Impromptu: Students are given three topics and are to deliver a speech up to 3 minutes with a 30 second grace period. Contestants may read aloud the topic chosen or may incorporate the topic statement into the speech. Contestants shall have 1 minute to prepare before speaking. Notes, materials or previously prepared speech outlines shall not be allowed as the contestant speaks. Contestants are not allowed to hear the other speakers before them. After contestants have spoken, however, they may remain in the room to hear the speakers who follow. Contestants who violate the time limit may receive a lower rank. No internet access is allowed.
Oratory: Students prepare and deliver a speech up to 5 minutes with a 30 second grace period on any topic of their choice. Contestants who violate the time limit may receive a lower rank. The speech should be completely memorized, and students will be judged on their delivery as well as the content of their speech. Speakers may employ materials and language that are graphic, striking and sometimes dramatic – but always with the desire to put the speaker's idea across, not to call attention to the speaker’s techniques. The oration is a speech, not a dramatic reading. The composition is to be the student's original work. No more than one hundred and fifty quoted words including all short words such as “a,” “an,” “the,” etc., may be used.
Interpretive: Students prepare and deliver a speech up to 5 minutes with a 30 second grace period on any topic of their choice, using published materials. Contestants who violate the time limit may receive a lower rank. The speech can be completely memorized, or students can be read from a manuscript or printed page.