Hola mis companeros de Toastmasters!
Below is a recap of our 08-09-10 meeting:
Jennifer Chan our club President (Presidente) opened the meeting at our new meeting location at Rockefeller Center. Jennifer welcomed members and our guests: Amelia Abad,the past district Governer who is now serving as our District Club Success Chair in charge of promoting a "Perfect 10 Club". Mark LaVergne who I had the pleasure of meeting at the last competition I participated in when I took home 2nd place also attended. And finally, Pauline Wilson, one of our members brought along her sister (hermana).
Ken Oehlkers was our Toastmaster for the day and the meeting theme he presented was Summer activities (Actividades de Verano)
Jennifer Chan presented our Word of the Day (Palabra del dia): "After" (Despues)
Pauline Wilson was our Ah Counter
Yours truly - The Timer (Reportera Cronografica)
We had 4 groups for the "una conversacion en Espanol" session/Spanish Conversation portion of the meeting. This is when we pair up fluent speakers with those who want to learn Spanish. The conversation is always lively and enjoyable.
Primer Oradora - 1st Speaker (Betty Picket)
Betty presented speech #3 (Get to the Point) from the Competent Communicator manual. The objective of "Get to the Point" is to make sure that every element of your speech focuses on one goal.
Just like last time, Betty gave a thoughtful and enthusiastic presentation. The title of her speech was "My favorite fruit" ("Mi fruta favorita"). The favorite fruit, was an avocado. You may not think there is a lot to say about avocados but Betty gave us a 5 minute 12 second presentation about all the tasty and wonderful things associated with them. The strengths of Betty's speech were: she met the speech objectives, gave a winning smile, which puts her and the audience at ease, had a good pronounciation of the Spanish words she did use, and presented the speech with a nice balance of both Spanish and English.
Evaluador - Evaluator for Betty's Speech (Dale Blagrove)
What an honor to have Dale Blagrove, not only attend the meeting but also step in at the last moment when we were short a Speech Evaluator. Thank you! (Muchas Gracias, Dale!) Dale is an old Toastmasters pro and although he only said about 3 words in Spanish, he did a fine job evaluating Betty.
Segundo Orador - 2nd Speaker (John Schaffer)
John presented speech #1 (Ice Breaker) from the Competent Communicator manual. The objective of the "Ice Breaker" is to introduce yourself to your peers while providing the speaker with a benchmark for their current public speaking skill level. Note: That John has already completed the CC Manual in English at another club. I commend him on going through that manual again in a foreign language.
For those of you that did not know it, John was a boy scout. He gave a thoughtful, charming and funny presentation about his experiences from both then and now. The strengths of John's speech were his: wit, humor, smile and well organized content. Like Betty, John also has a fairly good handle on Spanish language pronounciation. He also followed our new format and incorporated both English and Spanish in his presentation. Areas for improvement include: not forgetting to employ TM skills at all times, such as: maintaining eye contact with the audience. A recommendation for the future would be to memorize the Spanish portion of the speech, if possible, so that the notes don't become a distraction for everyone.
Evaluador - Evaluator for John's Speech (Julian Hernandez)
Julian did a great job evaluating John's presentation. We could see how Julian's experience as a foreign language teacher comes in handy. Some of Julian's strengths as a presenter are: his ability to look comfortable at the lectern, his relaxed pacing and clear articulation. Only recommendation, as Dale pointed out in his general evaluation, fluent speakers can spend a little more time on correcting some of the grammatical or pronounciation errors new speakers can learn from.
Special presentation by Amelia Abad
Amelia, who is from the Philippines took a chance and greeted us with a greeting in (Espanol). Nice job, Ameila! Amelia spoke to us about the importance of building and maintaining a Perfect 10 club. Her energy and enthusiasm was greatly appreciated and from the looks of it, Fiesta Toastmasters is off to a terrific start on building a Perfect 10 club! It's nice to know that we have her support during the year ahead. Muchas gracias, Amelia!
Next up - Temas de Mesa - Table Topics
A special thanks to our Table Topics Master, Marcia Melendez! She was kind enough to accept the role when I called her at 9am that morning (manana). Marcia led us through a terrific Table Topics session, she was well prepared. Even our guest, Mark LaVergne went up to answer one of the questions. Table Topics continues to be the most nerve-wracking, yet enjoyable portion of the meeting. Bravo Marcia!
