4-H Tropicana Public Speaking contest winners, Citrus County Schools
Citrus County, Florida - Despite the Covid pandemic forcing the event to go virtual this year, students were still able to participate in the annual Tropicana Speech Contest. For more than 50 years, 4-H and the Tropicana Corporation have teamed up to bring public speaking opportunities to fourth, fifth and sixth grades across the state of Florida.
Nearly 4,000 Citrus County elementary and middle school students researched, organized, and delivered speeches in the classroom and school contests from November 2020 through February 2021, along with many Citrus County Virtual Students who participated, as well.
The objective of the 4-H Tropicana Speech Contest is for student participants to increase their public speaking and communication skills. Participants must obtain as much information as possible on a topic of their choosing and carefully organize the material to be presented in a timely and orderly speech. Participants develop a personal style and learn how to speak in public, express ideas effectively, and develop confidence and poise.
To advance to the county competition, each student earned a top spot at the classroom, grade, and school divisions before advancing to this final round, where two students from each public school, and two private schools presented their speeches and wowed the judges!
Winners, 4th & 5th Grades:
1st Place: Sastia Mitchell, Central Ridge Elementary School, “Dash in the Middle”
2nd Place: Colton Lyles, Crystal River Primary School, “Smart Phones are Dumb”
3rd Place: Lola Blanco, Inverness Primary School, “Mi Quinceanera”
Honorable Mention: Emma Storey, Hernando Elementary School, “Famous Failures”
Winners, 6th Grade:
1st Place: Gracie Brown, Crystal River Middle School - “What I Want to be When I Grow Up”
2nd Place: Tommy Sparks, Crystal River Middle School - “Industrialist”
3rd Place: Lillian Mullenix, Lecanto Middle School – “Just a Simple Apology”
Honorable Mention: Grant Weed, Seven Rivers Christian School – “Working Part-Time”