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Public Speaking Tips For Students

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Viola Desmond: Famous Canadian

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CANAdooDAday | Viola Desmond: Canadian Civil Rights Champion | CBC Kids

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"I Can" Self-Assessment Statements

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Famous Canadians

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Dr. David Suzuki (b. 1936)

A scientist, activist, and media star, David Suzuki has spent years in the public spotlight raising awareness of environmental issues. Since 1979, he's hosted a popular nature TV show called The Nature of Things, and writes a weekly column on environmental issues published in newspapers across Canada. A passionate progressive, he's known for his outspoken opinions on issues like climate change and economic inequality.

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A scientist, activist, and media star, David Suzuki has spent years in the public spotlight raising awareness of environmental issues. Since 1979, he's hosted a popular nature TV show called The Nature of Things , and writes a weekly column on environmental issues published in newspapers across Canada.

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Field Trip: Vancouver Maritime Museum

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Snapshot

Trained education volunteers lead small groups of students through hands-on and participatory activities designed to stimulate creative and critical thinking. To book your class please fill out our new online request form!

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Trained education volunteers lead small groups of students through hands-on and participatory activities designed to stimulate creative and critical thinking. To book your class please fill out our new online request form!

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Sample Wax Museum Presentations - Grade 3 + 4 Students

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Living Wax Museum - Talking Book Reports

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Librarians Recommend Their 15 Favourite Nonfiction Books For Kids

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When my almost-four-year-old goes to the library, he doesn't head for the picture books or the play area with its dress-up stations and toys. He beelines to the juvenile nonfiction shelves, diving into his beloved animals sections, as well as science, arts and crafts and things that go. Before we leave with a packed bag full of borrowed books, we'll head over to where the other kids are and pick out a few storybooks, but if it were up to him, his bedtime tales would all be fact-based reference materials.

For books, a lot of parents focus on fiction for their kids. And, yes, there are so many great picture books and early reader chapter books out there. But there are also really exciting nonfiction titles ready for your children.

Related Reading: 6 Sweet and Tender Books That Teach Kids All About Love

It's possible the internet's ability to tell you the latest in everything you need to know whenever you want to know it has rendered nonfiction kid books a thing of the past for some families, but this would be a shame. Whether they're for kids or grownups, the best nonfiction books do more than provide information and explanation - they have compelling visuals, cleverly written (and true!) stories and a certain quality that can't be replicated by a website scroll.

I asked librarians from across Canada to share some of their personal favourite titles. Here's a wide-ranging list of 15 books worth checking out.

Recommended by Ann Foster, branch supervisor, Saskatoon Public Library

Children who enjoy compendiums like the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls series will love these books, which introduce young readers to a diverse array of women from history. First published in Spanish and recently made available in English, the series so far includes biographies about Frida Kahlo, Ella Fitzgerald, Maya Angelou, Josephine Baker and more. The proportion of text to image makes them suitable for readers aged four and up. Ages 4 and up.

Recommended by Megan Clark, public service librarian, Yellowknife Public Library

This series about arctic animals, including books about polar bears, narwhals and musk oxen, is a snowy delight. Each book features a collaboration between a writer from the north (in the case of the titles exploring polar bears, narwhals and musk oxen, the authors are from Nunavut) and an illustrator from the south. Best for ages four to six, the books include fascinating and clearly written information about some of the north's most charismatic creatures alongside stunning illustrations. The magic of the arctic is beautifully showcased here in the hands of those who know it best. Ages 4 to 6.

Recommended by Erin Morice, youth collection development librarian, Halifax Public Libraries

Recommended by Anthea Bailie, collections strategist, Markham Public Library

Recommended by Megan Clark, public service librarian, Yellowknife Public Library

Recommended by Tess Prendergast, Suzy Arbor and Sadie Tucker, children's librarians, Vancouver Public Library

In a beautifully illustrated book about time zones, young readers are introduced to children around the world. Beginning at 6 a.m. in Senegal, each page in the book shows a different time zone and what a child who lives there might be doing at that moment. It's a great way to introduce to children in Canada the notion that people across our nation and around the globe are in different parts of their day across time zones every single day. This book employs the use of short vignettes about people all over the world and concludes with a fold-out map. Ages 5 to 9.

