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.
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