Fifth graders give persuasive speeches at Nolan Center

Sixteen students from Laura Davies' fifth grade class came together at the Nolan Center last Tuesday evening, May 21, to read persuasive speeches they had spent the past month working on. Communication and learning how to formulate and defend opinions is an important part of her classroom, Davies said in a previous interview.

Each of her students were tasked with creating a persuasive speech, on a topic of their choice, and give an in-class presentation. She also allowed the kids to volunteer to give public presentations, to the wider public, for extra credit. This was the first time her class was giving a public presentation, she said. Wrangell School District's Technology Director Matt Gore said that the event also had the distinction of being the district's first ever off-site livestream. Before the speeches began, Davies asked the audience to be respectful of everyone speaking that night.

"You might not all agree with what they're persuading tonight, but that's the fun in it," she said. "They have to try to convince you of their point, and that was the hard part for them to try to back up what they were saying with evidence, and stories, and facts. We worked on these for about three weeks, and we've been practicing them for a solid week."

Several of the students chose light hearted topics, such as Clara Edens on why one should get a dog, or Dayne Pritchett on why reading was important. They all gave good evidence for their beliefs, demonstrating the hard work they had put into their research. Edens said that dogs help their owners exercise more, and generally keep them in a better mood. Pritchett explained that reading was great mental exercise, and could expand the reader's vocabulary.

Other students chose much more mature topics for their persuasive speeches. Katelynn Gillen talked about the history and importance of women's rights.

"Imagine a world without women's rights," Gillen said. "Think of the women in your family: Your mother, your daughter, or your sister. Wouldn't you want them to have equal rights?"

Phebe Garcia and Shailyn Nelson spoke about combating child abuse and animal abuse, respectively. Boomchain Loucks talked about banning plastic bags, and how it would help the environment, while Shelton Ecklund gave a topical speech on the need to save the Alaska Marine Highway.

Two speeches, at the beginning of the evening, were pointed out by Davies to be rather opposing views. Lee Balansag gave a speech on why the school district should consider implementing VR Chat, a multiplayer virtual reality game, into its classrooms.

"First, it can help shy people come out of their shell," he said. "Second, it can help develop good digital citizenship. Last, it can be a good incentive."

Meanwhile, Ben Houser's speech was about the exact opposite of virtual reality: It was on the importance of getting outside and exercising. Besides the obvious perks of exercise, such as physical health, Houser pointed out other ways getting outside can be beneficial. It is good for one's mental health and social life, too.

"You might not be so angry, and stuff, and you can just spend time with your family and friends," he said.

At the end of the evening, Davies thanked everybody for coming out and listening to her students. A full list of the students and the topics of their persuasive speeches is as follows: Lee Balansag - VR Chat. Katelynn Gillen - Women's rights. Ben Houser - Get outside. Brody Knecht - Population control of marine mammals. Paige Hoyt - Be grateful. Boomchain Loucks - Ban plastic bags. Tyra Meissner - Music. Christina Johnson - Have good sportsmanship. Shailyn Nelson - Don't abuse animals. Tim Pearson - Improve hand-eye coordination. Dayne Pritchett - Reading. Shelton Eklund - Save the Alaska Marine Highway. Devaun Campbell - Say no to drugs. Ian Maleski - Learn first aid. Clara Edens - Get a dog. Phebe Garcia - Stop child abuse.