Recommended by Megan Clark, public service librarian, Yellowknife Public Library

Without a doubt, this is the best book I have found about sexual health, consent and identity for children. Thoughtful, respectful and open-minded, this welcoming and non-judgemental introduction to getting to know your body and your rights is an essential guide to raising sex- and body-positive people. Ages 5 to 10.

Recommended by Anthea Bailie, collections strategist, Markham Public Library

Recommended by Ann Foster, branch supervisor, Saskatoon Public Library

This book, along with others in the series like Frontiers of Space and Solar System, uses adorable retro 1950s-inspired illustrations to discuss scientific principles in a fun way for elementary school-aged readers. Each page contains a number of interesting facts, making it great to read and reread. You can open to any page and learn something new about energy, forces and the building blocks of the universe. Ages 7 to 11.

Recommended by Erin Morice, youth collection development librarian, Halifax Public Libraries

Science can be fascinating and daunting for children whose inquisitive nature leads to countless questions about how stuff works. And while the internet is filled with great information, finding online resources that are trustworthy, appealing and easy for children to understand can be overwhelming. I introduce you to World Book's Building Blocks of Science - a graphic novel series that explores various scientific topics like electricity, fighting sickness, matter and many topics in between. Information is presented in comic panels with fun illustrations. Imagine their excitement when your children hear they can learn about science through graphic novels! Ages 7 to 13.

Recommended by Ann Foster, branch supervisor, Saskatoon Public Library

I like this title particularly, but I also heartily recommend Wenzel's other books in the series like 13 Artists Children Should Know and 13 Paintings Children Should Know. These books offer a concise explanation of various notable painters, artists and art movements - and, in this particular book recommendation, there's mystery! Middle-grade fans of puzzles, ciphers and codes will enjoy learning about these real-life mysteries... and gaining some art appreciation along the way. Ages 8 and up.

Recommended by Tess Prendergast, Suzy Arbor and Sadie Tucker, children's librarians, Vancouver Public Library

Recommended by Myrrhita White, youth collection development assistant, Halifax Public Libraries

Children will regularly browse the internet to gather information for school projects, hobbies and general knowledge, but I'll reiterate this important the quest for finding trusted information can be difficult. 13 ½ Incredible Things You Need to Know About Everything is packed full of fun facts and mind-expanding knowledge, exposing well-known myths throughout its 176 pages. This eye-catching book bursts with current and factual information and is a great starting point for learner exploration. Supplemental websites listed throughout can assure parents and children of safe internet exploration for further learning. Ages 8 to 12.

Recommended by Tess Prendergast, Suzy Arbor and Sadie Tucker, children's librarians, Vancouver Public Library

Recommended by Anthea Bailie, collections strategist, Markham Public Library

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Librarians Recommend Their 15 Favourite Nonfiction Books for Kids | CBC Parents

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When my almost-four-year-old goes to the library, he doesn't head for the picture books or the play area with its dress-up stations and toys. He beelines to the juvenile nonfiction shelves, diving into his beloved animals sections, as well as science, arts and crafts and things that go.

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Student Friendly Search Engine

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Why Wax Museums?

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For the second year, Cheryl Anderson's fifth-graders are performing the "Wax Museum Biographies." The students mentally leave their small South Dakota town -- population 913 -- for such places as the moon, a street in Montgomery, Alabama, or the steps of the White House. Donations for their performances go to charitable activities within the state.

Some pupils at Arlington Elementary School in Arlington, South Dakota, have a dream. Others have "asked not what their country can do for them." Still others have taken a "giant step for mankind."

Cheryl Anderson's fifth graders mentally leave their small South Dakota town -- population 913 -- for such places as the moon, a street in Montgomery, Alabama, or the steps of the White House. For the second year, Anderson has assigned her class what she calls the "Wax Museum Biographies."

The hope, according to Anderson, is for the children to become involved in history while learning citizenship. The students conduct two-minute speeches in front of fellow students and members of the community. Like many actors, though, they work only for money. Drop a nickel in the cans they hold, and these actors begin to play their chosen characters. Without a contribution to the pot, they remain as still as statues in a wax museum.