Finally, our General Evaluator (Evaluador General)(Dale Blagrove)
Dale, as always gave a thorough evaluation including everything from our timing, room set-up to each evaluator and Table Topics participant. The main point that Dale brought to our attention is that all fluent speakers in the club should make sure to help non-speakers improve by noting errors in pronounciation and word usage.
Lastly, since no one used our word of the day (palabra del dia) at the meeting, I will use it now. We're looking forward to the Fall and to increased member attendance after (despues) vacation (las vacaciones). Muchas gracias to all who attended, for making our first meeting at Rockefeller Center, a memorable one.
hasta la proxima - til next time,
Marina Aris
VP, Education - Fiesta Club TM
P.S. I am fluent in Espanol, my door is always open for anyone needing to practice their speech before presenting it to the club. If other fluent members are interested in mentoring or helping non-speakers, please let me
know.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
07-12-10 Fiesta Club Meeting Recap
Hola mis companeros de Toastmasters!
Below is a recap of our 7/12/10 meeting:
Karthik Paladugu stepped in as Toastmaster and did a terrific job!
For those of you that have not seen Karthik host a meeting, he really knows how to make everyone relax and feel welcome. That sets a nice tone for the meeting which is after-all every Toastmaster's responsibility.
Our meeting was a special one because we could only have one presentation in order to make room for our New Officer Induction Ceremony. Join me in congratulating past and new officers in their posts and responsibilities! I know 2010 - 2011 is going to be an amazing year(ano) for Fiesta Toastmasters!
Reportero Conografico (Brad Shilling)
We tried something new where the role participants gave a brief introduction of their role in both English and Spanish. The Spanish words are written and provided on a sheet so that we can all begin learning new words for words we hear at every meeting. "Repetition after all is the mother of skill" I borrowed that quote from one of the world's most accomplished motivational speakers, Anthony Robbins. Back to Brad, he gadelivered a thorough description of his role and I know he will soon add a mastery of colors(colores) to those amazing number (numero) skills.
During una conversacion en Espanol
We split up into two groups. "Z" our guest stopped in to check out our club and I must say for someone who's first language is Russian, second is English, he did an amazing job introducing himself and his interests in Espanol. Hope we will be seeing him again at future meetings. Karthik is at the beginning of his Spanish studies but already he has the ability to pronounce words well and I know with patience he will learn a new vocabulary. I did not get to hear our other team, but Marcia, Jennifer and Brad seemed to be getting on just fine with their conversation (conversacion).
Orador(a) - Speaker (Jennifer Chan)
Our new Presiedent (Presidente) gave a terrific speech from the club series manual on "Organizing Your Speech" For those of you that missed it, here's a quick recap:
Organize your future speeches from the inside out. Meaning, think of an idea, list the key points and then arrange those points in order of priority. Jennifer even suggested use of a mind map, if you wish. Also, when thinking of speech presentation:
"Tell them what you're going to tell them" - "tell them" - "tell them what you've told them"
Your introduction has 120 seconds to catch the audience's attention.
The body of your speech should include: main ideas, facts and explanations
Your summary should have a strong close
Next up: Temas de Mesa - Table Topics (Marcia Melendez)
Marcia did a terrific job! She not only asked her questions in both English and Spanish, she also used creativity by asking participants to discuss their perspective on some good old Irish proverbs.
Since we were a small group, most of us were able to participate. Even our guest went up and gave a thoughtful response. We even learned that Brad's first love is mathematics or (numeros).
Evaluador(a) General - General Evaluator (Yours truly - Marina Aris)
Since it is difficult to evaluate myself, I can only say that I made my best efforts to offer both words of encouragement and suggestions for improvement to each of our meeting participants.
Instead of going through all of my recommendations, I will summarize by reminding everyone that Fiesta Toastmaster members are a special group because we are truly motivated and driven individuals. We are attempting to improve not only our public speaking skills but our ability to communicate in a second language.
That said, I encourage everyone to use both English and Spanish in their speeches, so that those who know fewer words can follow along. And mostly remember, that as Toastmasters we have to maintain a fine balance between Toastmaster skills, i.e. using vocal variety, pausing, eye contact, gesturing, etc. with learning Spanish (Espanol). We can do it, but we need to be mindful of all those things at once which is an interesting but manageable challenge.
