What is a Gavel Club?
“The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public.” — George Jessel (1898-1981)
Everyone can relate to that quote, can't they? You get up on the stage, butterflies in your stomach, and try to speak, but then...your mind draws a blank. Public speaking is one of the most dreaded activities, yet it is a vital leadership ability. Confidence in front of a crowd is a trait consistently sought after in business, civic, government, and religious settings.
Is there really any way to overcome this fear of public speaking? Yes, there is! Gavel Clubs are affiliated with Toastmasters International, and dedicated to the same principles. The club uses Toastmasters manuals, but the meeting format is modified to better suit middle- and high-school students.
Club meetings are once a week, in person. The club year runs from mid-Sept to mid-May, and has about 20 members each year. Role assignments change each week. During meetings there are many unique roles: one member hosts the meeting (Toastmaster), another member prepares a speaking tip (Speaking Tip Master), another keeps and gives time reports of other roles (Timer), one tallies votes and announces the results (Ballot Master), one will share a joke, while another shares a poem (Joke/Poetry Master), another gives a brief presentation on notable events in history (Historian).
There are other such roles assigned each week, so that each member gets a turn speaking at the lectern, helping members learn speaking skills in a variety of positions. Each week, three members will be assigned a speech role, usually a 5-7 minute speech. After the speeches, member evaluators provide constructive criticism and helpful advice. Speech roles, which require more preparation time than other roles, are assigned approximately four times per year. A Gavelier's first speech, called their icebreaker, is simply an introductory speech about him- or herself. From there, objectives for the speeches focus on different areas, such as perfecting body language, organizing information, and making an impressive impression on the audience. "Table Topics" are another element of each meeting. Members are chosen at random to speak for one minute on a topic given to them on the spot. The following poem sums up the way Gavel Club works well:
Joseph's Poem
By Joseph Haden
Somewhere unknown on a Thursday afternoon
A meeting of students commences very soon
And thus the President had indeed called it to order
Of which they then turned their attention toward her
Throughout this meeting we do many things
Some of us are debating the way the topic should swing
Some of us are keeping track of grammatical mistakes
Some of us are giving advice for the speeches we make
Some of us are deciding who did best by counting up votes
Some of us are called up to recite jokes and puns
Some of us are ranting about Flex Tape and Rogue One
Some of us are putting others on the clock and seeing who spoke faster
And then we come to one of us, of whom is the Poetry Master
He recites the poem he wrote for the audience
As they respond back in conversation with nothing but silence
He goes on and talks about the current state of time
He reads each sentence making them all end with rhyme
He reaches the part in his poem of which he talks about what he himself is currently doing
I change the perspective of which I’m currently viewing
And thus I have made this poem far too meta
So I shall end this and let the next gavelier head up
Thank you
Queen City Gavel Club meetings are run by the member students! It's not a teaching time - it's a hands-on learning time, where everyone works together and learns from each other.
A Gavelier's hard work pays off. After giving their first ten speeches, they will receive the Competent Gavelier Communicator certificate from Toastmasters International. This certificate is nationally recognized, and shows proof of confident leadership abilities. This recognition is a valuable asset to any résumé!
When it's time for your student to gain vital leadership and public speaking skills, please consider Queen City Gavel Club! Want to see our club in action at a meeting? We'd love to have you! Just ask at our Contact Us page. Be sure to also visit our FAQs page for more answers.