Written by a former teacher and poetry slam coach, this guide helps tweens and teens feel more comfortable and confident in front of a crowd. With a funny, friendly, slightly irreverent approach, Jones covers it all: how to write a speech, deliver it, use any necessary audiovisual equipment, and even troubleshoot when things go wrong.

Joy Jones has taught creative writing and public speaking to middle school students and coached poetry slam teams. Her children's book Tambourine Moon (Simon & Schuster) was chosen in 2000 as a Kid's Pick of the Lists by the American Booksellers Association, selected as one of the best books for children by the black caucus of the ALA, and seen on Fox TV's hit show The Bernie Mac Show. She is also the author of Private Lessons: A Book of Meditations for Teachers (Andrews McMeel) and a contributor to the anthology Days I Moved Through Ordinary Sounds: The Teachers of WritersCorps in Poetry and Prose. Joy is the director of The Spoken Word, a performance poetry ensemble. She lives in Washington, DC. Visit her on the web at joyjonesonline.com.