Toastmasters World Tour
Welcome to my Toastmasters World Tour Podcast. I’m your host, Brendan O’Sullivan. Come with me as I embark on a virtual tour of the world chatting to Toastmasters. My tour starts at home chatting to potential Toastmasters at the very start of their journey, contemplating their first Toastmasters club visit. It then takes off to explore the globe on a quest to seek out Toastmasters from all walks of life, from every continent, and from all levels of experience, from novices to the best in the world. Let’s learn from and be inspired by their journeys!
Toastmasters World Tour
Toastmasters for Kids: Inside Gavel Club with 12yo Flick | Flick Norris, Brisbane, Australia, Ep 35
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Would you love to improve your public speaking but are still too young for Toastmasters?
Parents and grandparents, have you ever considered what a Toastmasters-like club could do not only for your child's/grandchild's public speaking, but also for their confidence?
Did you know such clubs exist? They're called Gavel Clubs and they cater for school-aged kids.
In this episode, I chat to 12-year-old Gavel Club member Flick Norris to find out what Gavel Club is really all about, what happens at a typical meeting, and why she loves it. Whether you're a tweenie or teen, or a parent or grandparent, prepare to be inspired by the articulate and confident Flick who readily stepped up for her first podcast interview!
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I hope you have enjoyed this Podcast episode. I'd love to hear your feedback, and any ideas or suggestions for improvement. Your comments can reach me via my email toastmastersworldtour@gmail.com
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Would you rather: Taylor Swift or Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_00Would you rather go to a Taylor Swift concert or Gavel Club meeting?
SPEAKER_02Oh mate, that's really hard. Um probably a concert.
SPEAKER_00Look, I think that's a an amazing answer because it's the honest answer, but also the fact that you had to go that it was hard shows just how awesome Gavel Club must be if you had to sort of pause and think.
SPEAKER_02I mean, if it's like missing one meeting for a Taylor Swift concert, then obviously I had to go to the concert. But if I had to quit, like for a concert, I'd consider my options.
Intro: Welcome to Toastmasters World Tour
SPEAKER_00Welcome to my Toastmaster's World Tour podcast. Please join me as I travel virtually around the world and chat to Toastmasters from different countries and all walks of life. Let's explore.
Guest Intro
SPEAKER_00Home to three of our guests' favourite things. The library, scouts, and her bed. I chat to Flick Norris, who is a 12-year-old member of Gavel Club. Listen in to find out what Gavel Club is all about and if she enjoys it. Hi Flick, welcome to the show. I'm so happy you've joined me.
SPEAKER_02Thank you.
What is Gavel Club? Toastmasters for Kids
SPEAKER_00I believe you go to Gavel Club. Could you tell me a bit about what Gavel Club is all about?
SPEAKER_02Uh yeah, so Gavel Club is basically just Toastmasters for kids, and it's it's less of like the official thing and just more of like getting you prepared for like when you go into the older clubs.
What do you call a Gavel Club member?
SPEAKER_00I see. I'm a member of Toastmasters, as you may know. So I'm called a Toastmaster. What do you call someone who goes to Gavel Club? A gavel master?
SPEAKER_02I don't know. We just call each other people.
unknownOkay.
SPEAKER_02It's not really like an official term.
SPEAKER_00You don't get bopped on the head with a gavel if you're boring or you talk too long, do you?
SPEAKER_02Um no, I I haven't been hit with our gavel yet. And neither has anyone else, luckily.
SPEAKER_00I'm
First Toastmasters memory: Strapped to Mum
SPEAKER_00kidding, of course. When did you first hear about Toastmasters and have you been to a Toastmasters meeting before?
SPEAKER_02Um, yeah. So my mum's been doing Toastmasters since before I was born. So she I think the first time I went to a Toastmasters meeting was when I was like 'cause my mum didn't want to miss a meeting when I was born. So I just kind of came strapped onto her for a few weeks.
SPEAKER_00I see. What, a few weeks of age, were you?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And then when's the first time you remember going to a Toastmaster's meeting?
SPEAKER_02Um, for my sixth birthday, I had always like watched my mum just leave. Like and I was always like, oh my gosh, I really, really want to go with you, Mummy. Please, please, can I go with you? And then finally, for my sixth birthday, um when I was actually trusted not to talk through the whole meeting, um, I went until break.
