Public Speaking for 9th & 10th Graders

Break Through is built for the second identity shift, high school. Ninth and tenth graders are forming reputations, navigating higher-stakes social dynamics, and showing up in rooms where presence actually matters: class presentations, extracurricular pitches, part-time job interviews, leadership positions. This track teaches them to build that reputation on something real.

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The word "emergence" is deliberate. You're no longer the new student, you're a person with a reputation, and that reputation is being built whether you're building it deliberately or not. Break Through teaches students to build it deliberately.

Session four is called Hard Rooms, and that's exactly what it trains for. Distracted audiences, skeptical teachers, hostile interviewers. The students who come out of this track don't just know how to give a speech. They know how to hold their presence when the room is working against them.

Five sessions, built to build

The same five sessions run in both formats. Summer day camp: five consecutive days, 90 minutes each (7.5 hours total). Fall/spring cohort: once a week for five weeks, 60 minutes each (5 hours total).

1. 01
   Emergence

   You're no longer the new student. Your reputation is already being built, this session is about building it deliberately.
2. 02
   Identity

   Authentic presence in rooms with higher stakes. Pillar two in full practice: don't fake it, emerge as yourself.
3. 03
   The REAL Pitch

   The same framework, applied in adversarial conditions. Skeptical audiences, hard follow-up questions, real pressure.
4. 04
   Hard Rooms

   Distracted, hostile, or higher-status audiences. How to hold your presence when the room is working against you.
5. 05
   Showcase

   A 5-minute persuasive speech. Real stakes, real audience, real influence.

Summer camp or school-year cohort

Common questions about Break Through