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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Does her school have a speech and debate team?[/quote]

There is debate team at school. but she is attending it pretty reluctantly. As I said, if she has not seen that this is something that can be learnt and excelled at, she will not attempt it.
Not sure of she is afraid of failure or not getting selected to go and participate or general public speaking shyness.

some class presentation is coming up on Friday and I am trying my best to get her to practice and present it before me.
I am not an expert but I am trying to give only constructive feedback and compliments. If I tell her 10 things 100 times, she may take 1 advice out of those 10.
very exhausting process for a parent. she is not happy to present the skit before me.
This one is a skit and needs dramatization (language class).
I am not sure how she will handle it. This is second quarter. We want her to do well this quarter.

[b]She used to come home and announce any upcoming presentations at home. But since I am making her practice before me, she stopped telling me any such homework.
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OP, she's in high school. Instead of having her practice in front of you, suggest (don't insist, suggest) that she get together with other kids from her class (ones she knows are interested in doing the work and not goofing off) and that they practice for each other--no parents around.

Does her high school have a daily "study hall" type of session where kids have a free period they're supposed to use to do homework or see teachers or whatever needs to be done? (It's called LEARN in our high school and I know a lot of high schools have started doing these daily, with the time change this year.) She can meet with other kids during that time and get a teacher involved to listen to them as well. She, not you, needs to be working on this.

It sounds as if she's the kind of kid who balks at things at which she's not already good. (Don't we all, a bit?) And she's also being a normal teenager and[i] asserting [/i]herself-- that is why she won't take your advice those 100 times you give it. You mean well. But you're driving her away by demanding that she "present the skit before me" or by "making her practice before me." Leave it in her hands. Just tell her that you are there for her if she needs supplies, or a ride to someone's house to practice or study, and remind her that she's very capable of going to a receptive teacher and saying, "I don't have a lot of experience at presentations--could some of us students get together in your room during our study hall or after school or before school to practice in front of each other?" That will do her good in many ways -- she will be the one taking charge; she will frankly look good to the teacher, who will see she has initiative; she will get practice.

Your concern about a B is worrying, OP. Please don't pressure your high schooler as if a B were a problem and a fault. My all-As middle schooler is seeing grades in freshman year that are kind of surprising to her but I was warned early that high school is a big transition academically and personally and to try to [i]back off [/i]as a parent. I too would like to have her practice things for me or let me read things she's done but I'm biting my tongue and trying hard to say, "Is that something you can work on during (study hall)?" or "You know, you could email the teacher about that if you have a concern."

If your child is going to debate team only reluctantly, did she want to join it, or did you push her to do it? If it's extracurricular, please, let her do the extracurriculars or clubs or teams that she wants to do, not ones that you want her to do to develop some skill. Debate is not the same thing as class presentations; yes, debate will get her up in front of people to talk, but only some of the time --a lot of debate is about doing research and writing, and while that's good, if she dislikes it, then pushing her to do it might make her even less thrilled with doing classroom presentations, not better at them. [/quote]

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