Free reference · 5 formats
Format
Guides
Five formats every competitive speaker should know. Each guide breaks down the structure, prep workflow, a memorable framework, the mistakes that cost rounds, drills you can do tonight, and sample prompts to practice on.
Looking for full lessons with quizzes and unit tests instead of a reference page? Those are the format mini-courses — one for each of 11 events, at three difficulty levels.
Impromptu Speaking
Impromptu
Two minutes of prep. Four to seven minutes of magic.
Prep time: 2 minSpeech length: 4–7 min
Open guide
Spontaneous Argumentation
SPAR
Five-minute prep, ten-minute fight. Pure rhetoric, no evidence cards.
Prep time: 3–5 minRound length: ~10 min
Open guide
Public Forum Debate
PF
Two-on-two policy debate, designed to be understood by a non-expert judge.
Sides: 2v2 (Pro vs Con)Round length: ~40 min
Open guide
Lincoln-Douglas Debate
LD
One-on-one values debate. Philosophy meets policy.
Sides: 1v1 (Aff vs Neg)Round length: ~45 min
Open guide
Extemporaneous Speaking
Extemp
30 minutes of prep. 7 minutes of polished current-events analysis.
Prep time: 30 minSpeech length: 7 min
Open guide