ORAL ASSESSMENT TIPS
There are two main types of oral assessments that require students to read or recite a piece a piece of text
Unprepared reading and prepared speeches are the main types of oral assessments that require students to
read a piece of text or recite it😊.
UNPREPARED READING TIPS:
Your teacher might call you to their desk to read outloud from a book. Alternatively, you teacher might
unexpectedly ask you to read from your prescribed text as you are going through it in class.
Here are some tips to ease your mind
1. DON’T READ TOO QUICKLY OR TOO SLOWLY.
The pace at which you read is very important component of assessment. Reading at a medium paced tempo
will ensure that you will not miss words or mumble as you go along.
2. MAKE THE APPROPRIATE EXCLAMATIONS.
You teachers want to be able to tell that you understand what you are reading. If a sentence that you are
reading has an exclamation mark, demonstrate this by having a slight exclamation in your voice. If you read a
sentence that has a question mark at the end of it, try to sound like you are asking a question as you read it.
3. DON’T BE TOO WORRIED IF YOU STRUGGLE WITH A SENTENCE.
When you are doing oral assessments, you will get most of your marks from the overall impression that you
make on your teacher. You shouldn’t aim to stutter or mumble as you read, but if it does happen don’t panic. If
you do stutter or mumble, take a moment to compose yourself. Try to make the rest of your reading as good
as possible 😊. It is very likely that your teacher will overlook a blunder if the overall impression of your
reading ability is good.
4. HAVE NATURAL PAUSES AS YOU READ
When we speak to other people, pausing is very common. New sentences or ideas are reflected by the natural
pauses that we take. In an extract of text, these natural pauses take the form of punctuation 😊. Commas,
fullstops, exclamation marks and question marks are all opportunities for you to take a natural pause as you
are reading.
USEFUL LINKS:
https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/teaching-tools/articles/resources/read-aloud-tips.html
https://www.amazingreadersbookclub.com/post/5-tips-for-reading-aloud-to-an-audience
PREPARED SPEECHES
Prepared speeches will likely be an indelible form of assessment throughout your High School journey 😊.
Speeches are an easy way to earn good marks. Find some tips below that will hopefully facilitate your journey
to mastering the art of speech giving.
There are two main types of oral assessments that require students to read or recite a piece a piece of text
Unprepared reading and prepared speeches are the main types of oral assessments that require students to
read a piece of text or recite it😊.
UNPREPARED READING TIPS:
Your teacher might call you to their desk to read outloud from a book. Alternatively, you teacher might
unexpectedly ask you to read from your prescribed text as you are going through it in class.
Here are some tips to ease your mind
1. DON’T READ TOO QUICKLY OR TOO SLOWLY.
The pace at which you read is very important component of assessment. Reading at a medium paced tempo
will ensure that you will not miss words or mumble as you go along.
2. MAKE THE APPROPRIATE EXCLAMATIONS.
You teachers want to be able to tell that you understand what you are reading. If a sentence that you are
reading has an exclamation mark, demonstrate this by having a slight exclamation in your voice. If you read a
sentence that has a question mark at the end of it, try to sound like you are asking a question as you read it.
3. DON’T BE TOO WORRIED IF YOU STRUGGLE WITH A SENTENCE.
When you are doing oral assessments, you will get most of your marks from the overall impression that you
make on your teacher. You shouldn’t aim to stutter or mumble as you read, but if it does happen don’t panic. If
you do stutter or mumble, take a moment to compose yourself. Try to make the rest of your reading as good
as possible 😊. It is very likely that your teacher will overlook a blunder if the overall impression of your
reading ability is good.
4. HAVE NATURAL PAUSES AS YOU READ
When we speak to other people, pausing is very common. New sentences or ideas are reflected by the natural
pauses that we take. In an extract of text, these natural pauses take the form of punctuation 😊. Commas,
fullstops, exclamation marks and question marks are all opportunities for you to take a natural pause as you
are reading.
USEFUL LINKS:
https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/teaching-tools/articles/resources/read-aloud-tips.html
https://www.amazingreadersbookclub.com/post/5-tips-for-reading-aloud-to-an-audience
PREPARED SPEECHES
Prepared speeches will likely be an indelible form of assessment throughout your High School journey 😊.
Speeches are an easy way to earn good marks. Find some tips below that will hopefully facilitate your journey
to mastering the art of speech giving.