SPEAKER_00And what did you think of it?
SPEAKER_02Um I can't really remember. All I really remember was doing a to a table topic about zooper dupers. Um but it was I think I had fun.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
Age to join: 8 to 18 years old
SPEAKER_00And how old do you have to be to join Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_02Um the youngest you can be is eight.
SPEAKER_00Okay. And how old are you now, Flick?
SPEAKER_02Um, I'm twelve.
SPEAKER_00Okay. Awesome. And so when did you join Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_02I think
How long Flick's been in Gavel Club
SPEAKER_02about two years ago.
SPEAKER_00Okay. Flick, I'd just like to clarify something. What is the oldest you're allowed to be to become a member of Gavel Club?
What happens at 18: Graduate to Toastmasters
SPEAKER_02Um, 18, because that's when you can then actually join like a proper Toastmasters club.
Could an adult join Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_00Okay, sure. So I have a serious question for you because Gavel Club sounds even cooler than Toastmasters to me. So if I rock up and say I'm sweet 16, do you think they'd let me join?
SPEAKER_02Um, probably not. Why not? I think they'd probably ask for proof of age.
What a typical Gavel Club meeting is like
SPEAKER_00Oh, darn. Okay. Alright. What's a typical meeting like?
SPEAKER_02Um, you kind of get there and we start the meeting and it just kind of we've got the agenda. It's very similar to an actual Toastmaster's meeting, just much less formal.
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm. So, yes, you have been to a more recent Toastmaster's meeting because I saw you at one there not long ago. What did you find were the differences? You said less formal at Gavel. Any other differences you noticed?
Gavel Club vs Toastmasters: Formality + Pressure
SPEAKER_02Um, not really. I think, yeah, just the fact that they were much more um formal. Every holidays I go to Down Under.
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_02Um, and yeah, they mostly it's mostly just like the language that you use. And um it's also a lot more tied up at Toastmasters because there's more pressure not to talk. But it's like at Gavel Club, um, you can kind of like talk out to them and like say kind of I mean, you wouldn't normally, but it's like much less pressure to not talk.
SPEAKER_00I see. So you can muck up and play up and run around and go crazy. Can you do that at Google Club?
SPEAKER_02Um Well during somebody's speech, obviously. But um during like the breaks, you can, yeah.
SPEAKER_00Okay, well
Is it fun? Best part + The food table
SPEAKER_00that's good. You want it to be relaxed and fun. Is it fun?
SPEAKER_02Um, yeah, it it's really fun.
SPEAKER_00What's the most fun thing, do you think?
SPEAKER_02Um, I think the most fun thing is the speaking, but I think a lot of people would argue the food.
SPEAKER_00What food have they got?
SPEAKER_02Um, well, everyone kind of brings one thing every night. So every night somebody will just come up with a bag of chips, there'll be Pringles, so you've just got like a whole table of food.
Where they meet and meeting length
SPEAKER_00Oh, can I come? Sounds fabulous. I'm just kidding. So whereabouts is it held? What sort of a place is it held at, and how long does it go for?
SPEAKER_02Um, it's held in the library, and I think it goes for about an hour and a half, an hour forty-five, something like that.
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm.
How often they meet + no meetings in holidays
SPEAKER_00And how often do you have these meetings?
SPEAKER_02Every two weeks.
SPEAKER_00Okay. So very similar to how a lot of Toastmasters clubs run.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. But we don't do it during the holidays.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
Age range in the club
SPEAKER_00And so you said before you had to be eight years old. Do you have anyone that young? What would be the youngest in your club?
SPEAKER_02Um, yes. The youngest is eight years old, and our oldest is eighteen.
SPEAKER_00Uh-huh.
SPEAKER_02So there's like a ten year gap between all of us.
SPEAKER_00Okay. And do you get like booted out or hit on the head with a gavel again to get you out of there at eighteen? Or can you keep going?
SPEAKER_02Um, well, we've got one girl who's eighteen. Um she hasn't left yet. I think she's waiting for like one of our friends.
SPEAKER_00Mm-hmm.
Adults involved: Shout to Sally the founder
SPEAKER_00Okay. And are there any adults involved in running the meetings?
SPEAKER_02Um, we have got one who helps. She just kind of helps get us there and like she helps with say somebody's away for a role. So she'll help figure out who's gonna do that. She like she helps to fill the roles. She's kind of just like the leader. And she founded the club.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_02So What's her name?
