NITOC 2016 Final Day & Awards!

What an amazing week we've had!  So thankful to the Stoa Board for organizing a great national tournament. I can't even begin to imagine how much work goes into planning a tournament for over 600 students. 

David broke to Finals today in Apol and we all went to support him.  He gave a winning speech and we were all proud of him. 

The awards ceremony was tonight.  It was a time of celebration and fun for all the competitors. Here are the final standings for our Vector Team. 

Speech Awards:

David 8th Place Apol 

Beckett 25th Place Monologue

Kyle 28th Place Mars Hill, 20th Extemp, 17th Apol 

Debate:

Kyle 27th Team Policy Speaker

Kyle & David 49th in TP with a 5-1 record

Kyle 28th Parli Speaker

Kyle and Beckett 28th in Parli, 4-2 record

And of Course, more pictures!

Final Round Apol

Watching the final Parli Round

Award ceremony is about to begin. 

Quarters and Semis!

NITOC 2016 is wrapping up.  Only one more day left.  More and more students are on campus in shorts and t's and the audiences in rounds are getting larger as breaks eliminate more and more students from the competition. Beckett and Kyle were sadly eliminated in Parli today. 

However, in the speech arena Vector remains strong!  Beckett, Kyle, and David broke to quarters this morning. Beckett in  Monologue, David in Apol, and Kyle in Apol, Mars Hill, and Extemp.  

Later this evening semi-final breaks were announced this afternoon and the boys made it to semi-finals!!  David in Apol, Kyle in Apol and Extemp, and Beckett in Monologue.  They competed tonight and will hear breaks for speech finals in the morning.  

Regardless of how they finish, I am so proud of ALL our Vector competitors! I'll make one more post tomorrow night after the awards ceremony.  Stay tuned!

If you want to watch the awards ceremony live Sat night at 8:30 ET Click here: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCEe8iMCHOApXTsaoV9v7TCA

Some pics from today:

Kyle in the Mars Hill Quarter-final round. 

Semi-final breaks for Speech

Listening to Breaks

What's the secret to your success, Kyle? "Please no photos." 

Beckett mistakenly puts on the wrong jacket before a round. 

NITOC 4TH DAY!

Last I reported Kyle and Beckett broke to Double Octas in Parli.  They competed late last night, and wowed all of us who were watching the round.  It was a FANTASTIC debate round, the best I've ever seen either Kyle or Beckett speak!  The Res: The use of weapons of mass destruction can be morally justified.  We were Opp, and it was a great clash.  The round was so good on both sides, we have no idea which way the judges would go.  We'll find out tomorrow (Fri) at 1p if they will advance to the next level.

Today was a great day, and no rain!!  Everyone had speech rounds but there's no news to report on any progress.  It was day 3 of Speech Prelims, and Speech breaks will be announced in the morning (Fri) at 7am.  Quarterfinals and Semis will be during the day on Friday.  I'll keep you posted!

Tonight the entire Vector gang enjoyed dinner out at a local Peruvian restaurant -- great food!  Back at the campus we joined in the Stoa Beach Party with ice cream and a live band.  It was awesome to see the whole student body (parents & Mrs. Snyder too!) dance, hang out, or play ball on the lawn. It was great music and fun for everyone.

Some pictures from today:

 Beckett giving his 3rd Extemp speech on why the US should improve relations with Cuba

 Dads are the judging backbone!

Lunchtime!

A great dinner at Cafe Caruso

 More spotlight on dads

Ice Cream and Soccer/Frisbee on the Lawn

 Mrs. Snyder & Mrs. Craig do the Macarena!

 Jamming with Low Rent District

NITOC 2016 Day 3

595... That's the number of ballots given out today!  To say it's a feat of unbelievable proportions is an understatement. 

Despite having to get to their rounds through torrential rain and flooded streets, today went well for our team in both speech and debate.  David and Kyle broke to Triple Octafinals this morning and competed twice for double elimination. Kyle said, "I was very surprised that we broke because we didn't think we had a winning record so far."  

In round 2 had the privilege of watching Katey perform her OO, and she did a fantastic job!  The boys said their speech rounds went well too. 

Announcements for the next set of breaks for debate were at 5:30p...