Thank you! (Gracias!) everyone for reading this! Although some of us (including myself) will be unable to attend the next meeting, I will make sure to prepare and send out the next meeting agenda to everyone before then.
Lastly, thanks to Brad, Jennifer, Betty, Marcia, Karthik, and our guest Z for making the 7/12 meeting a success!
Hasta la proxima (til next time),
your new VP,Education - Marina Aris
P.S. I am fluent in Espanol, my door is always open for anyone needing to practice their speech before presenting it to the club. If other fluent members are interested in mentoring or helping non-speakers, please let me know.
Below is a recap of our 7/12/10 meeting:
Karthik Paladugu stepped in as Toastmaster and did a terrific job!
For those of you that have not seen Karthik host a meeting, he really knows how to make everyone relax and feel welcome. That sets a nice tone for the meeting which is after-all every Toastmaster's responsibility.
Our meeting was a special one because we could only have one presentation in order to make room for our New Officer Induction Ceremony. Join me in congratulating past and new officers in their posts and responsibilities! I know 2010 - 2011 is going to be an amazing year(ano) for Fiesta Toastmasters!
Reportero Conografico (Brad Shilling)
We tried something new where the role participants gave a brief introduction of their role in both English and Spanish. The Spanish words are written and provided on a sheet so that we can all begin learning new words for words we hear at every meeting. "Repetition after all is the mother of skill" I borrowed that quote from one of the world's most accomplished motivational speakers, Anthony Robbins. Back to Brad, he gadelivered a thorough description of his role and I know he will soon add a mastery of colors(colores) to those amazing number (numero) skills.
During una conversacion en Espanol
We split up into two groups. "Z" our guest stopped in to check out our club and I must say for someone who's first language is Russian, second is English, he did an amazing job introducing himself and his interests in Espanol. Hope we will be seeing him again at future meetings. Karthik is at the beginning of his Spanish studies but already he has the ability to pronounce words well and I know with patience he will learn a new vocabulary. I did not get to hear our other team, but Marcia, Jennifer and Brad seemed to be getting on just fine with their conversation (conversacion).
Orador(a) - Speaker (Jennifer Chan)
Our new Presiedent (Presidente) gave a terrific speech from the club series manual on "Organizing Your Speech" For those of you that missed it, here's a quick recap:
Organize your future speeches from the inside out. Meaning, think of an idea, list the key points and then arrange those points in order of priority. Jennifer even suggested use of a mind map, if you wish. Also, when thinking of speech presentation:
"Tell them what you're going to tell them" - "tell them" - "tell them what you've told them"
Your introduction has 120 seconds to catch the audience's attention.
The body of your speech should include: main ideas, facts and explanations
Your summary should have a strong close
Next up: Temas de Mesa - Table Topics (Marcia Melendez)
Marcia did a terrific job! She not only asked her questions in both English and Spanish, she also used creativity by asking participants to discuss their perspective on some good old Irish proverbs.
Since we were a small group, most of us were able to participate. Even our guest went up and gave a thoughtful response. We even learned that Brad's first love is mathematics or (numeros).
Evaluador(a) General - General Evaluator (Yours truly - Marina Aris)
Since it is difficult to evaluate myself, I can only say that I made my best efforts to offer both words of encouragement and suggestions for improvement to each of our meeting participants.
Instead of going through all of my recommendations, I will summarize by reminding everyone that Fiesta Toastmaster members are a special group because we are truly motivated and driven individuals. We are attempting to improve not only our public speaking skills but our ability to communicate in a second language.
That said, I encourage everyone to use both English and Spanish in their speeches, so that those who know fewer words can follow along. And mostly remember, that as Toastmasters we have to maintain a fine balance between Toastmaster skills, i.e. using vocal variety, pausing, eye contact, gesturing, etc. with learning Spanish (Espanol). We can do it, but we need to be mindful of all those things at once which is an interesting but manageable challenge.
Thank you! (Gracias!) everyone for reading this! Although some of us (including myself) will be unable to attend the next meeting, I will make sure to prepare and send out the next meeting agenda to everyone before then.
Lastly, thanks to Brad, Jennifer, Betty, Marcia, Karthik, and our guest Z for making the 7/12 meeting a success!
