At Coffs Harbour
| Item | What it means |
| Call to Order | This signals that the meeting is about to begin. The Sargent at Arms will announce that meeting is starting in one minute and then at 7:00 declare the meeting open. They also announce what meeting number this is |
| Open meeting: 7:00 | The President comes to the stage and welcomes all Toastmasters and guests. They will normally make any announcements and induct any new members, notify the club of any up coming events. |
| Welcome Guests | One of the club members has at the beginning of the evening been allocated the task of welcoming guests. Generally there are between 1 – 6 guests at a meeting. This segment will usually tell everyone in the club who is here and a little bit about them. |
| Alterations to the programme | As with any scheduled event, changes are inevitable. People cannot attend for a range of reasons. If the Vice President Education (who organises all the programs) finds out after the program has been published, they will notify the club of any alterations. |
| Toastmaster:
7:10 |
The Toastmaster is welcomed to the stage by the President. This person will then facilitate the meeting for the evening, making sure that it all flows well and as much as possible keep the evening to the schedule. |
| Grammarian | This segment challenges us to use a particular word or grammatical structure for the evening. The grammarian will explain what the word is, give a definition and usually demonstrate how the word is used. They then go back to their seat and take a record of who is using the word in which context. |
| Warm-up | An opportunity for everyone to relax and have a go at speaking. Everyone is given 30 seconds to speak where they introduce themselves and talk on a particular topic selected by the person running the warm up. |
| Manual Speeches
7:25 |
Generally there are between 2 – 4 speeches every night. Each Toastmaster when they join is given a ‘Competent Communicator’ manual which outlines 10 speeches. Each speech helps build your skills and confidence. Once the Competent Communicator manual has been completed, the Toastmaster will receive an award and has the option of then undertaking some more advanced manuals. Speeches are mostly 5 – 7 minutes, but some may be longer if more advanced. |
| Timer’s report :
7:55 |
The timer gives a report on how long the speeches has been. This is so the speech evaluator knows exactly how long they took. |
| Supper | The supper break is a time to network and meet other people in the club. Join us for a cup of tea and a biscuit. |
| Speech Evaluations:
8:10 |
As Toastmasters is about learning to be a better public speaker, most speeches are evaluated against the objectives in the manual. Each evaluator will not only help identify the strengths of the speaker but will also identify at least one area for improvement. A great way for everyone to learn more about becoming a better speaker. |
| Table Topics:
8.22 |
A change to practice impromptu speaking. The Table Topics Master will select a range of interesting topics for people to attempt to speak completely off the cuff about for 1 – 2 mins.
All members vote on the best table topic and the winner is awarded a ribbon to take home.
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| Reports: 8:37 | |
| Listening Post | A Toastmaster is appointed to listen very carefully to what is said throughout the meeting and then conduct a ‘pop quiz’ around who said what. The members will attempt to recall the phrase or person and call it out. |
| Grammarian | The Grammarian reports back on how the word was used and who used it and makes any other comments in regard to grammatical structures of how language was used in the evening. |
| Um-Ah counter | Part of the secret on being a better speaker is not to use ‘um and ‘ah’ and other filler type words when you speak. This report will identify who had ums and ahs. A great way of drawing your attention to how you speak. By being conscious of it, you will get better. |
| Timer | A second report from the timer for the rest of the parts of the program. Ensuring we stick to times is a really valued skill. The timer helps us remember this. |
| General Evaluation: 8:50 | The General evaluator will go through different aspects of the meeting with the exception of the speeches and evaluate them. This will include the table topics, the Toastmasters performance and any of the other items. |
| Hats Off | Everyone is given the opportunity in 15 – 20 seconds to identify someone in the meeting for whom they would like to take their hat off too. It is an acknowledgement of some aspect of the meeting that worked well. |
| Thank Guests: | Guests are thanked for attending and given the opportunity to make a comment about the evening. |
| Forward Planning: | The Vice President Education makes any announcements regarding the planning for future meetings |
| Close meeting: | The President makes any final comments and formally closes the meeting. |