SPEAKER_00Can we give her a shout out?
SPEAKER_02Um, Sally.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_02But other than that, she doesn't really help to run the meetings. Um after we start, she's just kind of in the back.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
Club roles: President, VP + Flick was VP
SPEAKER_00And do you have like any particular roles that people have? Like is there a president or someone who organizes the agendas other than the adult, Sally?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, so we've got the Sally just kind of checks over the agendas. But we've got um we've got a president, VP, um, we've got those roles.
SPEAKER_00Okay. Have you done any of the roles yourself, Fleek?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I was a VP last year, I think.
SPEAKER_00Wow. Did you use spreadsheets to help you organize things?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Most of them are my mums.
SPEAKER_00I'm not surprised, chip off the old block.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Once I learned how to use the spreadsheets, though, I just kind of did the agendas on my own.
SPEAKER_00Wow, that's very clever. You must be proud of yourself.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00So,
No Pathways: Learning on the fly
SPEAKER_00Flick, you've been to Toastmasters meetings and you know we give speeches, and to help people learn how to give speeches, there is an online program called Pathways to guide them in how to write and compose and deliver their speeches. Is there any equivalent thing for Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_02Um no, there's not. You just kind of do speeches and there's not really any projects or anything. We like we do sometimes do educationals like in a meeting, but we don't like that's that normally only goes for like 15 minutes, so no.
SPEAKER_00That sounds fabulous, actually, because it sounds like you learn on the fly, a bit like an apprentice, you learn during the meetings, and it means that you don't really have any homework to do. No one wants any extra homework, do they?
SPEAKER_02No.
SPEAKER_00We've
Meeting segments: Toastmaster, Timer, Wordmaster etc
SPEAKER_00talked about Gavel Club meetings and that it's like Toastmasters, and I imagine that some Toastmasters will have kids that might be interested in joining, but there might be also parents that don't know anything about Toastmasters either. Could you tell us a bit more about the sort of segments that the meeting has?
SPEAKER_02Um Okay. So we've got Toastmaster, Timer, Wordmaster, Round Robin, um, and a few others, like we've got speeches, evaluators, our counter, have you been paying attention and a couple others.
Speech length: 1 to 5 minutes
SPEAKER_00Sure. How long do the speeches go for?
SPEAKER_02Um, well they're supposed to go for around two minutes. But Um Well, they're supposed to go for like two to four minutes, but then like some people who like do their first speeches, they normally go for around a minute. Um, because of just kind of nerves and then speaking fast and all that. And then sometimes my speeches go for about like five minutes.
SPEAKER_00Well, okay.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, they don't mean to, I just I'm not surprised.
Nerves when speaking
SPEAKER_00Do you get nerves or do you get scared?
SPEAKER_02I think I did the tiniest bit on my first speech, but after that, no, not really.
Choosing speech topics + prep time
SPEAKER_00Okay. And can you choose the topic of your speech?
SPEAKER_02Um, yeah. So the week no, the meeting before, you can like say if you want to do a speech or a specific role. Um and then you've got two weeks between meetings to like make your speech, practice it, and pick a theme and all that kind of thing. Pick a topic.
How many speeches per meeting
SPEAKER_00And how many people would give a speech in each meeting?
SPEAKER_02Um, there's supposed to be around four. But sometimes people don't want to do speeches, and then we end up with about two, and we're like, we'll just chuck an educational in there.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
Club size: 20-25 members, 10-15 show up
SPEAKER_00So there's about twenty to twenty five members. How many would turn up on an average night?
SPEAKER_02Um, we've normally got like fifteen who come up. I think there might be more around fifteen to twenty, but there's normally like ten to fifteen who would show up. But recently we've only had like seven to twelve kind of Yeah, it's that depends on what's going on in their life.
SPEAKER_00You don't get in trouble if you don't turn up to one of the meetings.
SPEAKER_01No.
Do you get in trouble for missing?
SPEAKER_00Okay, if there's only two to four speeches and say fifteen turned up, does everyone sort of get something to say or do during the meeting?
Does everyone get a chance to speak?
SPEAKER_02Um well, sometimes you've got people who don't have roles, but then there's always like things like table topics, round robin, that kind of thing.
SPEAKER_00So everyone gets some sort of a chance to speak and practice their speaking skill. That's great. And plus you learn a lot from observing other people. Would you agree with that?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you do.