"I was nervous about giving my speech, but after a few times it was fun to hear a nickel drop in my can," one student in Anderson's class told Education World.

CITIZENSHIP IS PART OF THE LESSON

The citizenship aspect comes into play when the children take the coins dropped into their hand-held cans and transform them into checks donated to a charity of their choice. Last year, they gave the money to the community of Spencer, South Dakota, which had been ravaged by a tornado. The money-- which usually ranges from $75 to $125 -- was earmarked to replace trees that the storm damaged.

This year the money was used to buy more trees, but this time they were planted near the school's playground. No, these children are not arborists. Trees were uprooted when another twister ran amok through the schoolgrounds.

"We want the students to learn that being a good citizen is also in doing for others in some way, so the money we earn is given to a project in our community or nearby communities in our state if possible," Anderson said.

WAX MUSEUM BIOGRAPHIES: THE LESSON

The pupils were told to choose any figure from U.S. history to write about. Students collected background information about their historical person from the Internet, encyclopedias, or bibliographies. The lesson was more than a lesson in research and history though. It was also a lesson in writing-- a lesson focused on writing good paragraphs. Each paragraph had to include an introductory sentence, detail sentences, and a conclusion. The students wrote two reports -- one about the character's life and family and the other about his or her contributions to history, Anderson told Education World.

The pupils then had their reports critiqued by an adult and their peers. The "critics" examined sentence structure, word choice, ideas, organization, and voice -- all elements of writing the students had studied -- Anderson said. Then the students typed their reports. Those reports served as the basis for the two-minute speeches that the students would give as their wax museum creations.

"Students are responsible individually for the material, but they work together by giving information to one another when they come across something that relates to someone else's person," said Anderson. She cited as an example the sharing that occurred between students exploring the lives of President John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jackie.

Pupils have chosen past presidents, first ladies, civil rights activists such as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Christa McAuliffe, and inventor Thomas Edison -- to name a few. Many students get ideas from their social studies textbook, added Anderson.

Click here to view two of the students' speeches as well as photos of them dressed in character!

STUDENT REACTION

"The research was hard, but the wax museum was fun," said one pupil. "I learned more about my character or person this way than just learning about him or her in social studies class," said another pupil.

Besides learning about their historical figures, the students find out how fortunate they are to live in the 21st century. "Thank goodness I live now and not back then," noted one pupil.

Anderson said the children practice reciting their reports before going public. When that time arrives, the pupils dress up as their characters, bring in props, and present a display board with their reports, pictures, quotes, and a time line of important events in their historical figure's life.

GOT A NICKEL?

It's wax museum day, and the students are poised and ready to share. When a visitor to the "museum" drops a nickel into a container, the children recite their memorized speeches.

"We invite other grades, family, friends, and community members to the two-hour presentation," Anderson told Education World. "Students at first are very nervous, but after a few times, they become pros at giving their presentations."

Anderson said the project can be time consuming, "but [students] do an awesome job of bringing in props and designing their own costumes." She cited two special-needs students in the class who were able to participate.

One child, who is confined to a wheelchair and communicates with a Dynavox, a communications device that assists people who have disabilities, created a presentation with the help of an aide. The aide wrote some facts about the student's character, and the speech therapist programmed it into the Dynavox. When someone dropped a nickel into his container, the boy could click play with his cheek switch, and the listener could hear the recorded facts. "He was very proud, and everyone enjoyed his participation," Anderson said.

Another pupil has selective mutism. Her social worker videotaped her at home reciting her speech. She then played the tape on a small TV.

Ryan Francis
Education WorldÂ®
Copyright Â© 2001 Education World

Updated 11/5/2001
Updated 9/28/2005

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Wax Museum Biographies Teach and Entertain!

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For the second year, Cheryl Anderson's fifth-graders are performing the "Wax Museum Biographies." The students mentally leave their small South Dakota town -- population 913 -- for such places as the moon, a street in Montgomery, Alabama, or the steps of the White House. Donations for their performances go to charitable activities within the state.

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Biography Research Sheet