rev10-13-2020

Regional Presentations

Submit your In-Person 4-H Presentation Event as a State Qualifier by February 24
In order for your in-person regional presentation event to be considered as a State qualifier, information must be submitted by February 24 at 2025 Hosting a Regional Presentation Event Notification Form.

For questions, please contact Vera M. Bullard at vmbullard@ucanr.edu.

Regional Presentation Event Information