Language Arts · Grade 7

Active learning ideas

Analyzing Speeches for Persuasive Devices

Active learning works for this topic because students must SEE and FEEL the power of persuasive devices in real speeches, not just identify them on paper. Moving from analysis to performance, as in role-plays or gallery walks, helps students internalize how rhythm and emotion drive persuasion.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.9
• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.7.3

• 30–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Jigsaw
• 45 min · Small Groups

Jigsaw: Rhetorical Devices Experts

Assign small groups one device like anaphora or parallelism from a speech excerpt. Groups analyze examples, create posters with quotes and explanations, then rotate to teach peers. End with a whole-class quiz on all devices.

Analyze how a speaker uses anaphora to create emphasis and emotional impact.

Facilitation Tip

During the Jigsaw, assign each expert group a specific device so students become deeply familiar with one technique before teaching peers.

What to look for

Provide students with a short, unfamiliar speech excerpt. Ask them to highlight one example of anaphora and one example of parallelism, writing one sentence explaining the effect of each device.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

Activity 02

• Gallery Walk
• 35 min · Pairs

Gallery Walk: Speech Comparisons

Pairs chart persuasive strategies from two speeches on posters, including appeals and repetition. Groups rotate through the gallery, adding sticky notes with observations and questions. Debrief with partner shares on effectiveness.

Compare the persuasive strategies used in two different historical speeches.

Facilitation Tip

For the Gallery Walk, place speeches in clear chronological or thematic order so students can trace evolution of techniques over time.

What to look for

In small groups, have students discuss this question: 'Which rhetorical appeal (ethos, pathos, or logos) was most dominant in the speech we just analyzed, and why do you think the speaker chose to emphasize it?' Each group shares their conclusion.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Socratic Seminar
• 50 min · Small Groups

Role-Play Debate: Speech Segments

In small groups, students select and rehearse a persuasive segment, perform for the class emphasizing devices, then audience votes on impact with rationale. Follow with reflection on techniques used.

Evaluate the overall effectiveness of a speech in moving its intended audience.

Facilitation Tip

In the Role-Play Debate, give students 90 seconds to prepare, forcing them to focus on delivery rather than content creation.

What to look for

Students prepare and deliver a 30-second segment of a famous speech. Their peers use a simple checklist to note if the speaker effectively used repetition for emphasis and if their delivery conveyed emotion (pathos). Peers provide one specific suggestion for improvement.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Socratic Seminar
• 30 min · Small Groups

Annotation Relay: Identify Appeals

Teams line up to annotate a projected speech excerpt one marker at a time, labeling ethos, pathos, or logos. Correct annotations earn points; discuss errors as a class.

Analyze how a speaker uses anaphora to create emphasis and emotional impact.

Facilitation Tip

During the Annotation Relay, rotate groups every 3 minutes so students experience multiple speeches and devices quickly.

What to look for

Provide students with a short, unfamiliar speech excerpt. Ask them to highlight one example of anaphora and one example of parallelism, writing one sentence explaining the effect of each device.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Experienced teachers approach this topic by modeling how to read speeches aloud with intentional pauses and emphasis, showing students how delivery amplifies devices. Avoid overloading students with too many devices at once; focus first on ethos, pathos, and logos, then layer in parallelism and anaphora. Research shows students internalize rhetorical analysis faster when they perform speeches themselves, making this a kinesthetic and oral learning process.

Successful learning looks like students explaining not only which devices appear in a speech, but also why they matter and how they work together. They should confidently perform or debate segments that demonstrate control over ethos, pathos, and logos.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Jigsaw: Rhetorical Devices Experts, students may claim that persuasion relies only on emotional appeals like pathos.

  During the Jigsaw, circulate and ask each group to identify at least one line that builds credibility (ethos) or logic (logos). When groups present, require them to explain how all three appeals work together in their assigned speech.

• During the Annotation Relay: Identify Appeals, students may dismiss repetition as unnecessary redundancy.

  During the Annotation Relay, stop the rotation after the first speech and ask small groups to underline every repeated phrase. Then, have them clap once for each repetition as they read the speech aloud, demonstrating how rhythm builds emotional force.

• During the Gallery Walk: Speech Comparisons, students may assume historical speeches have no relevance to modern persuasion.

  During the Gallery Walk, place a modern speech (e.g., a TED Talk) next to a historical one with similar themes. Ask students to circle devices in both and note how parallelism or anaphora function similarly across time periods.

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Methods used in this brief

• Jigsaw
• Gallery Walk
• Socratic Seminar