Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Write your feedback down. Summarize the speech as you understood it. Focus your feedback primarily on the content of the speech. Always find something to praise. Focus your feedback on revision of the speech. Try to focus on no more than three key areas of improvement.

Answer: Whatever the occasion and the reason you're giving feedback, for school or informally, it's better to write down your criticisms, praise, and comments, so the speaker will have some document of your feedback. If you have some suggestions, it'll be too easy for the speaker to forget, especially immediately following the speech. It's best to write a short note, no more than 250 or 300 words, to accompany your evaluation of the speech. For some speech classes, you may have to fill out a rubric or assign a grade to a speech. Follow the specific class instructions regarding this and assign a grade appropriate. Starting feedback with a summary of what you took from the speech is the most helpful way of letting the speaker know whether or not what they were trying to say was communicated accurately. Don't worry about whether or not your summary is perfectly accurate or not. If you were listening closely and trying your best to follow it, any failure on your part should be instructive for the speaker. That's something they need to make more clear in the speech.  Try to start your response with things like, “What I heard you saying is…” or “What I got from this speech was…” A good summary should be several sentences in the evaluation, perhaps slightly less than half of your feedback. Identify the main idea and the main supporting points of the speech. The summary should focus on content only. Not everyone can or should be Martin Luther King Jr. Focusing your feedback primarily on the oratorical skills of the speaker isn’t usually going to be that helpful, especially if we’re talking about a class speech, a wedding speech, or some kind of business presentation. If the speaker is mostly a wet blanket, focus on how the content could better match the speaking style and how the tone might be changed to match. These are changeable things. Telling a speaker to be "more dynamic" or "funny" isn't good feedback. Even if you just watched your best friend struggle through the lamest best-man speech of all time, it’s important to find something good to say. Start your feedback with some praise and start off the evaluation with good will. Make all feedback constructive criticism, not destructive. Starting off by telling someone how nervous they look while delivering the speech, or how flat the speech was will only make those elements worse.  If you thought the speech was boring, instead learn to say something like, "It was subdued, which I think works well for the occasion." If the speaker seemed nervous, try to reassure them with some compliments, "You seemed confident up there. The material really speaks for itself." Aim all feedback at making specific changes that will improve the speech, not identifying what is wrong with the speech, or what seems to be not working for you about it. This will give the speaker something constructive and will work to make the speech better, rather than simply tearing it down. Don’t say, “I didn’t like the jokes you used,” say, “Next time, I think you could leave the jokes out and the speech would move a little quicker.” Overburdening someone with fifty different things to fix and work on can make the job seem hopeless. As an evaluator, it’s important to focus on three major areas of improvement and worry less about more secondary things.  Focus first on content corrections, the organization of the speech, and the tone before you focus on anything else in the speech. These are the most important categories for improvement, and the best ways to quickly improve the speech. Think of these as the highest order of concern. Worry about the specifics of the delivery later. Whether or not the timing of the joke at the end of the speech works should be one of the last things a speaker worries about. If the speech is already very good, feel free to move onto these secondary concerns.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Obtain a home recording studio setup, you can use reflection filter products such as SnapRecorder. Secondly make sure your computer has enough RAM memory to run a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). Organize what you want to record. Plug your guitar to your amp as you would normally. Hit record.

Answer: You will need this to record vocals. This could be GarageBand, Logic, Cubase, ProTools or even Audacity! Guitars? Bass? Drums? Make sure you have the necessary equipment to record these. For guitars and basses with your amp and one or two cables, it's okay. For drums you might need specific mics that are quite expensive. Take off the end of the cable that is connected to the amp. You might need a little adapter to convert from a 6.35mm end to 3.5mm (standard headphone jack measure), then plug it to your computer's Audio-In port. (Usually next to the Audio-Out, or where you plug headphones or in newer Mac models, it's the same for Audio In & Out) Make proper adjustments for the DAW to recognize your guitar plugged and for the program to record from that line (either Mono or Stereo).


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Measure across the bag's opening. Consider using balsa wood sticks instead.

Answer: Lay a ruler across the opening of the bag. Write down the length. This will be how long you will be making the sticks for the frame. Purchase some thin balsa wood sticks from an arts and crafts store. They look like squares or rectangles when you look down at them from the top. Cut the sticks down to the right length. Put a drop of wood glue in the middle of one stick. Place the other stick on top of it, making a cross or X shape. Wait for the glue to dry.  Try to get the thinnest stick possible. It will be the lightest and easiest to fly. Do not buy dowels; those are not balsa wood and will be too heavy.


Problem: Write an article based on this summary: Plan out what you want to say before you talk to your parents. Rehearse the conversation with a friend that you trust. Choose a time and place to talk to both parents at the same time.

Answer:
The first thing you should do before you discuss something important with your parents is figure out what you hope the gain from the conversation. Deciding on a goal you hope to achieve with the conversation can help guide the way you approach it with your parents.  For example, the way you approach an important conversation is different if you’re asking permission to do something than it would be if you needed advice or help with something. Write out what you want to say before you talk to your parents. You can bring your notes with you to make sure you don’t forget anything when you’re talking to your parents. Try to act out the conversation with a close friend or family member that can play the role of your parents and provide helpful input. It can be helpful to have someone provide feedback, and it can calm your nerves to know that you’ve prepared for the conversation as best as you can. Choose a friend, sibling, or family member that you know will be honest and give you feedback that can help you shape the conversation to be the most effective it can be. You may feel like approaching a certain parent could help you get what you want or make the conversation easier, but if it’s really important, you should include both parents. Your parents will recognize that you wanted to get input from both of them and will appreciate it, which could help the conversation go easier.  If your parents aren’t together, try to include one of them on a phone or video call. Choose a time where both parents are more likely to be in a better mood or open to a conversation, like in the evening after work, or at dinner. Pick a place that is appropriate for an important conversation, like the dinner table, or living room. The car or at school isn’t a great idea because there will be other distractions that could derail your conversation.