SPEAKER_00Flick,
Flick's favorite speech: The goods and bads of siblings
SPEAKER_00what's the favourite speech that you've done? What was the title and what was it about?
SPEAKER_02That I've done. Oh, there's a lot that I've done. Um probably the most recent one that I did. Actually, no, I think it was the one the goods and bads of siblings.
SPEAKER_01Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_02There were quite a few more bads than there were goods, but um It was an honest speech, was it? But yeah, because I've got a little brother. So Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Bit of material.
SPEAKER_02I think I did that either last year or the year before.
SPEAKER_00Okay. Sounds like you had a bit of material to work with.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Maybe had to edit it down.
SPEAKER_02I mean, he's he's cute, but really annoying at times.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's pretty normal, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
Favorite speech by someone else: Air in August
SPEAKER_00And have you got a favorite speech that someone else has delivered at Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_02Um, I don't think so. I think one that one of the girls did really recently was um air in August about how you need air to survive, and that air in August is just so much better than air in all the other months.
SPEAKER_00Wow, that's an interesting take on things.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Wish
Hybrid meetings: Any online option?
SPEAKER_00I'd heard that now. It sounds very original. Flick, you talked about the meetings being at your local library. Toastmasters, particularly because of COVID, some of the meetings went online and had hybrid meetings where some people would come in in person and some people would be online. Do you have hybrid meetings where some people can be online? If, say if you're a sick kid at home and you still want to go to the meeting, is that an option?
SPEAKER_02Um No, I've never done that, but I have attended some of my mum's meetings online, and I gave a speech once online.
SPEAKER_00Really? I've got phobo now. Wish I'd heard one of your speeches.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Yeah, because I think somebody wasn't available for a speech, so I was like, I've got a whole bunch.
SPEAKER_00So You got sort of saved up your sleeve, do you?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
Can Flick do improv speeches?
SPEAKER_00Ready to go. Could you do a speech off the top of your head as well, do you think?
SPEAKER_02Uh I mean I've done a couple improv speeches. They had they definitely have not been as good as an actual speech that I've planned out, put on paper, that kind of thing.
SPEAKER_00Still, that's great practice, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Flick,
Meeting themes: Pajamas, Halloween, Christmas
SPEAKER_00do you have themes for your meetings?
SPEAKER_02Um, yeah, we do have quite a few. Like, we do have themes every meeting. Um we've had like just green like pajama kind of themes. Yeah, just anything really.
SPEAKER_00What about Halloween? Could you have a Halloween theme and get dressed up?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I think we did have a Halloween theme last year.
SPEAKER_00Oh yeah. What did you go as?
SPEAKER_02Um I can't remember. I know that last year we had a Christmas one and I went as a Christmas tree and stuck balls all over my shirt and in my hair and fencil as well.
Is Gavel Club friendly? Making friends
SPEAKER_00That's cool. I love that. Do you find Gavel Club friendly?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah, it's really nice. I've got quite a few friends there.
SPEAKER_00That's great. So I was gonna ask you that if you've made some friends, but that's awesome.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I've made friends.
SPEAKER_00Do you ever chat about Gavel Club outside of the meetings?
SPEAKER_02Um, yeah, I do. I've got one friend, she is quite into public speaking, and I said you should join, but she's not available on Monday nights.
SPEAKER_00And so how many would be in your club?
SPEAKER_02About twenty, twenty-five.
SPEAKER_00Wow. Okay. And are they mostly girls, mostly boys, or a pretty even mix?
SPEAKER_02Um, it's pretty even.
SPEAKER_00Okay. And do you have to be like a Swifty to be a member, or do you get, you know, kicked out if you find out you're not a Swiftie?
SPEAKER_02No, we've got quite a few people who hate Taylor.
SPEAKER_00Really?
SPEAKER_02I don't know. Yeah, they just they think they're cool, but no.
SPEAKER_00Hard to comprehend, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Now, look, if I'm a kid and I want to come along, but I'm pretty nervous, can my parent come and sit in with me and hold my hand during my first meeting?
Can parents stay for the first meeting?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, we do have quite a few parents who come in, but they're all just kind of in the back.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_02Um my mum doesn't come, but we've got, I think, two pairs of parents who come every meeting.
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_02And I you can't like sit with your parents though.
