Course: Public Speaking — Fundamentals of Oral Communication (COMM 1) · Silver Oak University (fictional sample) · Prof. Marchetti
Module: Week 14 of 16 · Fall 2026 · in-person, two 75-minute sessions + one weekly Speech Workshop
Objective covered: Objective 8 — Plan and deliver special-occasion speeches (introduction, presentation, acceptance, tribute/toast, after-dinner, commencement) that fit the occasion, tone, and audience; and apply small-group communication principles (problem-solving agenda, task/maintenance/self-centered roles, leadership) to group and panel presentations.

This file holds two pieces: (A) the Module 14 Overview page ("Start Here") and (B) the Welcome Announcement that drips out when the module opens. Dates below assume a Tuesday/Thursday pattern with Week 14 meeting Tue Dec 1 and Thu Dec 3, a Speech Workshop that same week, and end-of-week work due Sunday Dec 6, 11:59 p.m. Adjust the day-of-week and times to match your section.

(A) Module 14 Overview — Start Here

Welcome to Week 14: Special-Occasion & Small-Group / Team Communication

This is your home base for the week. Read it first, then work the checklist below from top to bottom. Everything you need is linked inside the module.

You've built a full toolkit this term — how communication works, how to research and cite, how to organize and outline, how to make a point vivid, how to persuade honestly, how to reason without fallacies. This week you turn that toolkit toward some of the most personal speeches anyone gives: the special-occasion speech. The toast at a wedding. The tribute at a retirement party. The introduction before a keynote. The acceptance after an award. These speeches are brief — but they're anything but easy. A bad toast embarrasses everyone; a great one moves a room to tears and laughter at the same time. The skill? Match the mood of the occasion, say something vivid and true, and stop on time.

We'll also zoom out to small-group and team communication — the skills you need when you're not the only speaker but part of a coordinated panel or group presentation. Roles, problem-solving, and what makes team communication succeed or derail.

Your headline assignment this week is the Special-Occasion Speech — a recorded tribute, toast, or introduction tailored to a stated occasion. It's worth 100 points.

The week's big question

"What does it take to fit the moment — to give a speech that is exactly right for this occasion, this person, and this room?"

By Friday you'll be able to identify and distinguish the major types of special-occasion speeches, describe what makes each one succeed, explain the task/maintenance/self-centered group-role framework, and deliver a 60–90-second tribute, toast, or introduction.

By the end of this week, you can…

Use this as a checklist. If you can do all four out loud, you're ready for the quiz.

• [ ] Name and distinguish the major special-occasion speech types — introduction, presentation, acceptance, tribute/toast, after-dinner/commencement — and describe the goal and key features of each.
• [ ] Apply the three criteria for a successful special-occasion speech — occasion fit, appropriate brevity, and a match with the mood/tone.
• [ ] Classify group roles — task-focused, maintenance-focused, and self-centered/dysfunctional — and describe the behavior that marks each.
• [ ] Deliver a 60–90-second special-occasion speech (tribute, toast, or introduction) with a clear structure, vivid language, and the right tone.

What's due this week, and when

Work these in order — each one gets you ready for the next.

Heads-up on the AI tools: this week's speeches are highly personal and occasion-dependent. The chatbot will try to help — but watch for it suggesting generic, flowery filler ("May your journey together be filled with joy and laughter") instead of the specific, vivid, true detail that actually makes a toast land. The AI's job this week is to help you find and sharpen your own material, not to invent sentiment for you.

Late policy reminder: 10% off per day late. If life happens, reach out before the deadline — I'd much rather hear from you early.

How to succeed this week

• The specific detail beats the generic compliment. "She stayed up until 2 a.m. helping me fix my outline the night before my first real presentation" lands harder than "she's always been supportive." Find the one true thing.
• Brevity is a skill, not a limitation. A two-minute toast that lands is worth more than a ten-minute tribute that meanders. Revere the clock.
• Match the mood. A toast at a retirement party is warm and affectionate; a speech introducing a keynote speaker is energizing and brief; a tribute at a memorial is reflective and gentle. The words that work in one occasion can misfire badly in another.
• Group roles are everywhere. When you're in a team presentation, panel, or group project, knowing the difference between a task role (keeps the work moving) and a maintenance role (keeps the team together) — and recognizing a self-centered role when it disrupts — is the key to coordinating effectively.
• You've earned this. By Week 14, you've built a real set of skills. The special-occasion speech is where craft meets heart — and you have both.

(B) Welcome Announcement — Module 14

Release setting: post on the module's start day (offset = 0 days), i.e., Tue Dec 1, 2026 — not before. If your platform won't preserve the scheduled date on import, post this as a draft labeled "Release: Tue Dec 1."

Subject: Week 14 — the speech that has to fit the room

Hi everyone,

We're in the final stretch of the term, and this week we get to talk about some of the most memorable speeches anyone gives: special-occasion speeches. The toast at a best friend's wedding. The tribute when a beloved colleague retires. The introduction that makes an audience lean forward before the main speaker even opens their mouth. The acceptance speech when you're the one being recognized.

What makes these speeches hard isn't length — most of them are under three minutes. What makes them hard is that they have to be exactly right: the right tone, the right story, the right amount of warmth or humor or gravity for this occasion, this person, this room. Generic sentiment falls flat. A specific, true detail lands.

This week's big question: What does it take to fit the moment?

We'll cover all the major special-occasion types, the key criteria that separate the ones that land from the ones that don't, and — because you often give these speeches as part of a team or panel — the fundamentals of small-group communication and group roles.

Your Assignment 14 is the course's special-occasion headline speech: a 60–90-second recorded tribute, toast, or introduction fitted to a stated occasion, coached by an AI speech coach, and self-assessed against a 100-point rubric.

Three things not to miss:
1. Assignment 14 — the Special-Occasion Speech. This is a true headline speech, not a building block. Give yourself time to draft, rehearse, and record. Due Sun Dec 6.
2. Speech Workshop 14 — you'll draft and record a 60–90-sec toast or tribute and self-assess fit, brevity, and vividness. Also due Sun Dec 6.
3. Discussion 14 — an arguable question about what makes a tribute land (or not). Initial post by Fri Dec 4.

One thing to think about before Tuesday: call to mind a toast, tribute, or introduction you've actually heard — one that worked, or one that missed the mark. What was it about that moment? Bring the example.

See you Tuesday,
Prof. Marchetti