Kyle and David sadly did not advance in TP, but Beckett and Kyle broke to Double Octafinals--the top 32 Parli teams!! 

Here are some pictures from today: 

Katey's Original Oratory

Judge tables and ballot return. 

Waiting for Break announcements can be long!

After their Extemp round today

NITOC Day 1 & 2

Team Vector competed in 14 rounds these last two days -- Monday & Tuesday were full of Parli and TP/LD rounds, and Tuesday was also the beginning of Speech. Kyle Ziemnick is amazing-- he has competed in EVERY SINGLE ROUND!!

There's still a full week ahead full of rounds and more rounds.  Everyone is having fun, be it the students competing and hanging out between rounds, or the moms & dads judging and staffing the tournament.  There's a great camaraderie here with our team and with the larger national Stoa family. It's exciting to have thousands of people joined together for one purpose.  

Breaks for TP will be announced tomorrow (Wed) am, and Parli breaks will be announced tomorrow (Wed) night -- keep rooting for Kyle & David in TP and Kyle & Beckett in Parli!  And don't forget to pray for them and Katey in their speech rounds over the next few days!

Here are some photos from the past two days:

 Virginia in Parli Prep time

 Kyle, the Energizer Bunny 

 

 Moms love working Ballots!

 Ballot 'Give' (Push) at Nitoc is bigger than Texas! 565 ballots on Monday alone!

 

 

Boden snoozes (and snores) during Kyle's Parli speech

NITOC 2016 is Underway!

Our Vector National Team is on campus at Drury University in Springfield, MO, with 600 other competitors this week! Please be praying for them to do their best in debate and kill those speeches!  

I'll be posting on our Vector Blog this week to keep you up-to-date as to the competition, but you can check out the latest news and watch Break Announcements live on the NITOC YouTube channel: TwentySixteen NITOC.  

Opening Ceremonies on Sunday

Registration is now open for the 2016-2017 school year!

Why participate in Speech & Debate? 

The need for Christians to effectively articulate God’s truth to the world around us has become more important than ever before, especially in light of recent events. Christian homeschooled students can learn to be a significant voice of reason and wisdom in the public dialogue by developing the skills of analyzing ideas and persuasively presenting arguments winsomely with confidence. No matter where and in which roles your students find themselves in the future, they can speak boldly and interactively for Christ in a world where He is increasingly considered irrelevant. 

Competitive speech and debate can develop many critical thinking skills in your student, while meeting educational goals and transcript requirements in a fun and challenging way. 
 
Students will receive instruction and coaching from experienced coaches at weekly club meetings and sharpen their skills through local, regional, and national speech and debate tournaments, in the Stoa National Forensic League (www.stoausa.org).  

No prior knowledge or experience required!

Parents of club members will also learn valuable skills as well as how to coach their students in various events.

Who can join Vector? 

Junior High and High School homeschooled students, aged 11-18 are welcome. Students must be 12 by January 1, 2017 to compete in tournaments.

Students may participate in speech or debate, or both.

*Parental involvement is required. 

When and Where?

Vector meets on Thursdays, 4:00-5:30pm (Speech) & 6:00-7:30pm (Debate), Sept thru March, at Ketoctin Presbyterian Church in Purcellville. First meeting: mid-September. 

Registration Fees:
 
$  25 - Non Refundable Registration Fee, per family 

(Increases to $50 after July 31st)

PLUS
$125 - 1st Student
$100 - Additional Student
$300 - Family Cap

To Register for Vector 2018-19: Go to our new website vector.stoausa.org



For more information about Vector, email: vectorspeechanddebate.va@gmail.com

OPEN HOUSE - Thursday, April 7th, 6:00 - 8:00pm

Register for Tournaments-- ALL Debate and Speech!

Registration is NOW OPEN for two tournaments!  Please read all below information and register NOW! Please remember for EACH tournament, to Register for 1) Competitors, 2) Parent Judges, and 3) Sign up for Food.  Pay for all fees through PayPal when registering.