SPEAKER_00But parents are welcome to sit down the back and just hang around.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Well, if I was a parent, I'd be sitting there taking notes. I think we could learn a fair bit from you kids. Flick, what do you think is the most boring thing in the world?
Table Topic: Surprisingly Awesome - Sport
SPEAKER_01Um Sport.
SPEAKER_00Sport. Okay, fair enough. Now, in my Toastmasters Club, your mum once ran a session called Surprisingly Awesome, in which we would pick a topic that we thought was really, really boring and then have to talk about it like it was actually really awesome. Would you like to try a little table topic and talk about sport and how it's actually really awesome?
SPEAKER_02Sure. Um so sport is so amazing. You can get so many benefits from sport, you go everywhere. Some people will go to Sydney, some people can even go to America if they get really good. And then some people get world famous for being the best at sport. So also, apart from that, you can also get extremely fit and healthy. Some people think that all you need to do is sit on the couch and you're set for life. However, if you think if you do sport, that is the number one thing that you can do that will make your life so much easier.
SPEAKER_00Yay.
Flick's 3 favorite places in Brisbane
SPEAKER_00I'm so impressed on at least. Two fronts, one of them being that you could easily have just said no, I don't want to do that, Brendan. We could have even edited that out. So the fact that you said yes, and plus I gave you something that was boring, the most boring thing, which would be make most people even more inclined to say, no, I don't want to talk about something boring. And we already know that it was boring to you, and yet you were quite convincing to you sounded quite enthusiastic for sports. So that was also very impressive. Well done, Flick. I'm so impressed. At the start of my podcast, I'll often mention three famous things that the place the person is coming from. I've already had a few podcasts from people in Brisbane, but I thought I would ask you what your three favorite places in Brisbane are.
SPEAKER_02The library, Scouts, and probably my bed.
SPEAKER_00Fair enough. Listening to Taylor Swift, am I right?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And sleeping wax, too.
Advice for kids thinking of joining
SPEAKER_00Like, what advice would you have for a kid who's thinking of joining Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_02Um, definitely try it out. I used to do it with a few of my friends who did not like public speaking at all. Like they couldn't even speak in front of like five people. And at one point they ended up doing a speech and were absolutely amazing.
SPEAKER_00It's awesome. Has it helped you with your school work or with any other aspect of your life?
SPEAKER_02I mean
Does it help with school?
SPEAKER_02it kind of helps when we have to do oral presentations for school. But most of the time we don't get English correct, so I don't know if it helps very much for schoolwork.
SPEAKER_00And
Future plans: New Gavel Club in Logan
SPEAKER_00do you see any plans for the future with either Gabble Club or Toastmasters?
SPEAKER_02Um well I think we were thinking of starting up like a new club. A new Gabble club somewhere like my mum's helping to start that up in Logan.
SPEAKER_00Okay. Why is that?
SPEAKER_02Um, because there have been quite a few complaints about like it's really far away.
SPEAKER_00I see. Make it more convenient and it's getting popular. Twenty-five sounds like quite a lot for a club. Flick, I have one last question for you.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
Final Question: Taylor Swift or Gavel Club?
SPEAKER_00Would you rather go to a Taylor Swift concert or Gavel Club meeting?
SPEAKER_02Oh mate, that's really hard. Um probably a concert.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00Look, I think that's a an amazing answer because it's the honest answer, but also the fact that you had to go that it was hard shows just how awesome Gavel Club must be if you had to sort of pause and think. I think that's a superb answer.
SPEAKER_02I mean, if it's like missing one meeting for a Taylor Swift concert, then obviously I had to go to the concert. But if I had to quit like for a concert, I'd consider my options.
Outro + Call for evaluations and guest submissions
SPEAKER_00Awesome. Okay. That's that's really saying something then. Well, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. It's been such a pleasure, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
SPEAKER_02Thanks for having me. It's been really fun.
SPEAKER_00Thanks for listening to today's show. One of the key elements of Toastmasters is evaluations. This is how we grow and improve, both by encouraging comments for things we've got right and points for improvement. We all learn and benefit from these evaluations, not just the person being evaluated. So any feedback in the comments is greatly appreciated. If you have a Toastmaster story you'd like to share or would like to be on the show, I'd love to hear from you. You can reach me at Toastmasters World Tour at gmail.com. Thanks for listening.