Discussion Groups / ESL Teaching / February 2005

Nathan Gutman wrote on 06 Feb 2005:

It depends to some extent on how smoothly and quickly you read and how
easy or difficult your story will be to understand, but probably about
2500-3000 words at most. Don't forget that it's more difficult for an
audience to understand what someone else reads than something they read
themselves, so you'll need to read more slowly than a media news-reader
--- their stories are all very short, so they can be read more quickly
and still be understood, but some listeners will still miss details.
Bcause your story will take 50 minutes, you'll want to have a few
pauses to allow your listeners to catch up every so often. And you'll
want to be sure to vary your stress and intonation.

Don't read, Nathan! however good you read, such a way of presenting your
experience is not as good as the one when you speak (occasionally glimpsing
at what you have read) . . . and then you can see better how your audience
responds.

I talk quite fast so I couldn't really give you good advice concerning
number of pages, but you can write a couple of them and then time yourself
to see how fast you're going (or you can read something you already have in
writing before you start writing your own story to get an idea).

Hope I was of at least some help

Thank you all for your help. I will actually speak and maintain eye
contact with the audience. My problem is how long a story can I put
together to fit into the 50 minute time allotment. I am aware that I
need to speak much slower than in a normal conversation.