Winter Classic Debate Tournament -- Fri, Jan 29 / Sat, Jan 30
Team Policy -- Lincoln Douglas -- Parliamentary Debate

Registration Link: https://winter2016.homeschooldebate.net/
Closes Jan 17

Team Policy:
FRIDAY ONLY (Annandale) January 29th
Capital Baptist Church
3504 Gallows Road
Annandale, VA 22003

Lincoln Douglas:
FRIDAY PM AND SATURDAY
Friday - (Purcellville) January 29th
36422 Shoemaker Road
Purcellville, VA 20132

Saturday - (Berryville) January 30th
2832 Crum's Church Road
Berryville, VA 22611

Parliamentary:
SATURDAY ONLY (Berryville) January 30th
2832 Crum's Church Road
Berryville, VA 22611

Judge Requirement:
FAMILY CAP: 6 ROUNDS (PLEASE IGNORE HIGHER REQUIREMENTS)
Each competitor MUST provide a judge available to judge two rounds for each event the competitor has entered. There is a six round family cap. Please encourage community and alumni judges to sign up through the judge registration link. Because of the way that judges are assigned to rounds, YOU MUST BE THERE FOR THE TIMES FOR WHICH YOU HAVE REGISTERED.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

VIRGINIA GROUNDHOG CLASSIC SPEECH TOURNAMENT-- Sat, Feb 6

Registration Link: https://groundhog2016.homeschooldebate.net/

Closes Jan 24th

Speech Events (all 12 Stoa events):
(Rules can be found at http://Stoausa.org)
Limited Prep: Extemp, Mars Hill, Apologetics
Platforms: Original Oratory, Persuasive, Expository
Interpretations: Dramatic, Original, Duo, Humorous
Wildcards: Motivational Speaking and Monologue

Categories for Limited Prep:

Mars Hill: Plays/Musicals, Current and Classic Television Shows, Classic Movies, Current Books
Apologetics: Cat. 1, 3, 4, 5
Extemp: International, Domestic, and Economic

Location: Capital Baptist Church
3504 Gallows Rd, Annandale, VA 22003

Fees: $15/first speech event, $5 for each additional event.  Pay via Paypal.
Family cap of $100
Events dropped after registration closes will incur a $15/event drop fee. For all payment information please click on fees/payment tab at left.

Judge Requirement: Each competitor MUST provide a judge available to judge two rounds for each event the competitor has entered. There is a six round family cap. Please encourage community and alumni judges to sign up through the judge registration link. Because of the way that judges are assigned to rounds, YOU MUST BE THERE FOR THE TIMES FOR WHICH YOU HAVE REGISTERED.
In addition, local competitors (those living within 30 miles of the tournament) are asked to recruit at least (4) rounds of community or alumni judging. These rounds can be filled by one person or by multiple volunteers.

If you have any questions, please contact the Tournament Director.
Director: Alison Koehnke
Phone Number: 571-314-4697
E-mail Address: c4debatecoach@gmail.com

Welcome back from break!

Debaters!

Since I will not be at club this Thursday, I am sending you the resolution you will be debating. Clayton will be facilitating, so listen to his wise debate expertise.
Always remember that when we debated each other at Nats - I won.  :D
Please partner up, and debate the following resolution:

This house should vote for the democratic nominee in the November 2016 presidential election, if Donald Trump is the republican nominee.

You allowed and encouraged to do as much background research as is possible before debate, and before the round. Next week we will be focusing on TP/LD.

If you have any questions - just email me!

Coach Thadd

Vector this week -- Jan 7

Happy New Year! I hope you had a delightful break! 

It's time to dust off the speeches and debate cases and get the juices flowing again!  We have 1 week until the next LD tournament, 3 weeks before the next LD/ Parli tournament, and 4 weeks before the Annandale Speech tournament.  I want you all to set your sites on doing your best and making it your goal to snag one of those green check-marks!  Going to Nationals is a great goal and is so rewarding, not to mention fun!

SPEECH:
Bring your platforms and interps for coaching.  We have 4 weeks to get your speeches polished.  We will also work on some impromptu skills drills.

DEBATE:
We will be running a Parli round in which all debaters will participate in prep for the Parli tournament. 

PARENTS:
We will need you for coaching both Speech and Debate!

If you will NOT be there on Thursday, please email me to let me know so we can adjust our planning! pkmillhouse@gmail.com

See you Thursday!
Mrs. Millhouse