One of the advantages about homeschooling high school is the ability to tailor your school to meet the needs and interests of your students. To do that, you may need to think creatively, especially about topics that require some careful planning. One such area is speech and debate. There are some great homeschool groups and clubs that offer speech or debate classes, but sometimes you might not know how to find them. I have some ideas that may help you overcome this obstacle for your high school student!

Speech and debate can be done in group settings through some of the following national organizations. You may want to check out these groups on the internet:

• American Legion Boys State
• TeenPact
• YMCA Youth & Government
• National High School Mock Trial
• National Christian Forensics and Communications Association
• Awana, Bible Quiz, or Bible Bowl Clubs

You may find great opportunities for public speaking when your child applies for some college scholarships. Check out the Veterans of Foreign Wars and Elks Club college scholarships.

Your student may be able to have a speech experience with adults, by being part of an adult group like Toastmasters. Some Toastmasters clubs will offer a Toastmasters Junior group for teenagers, but the adult groups are great as well.

You may want to provide the opportunity for public speaking as a part of regular homeschool activities. Perhaps your child will teach a class to younger students, or teach Sunday School, or lead a larger group. Kids will often be happy to do this kind of speaking if they are teaching something they truly love.

You may be able to find a local debate group that you haven’t heard about. Give it a try, and Google your city, and the words “homeschool debate.” Even if there isn’t a group, you may be able to create one yourself. Advertise it within your own local area and see if there is any interest. Even if the group of teens doesn’t want to develop a formal “Debate Team”, you may be able to establish a group to meet and discuss current events. It may be as easy as having the group all listening to the same talk radio program prior to meetings, and then discuss their views.

You can also read and study about debate during the “down time” when not actively involved in a group. Some of the more popular programs include these curriculum options:

• Institute for Excellence in Writing Advanced Communication Series
• Secrets of the Great Communicators
• Or their more advanced, meant for adults, The Best-Kept Secrets of Great Communicators SYSTEM on Audio CD

Public speaking practice can be achieved by regularly memorizing and presenting prepared speeches to friends and family. Perhaps you could have your student to memorize scripture, poetry, or famous speeches from the past. They can present this each week to family or friends, or within a group of other teens.

You can memorize famous poems to tie in with your study of American or British Literature. My favorite source is: A Treasury of Poetry for Young People.  Memorizing poetry is a great fit for teenagers who love reading and literature.

Teenagers might like to memorize famous American speeches to tie in with your study of American History or American Government
Famous American Speeches: A Multimedia History, 1850 To The Present (CD-ROM).  That’s a great fit for the politically-minded teens.

You can memorize scripture as well. You may be able to find a local Awana Club, and have your children memorize scripture with that group – or even become a group leader. There are many other scripture memory clubs, as well as free memorization helps online. But you know, the Bible has always been memorized by believers, so all you really need is a Bible.

Have fun homeschooling high school!

Lee Binz is a veteran homeschooling mom of two and the owner of The HomeScholar, “Helping parents homeschool through high school.” She has a new free minicourse called “The 5 Biggest Mistakes Parents Make When Homeschooling High School”. You can sign up for her free email homeschool newsletter, The HomeScholar Record and get your daily dose of wisdom via e-mail from her homeschool blog, The HomeScholar Helper.