Hasta la proxima (til next time),
your new VP,Education - Marina Aris
P.S. I am fluent in Espanol, my door is always open for anyone needing to practice their speech before presenting it to the club. If other fluent members are interested in mentoring or helping non-speakers, please let me know.
06-28-10 Fiesta Club Meeting Recap
Hola mis companeros de Toastmasters!
Below is a recap of our 06/28/10 club meeting.
Hollie Wells our current club Presidente served as Toastmaster
John Schaffer introduced la palabra del dia: Inspiration - Inspiracion
Sadly I missed una conversacion en Espanol but I know it is always a part of the meeting we enjoy
Club Reminders Presentation
Thanks to the floor cleaning staff I made my way into the meeting just in time to give my presentation on Speaking & Leading at Fiesta TM Club. The gist of my speech: Feliz Ano Nuevo! or Happy New Year! Toastmasters is now changing their leadership teams and beginning a new year. As incoming VP Education, I am here to serve all of you as you continue to make progress on both your speaking and leadership skills/manuals. I will reach out to everyone to inquire about your next speech, goals for the year and upcoming schedule.
Primer Orador - 1st Speaker (Betty Picket)
Our first speech was an Ice Breaker and Betty did an outstanding job! Although Betty is already a seasoned TM she gave a terrific presentation, with lots of smiling and laughing and well pronounced words in Espanol.
Segundo Orador - 2nd Speaker (Julian Hernandez)
Our second speech was a great deal of fun. The room exploded in laughter as everyone learned that Julian is "el bebe" He also taught us all new words and phrases, like: "otro nino mas" Julian used bright yellow sheets with Spanish words, phrases and names on them and he spoke in both Spanish and English. All of his efforts made his speech enjoyable and educational. Bravo, Julian!!!
Evaluadora - Evaluator for Betty's Speech (Camille Dyer)
Camille did a fine job evaluating Betty. The evaluation was a bit short and could have used some suggestions for improvement, but all in all, Camille seemed comfortable at the lectern. We all have to remember that every time we are up there - it is an opportunity to practice our speaking skills, so more of Camille would have made the evaluation that much better. By the way, she was wearing a beautiful deep purple top that looked great on her, I forgot to mention it. Appearance is afterall one of the evaluation criteria :)
Evaluadora - Evaluator for Julian's Speech (Jennifer Chan)
Jennifer also did a terrific job with her evaluation. She pointed out the strengths and areas for improvement in Julian's speech. She also referred to specific points in his speech, and that always strengthens evaluations. It is important to be as specific as possible.
Quick Suggestions for future evaluations
We should remember that evaluations are mini speeches. Everything you learn when giving individual speeches: vocal variety, eye contact, gestures, etc. should be attempted during evaluations as well. Most importantly, we need to speak to the audience during evaluations not to the speakers. If you speak directly to speakers during evaluations you are creating an opportunity for conversation. Evaluations are intended to help us "all" learn from each speaker's strengths and areas for improvement. So for example, we would say: "I felt that speaker did the following really well...."
Next up - Temas de Mesa - Table Topics
Ken led us through a creative and enjoyable session of Table Topics. He brought in an envelope filled with daily use items which actually no one knew how to use. Then he asked each participant to tell the audience what the item was and to sell it. The creativity was a real treat both on Ken's part and on the part of each Table Topics participant. Again, more fun and laughter.
Camille, Tushar, Hollie, Karthik and John sold and auctioned off everything from a transformer to a mini personal satellite launcher. Camille managed to sell Hollie a ball for $50,000 (in monthly installments. The funniest idea came from our guest of the evening, Deonne Wallace. He sold a sandpaper sander as a beauty product and did a great job at it too, now there's a promising future Toastmaster member, look out for Deonne!
Evaluador General - General Evaluator (Karthik Paladugu)
Karthik did a fabulous job giving us an overall evaluation. He picked up on the strengths of our meeting and the areas for improvement. He also made great recommendations for our Speech Evaluators. It is important to remember that General Evaluations are meant to evaluate everyone in the meeting who has spoken but has not been evaluated. Good job, Karthik!
Lastly, a special thanks to the Reportera Cronografica (Jennifer Chan).
Wow, this club definitely offers a lot of inspiracion - inspiration.
