Why Kids Should Learn Public Speaking Early—Especially in the Age of AI

Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash

Artificial intelligence (AI) is exciting, a little scary, and changing things faster than ever. Parents and teachers everywhere are scratching their heads, wondering: What skills will actually matter in the future? What jobs will even exist in ten years? Should kids start coding at age five? Perhaps. Should they learn to think, speak, and communicate clearly? Definitely!

Here’s the thing—AI can generate words, but it can’t connect like a human. It can’t tell stories with heart, deliver a speech that sparks real emotion, or persuade a crowd with authenticity. That’s why public speaking is one of the most valuable skills kids can learn, starting now.

Don’t Wait—Fear Grows with Time

Too many people don’t learn public speaking until high school or even college. I was one of them. As an introvert, I struggled to speak up in class. When job interviews rolled around, I had to scramble to figure out how to communicate effectively. And when I finally stepped into the world of corporate training, I had to unlearn years of bad habits and fears.

And that got me thinking—why wasn’t this taught earlier? Kids are naturally expressive, yet we wait until they’ve built up years of anxiety before teaching them how to confidently speak. Imagine if kids learned before the fear set in. They’d be unstoppable!

How Do You Teach Public Speaking to Kids? Make It Fun!

The problem is, public speaking is often taught the wrong way—using boring adult-centered methods. We tell kids, “You need this skill because it’s important for your future.” But lthat argument is not winning over a sixth-grader.

So what works? Stories.

For thousands of years, storytelling has been one of the most powerful ways to teach. That’s why I created Super Speaker, a book where a sixth-grader discovers the power of public speaking by taking on the identity of her favorite superhero. She navigates friendships, middle school drama, and self-doubt—all while learning a simple five-step method for becoming a confident speaker. And the best part? Kids learn public speaking from the perspective of someone their age, not an adult lecturing them about job interviews that are ten years down the road.

The Real-Life Benefits of Public Speaking

Public speaking isn’t just about giving a speech—it’s about finding your voice. When kids learn this skill early, they become:
✔ More confident in class discussions
✔ Better at advocating for themselves and others
✔ More comfortable expressing their thoughts and emotions
✔ Stronger leaders in their schools and communities

And let’s not forget—they’ll be miles ahead when it comes to future job opportunities. AI might be able to crunch data, but it won’t replace human connection anytime soon.

It’s Time to Give Kids the Tools to Speak Up

In a world of rapid change, one thing remains true: kids who can express themselves confidently will always have an advantage. Let’s stop waiting until the fear sets in. Let’s teach them now, while they’re still fearless and imaginative.

Because the future belongs to those who can speak up and be heard.

AI causes public-speaking skills to be more valuable than ever.

Photo by DESIGNECOLOGIST on Unsplash

There is a lot of fear and excitement around the progress of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology. There is also speculation around what jobs are going to be available in the future. With change happening so quickly, it’s difficult to predict what the nature of jobs will be in the next five years, much less in the next decade. Parents and teachers are just as confused as anyone about what the future will hold and what skills children should be learning to be successful.

However, AI cannot replace people when it comes to true human authentic expression and connection.

With these changes in technology, it is more important than ever for children to start learning communication skills, including public-speaking, as early as possible. Public-speaking is one of the most important skills that people can learn to express themselves effectively.

I have worked with countless individuals who have told me that they never learned public-speaking until high school or college. As an introvert, I struggled to speak up in class and didn’t know how to plan and deliver an effective speech. As I started interviewing for jobs, I scrambled to learn how to effectively communicate my knowledge and experience, but it wasn’t until I was breaking into the world  of corporate training, that I fully immersed myself in learning public-speaking. There were a lot of bad habits and fears that I had to overcome.

I wondered why this information hadn’t been taught earlier, especially since children are more likely to communicate authentically. Waiting to learn public-speaking just gives the fear a chance to grow.

If I had been a great public-speaker from the time I was young, I wouldn’t have turned into such an advocate for children learning public-speaking. Finding my voice and being able to express myself confidently has helped me in employment and in my personal life more than any other skill.

After years of experience, I came up with a simple five-step method for public-speaking, and I noticed that there were few resources aimed at children to learn public speaking, so I adapted the method to fit their needs.

Many times, public-speaking is taught to kids by adults in a format that was designed for adults.

Telling children that they should learn something because it’s important from an adult perspective isn’t the most effective teaching method. Over thousands of years, stories have proven to be an effective teaching method, especially for children.

In the book, Super Speaker, the protagonist is a sixth-grader who takes on the identify of her favorite superhero to navigate middle school and learn public-speaking. Since the story is told from the perspective of an eleven-year old, it demonstrates why it is important to learn this skill from the perspective of her age group versus from the perspective of an adult. The five-step method is incorporated into the storyline and adds to the plot of a sixth-grader who struggles with the normal aspects of starting middle school including friendships, fitting in, and adjusting to changes. Other themes include friendship, kindness, self-worth, and standing up for yourself and others.

Pre-order Super Speaker on Amazon now! https://rb.gy/eo5fm

Coming Soon: Super Speaker

Super Speaker is a fictional story that teaches public-speaking to kids in a fun, engaging format.

Gia isn’t ready for all of the changes that come with starting middle school, but she feels more confident when she acts like Super SHE, a TV show superhero.

 It’s not me, it’s Super SHE, Gia thinks after speaking in front of her entire grade, pulling a prank on a teacher, and doing an impromptu cheer at a soccer game. After all, she’s willing to do whatever it takes to stop perfectly perfect Cora from stealing her best friend, Lance.

Lance is spending more time with Cora and is sure that she will win the Speech Masters contest. When Gia’s new friend, Annabelle, is forced to enter the contest, Gia knows that she must help her win, so she volunteers to coach Annabelle on her speech. Plus, she starts a “little” rumor about Cora.

But when the rumor spreads like wildfire and risks burning her friendships and hurting people, Gia can’t rely on Super SHE. Instead, she must discover how to become her own superhero.  

BONUS: Learn how to become a Super Speaker. The 5 P’s of Presentations (real life tips to help you give a great speech) are incorporated into the story and summarized at the end.