Aaron, how did you do? Sincerely, Aaron

I feel that I did a good job overall on my informative speech about Ernest Shackleton.  I have very little experience with public speaking so I did my best to be well prepared and keep in mind best practices.

After viewing the recording of my speech I believe that I could have improved upon my use of eye contact, particularly during points I intended to emphasize.  Also, I think I could have incorporated some hand gestures and more vocal variety.  I feel that I successfully avoided too many vocal pauses and distracting mannerisms.

I think that I chose credible, reputable, and scholarly sources of information.  I decided to omit citing my sources orally because I did not use exact text from the authors.  I do however think that I could have increased the credibility of my speech by orally citing some of my sources.  I believe that I did a good job organizing my information and presenting it to my audience in an understandable way.

I spent a lot of time preparing my outline and speech.  I rehearsed enough to become comfortable but not too much so that it sounded like a canned presentation.  I do wish that I would have managed to deliver my speech more naturally.  I didn't expect to feel nervous, but once the audience was in place and the camera was recording I noticed my breathing rhythm change.  Overall I am happy with my speech and hope to use what I learned to further improve my communication skills.