Hasta la proxima - til next time,
your incoming VP, Education - Marina Aris
P.S. I am fluent in Espanol, my door is always open for anyone needing to practice their speech before presenting it to the club. If other fluent members are interested in mentoring or helping non-speakers, please let me know.
Below is a recap of our 06/28/10 club meeting.
Hollie Wells our current club Presidente served as Toastmaster
John Schaffer introduced la palabra del dia: Inspiration - Inspiracion
Sadly I missed una conversacion en Espanol but I know it is always a part of the meeting we enjoy
Club Reminders Presentation
Thanks to the floor cleaning staff I made my way into the meeting just in time to give my presentation on Speaking & Leading at Fiesta TM Club. The gist of my speech: Feliz Ano Nuevo! or Happy New Year! Toastmasters is now changing their leadership teams and beginning a new year. As incoming VP Education, I am here to serve all of you as you continue to make progress on both your speaking and leadership skills/manuals. I will reach out to everyone to inquire about your next speech, goals for the year and upcoming schedule.
Primer Orador - 1st Speaker (Betty Picket)
Our first speech was an Ice Breaker and Betty did an outstanding job! Although Betty is already a seasoned TM she gave a terrific presentation, with lots of smiling and laughing and well pronounced words in Espanol.
Segundo Orador - 2nd Speaker (Julian Hernandez)
Our second speech was a great deal of fun. The room exploded in laughter as everyone learned that Julian is "el bebe" He also taught us all new words and phrases, like: "otro nino mas" Julian used bright yellow sheets with Spanish words, phrases and names on them and he spoke in both Spanish and English. All of his efforts made his speech enjoyable and educational. Bravo, Julian!!!
Evaluadora - Evaluator for Betty's Speech (Camille Dyer)
Camille did a fine job evaluating Betty. The evaluation was a bit short and could have used some suggestions for improvement, but all in all, Camille seemed comfortable at the lectern. We all have to remember that every time we are up there - it is an opportunity to practice our speaking skills, so more of Camille would have made the evaluation that much better. By the way, she was wearing a beautiful deep purple top that looked great on her, I forgot to mention it. Appearance is afterall one of the evaluation criteria :)
Evaluadora - Evaluator for Julian's Speech (Jennifer Chan)
Jennifer also did a terrific job with her evaluation. She pointed out the strengths and areas for improvement in Julian's speech. She also referred to specific points in his speech, and that always strengthens evaluations. It is important to be as specific as possible.
Quick Suggestions for future evaluations
We should remember that evaluations are mini speeches. Everything you learn when giving individual speeches: vocal variety, eye contact, gestures, etc. should be attempted during evaluations as well. Most importantly, we need to speak to the audience during evaluations not to the speakers. If you speak directly to speakers during evaluations you are creating an opportunity for conversation. Evaluations are intended to help us "all" learn from each speaker's strengths and areas for improvement. So for example, we would say: "I felt that speaker did the following really well...."
Next up - Temas de Mesa - Table Topics
Ken led us through a creative and enjoyable session of Table Topics. He brought in an envelope filled with daily use items which actually no one knew how to use. Then he asked each participant to tell the audience what the item was and to sell it. The creativity was a real treat both on Ken's part and on the part of each Table Topics participant. Again, more fun and laughter.
Camille, Tushar, Hollie, Karthik and John sold and auctioned off everything from a transformer to a mini personal satellite launcher. Camille managed to sell Hollie a ball for $50,000 (in monthly installments. The funniest idea came from our guest of the evening, Deonne Wallace. He sold a sandpaper sander as a beauty product and did a great job at it too, now there's a promising future Toastmaster member, look out for Deonne!
Evaluador General - General Evaluator (Karthik Paladugu)
Karthik did a fabulous job giving us an overall evaluation. He picked up on the strengths of our meeting and the areas for improvement. He also made great recommendations for our Speech Evaluators. It is important to remember that General Evaluations are meant to evaluate everyone in the meeting who has spoken but has not been evaluated. Good job, Karthik!
Lastly, a special thanks to the Reportera Cronografica (Jennifer Chan).
Wow, this club definitely offers a lot of inspiracion - inspiration.
Hasta la proxima - til next time,
your incoming VP, Education - Marina Aris
P.S. I am fluent in Espanol, my door is always open for anyone needing to practice their speech before presenting it to the club. If other fluent members are interested in mentoring or helping non-speakers, please let me know.
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