St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival

What is the Oratorical Festival?

The St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival is an excellent tool for families to engage with deeper reflections on our faith. Students in grades 3-12 are invited to participate in a variety of ways, and this is an activity for all families to get involved in!

What are the benefits of participating?

Students will gain skills in research and presentation, while learning more about their faith. Public speaking and presentation is a critical skill to learn; we are here to help you learn those skills, and give you an opportunity to practice them in a safe environment. We can also work with your teachers to help you gain class credit in your middle and high school coursework.

How do we participate?

There are many ways students can participate! For students in grades 3-6, they can submit and/or present an essay, speech, or poem. They can also do an icon drawing/writing, or other creative artistic project that connects to the Orthodox faith. For students in grades 7-12, they can do all the above, but all projects need to connect to the provided list of topics.

What if my I/my child does not have time to participate?

We completely understand that our students do not have much free time to devote to a new project. However, if you start early enough, it is possible to have a speech prepared with only 5 or 10 minutes a day, the approximate time of one gaming match. While speeches are the traditional form, the goal is for students to spend time on a project topic and medium that interests them, so it does not feel like work. Finally, for students who do essays or speeches, we are happy to work with their teachers to see about getting the work they spend on Oratorical Festival counted as class credit or extra credit.

When do we participate?

This year, the parish level festival will be on Sunday, March 1st (Junior & Senior divisions) and Sunday, March 8th (Elementary Division). Here is this year’s Oratorical Festival registration form! When registering, please enter Abraham Sisson for Parish Chairperson and use the oratoricalfestival@stgeorge.org for Email of Parish Chairperson. Please as soon as you register, forward your registration confirmation to oratoricalfestival@stgeorge.org. Finalists in the Junior and Senior Division at the Parish Festival will advance to the Maryland District Festival. District Festival finalists will advance to the Metropolis Festival. Metropolis Festival finalists will advance to the National Finals in Northridge, California. More information can be found here.

Where do we find more information?

You can find more information at the archdiocese festival webpage, which can be accessed here.

For more information, or to answer further questions, please contact us at oratoricalfestival@stgeorge.org.

Welcome to the Writing and Speaking Center! This is your go to research page; in this section you can find the topics and tips, a list of links to resources, and the link to schedule a coaching appointment.

Topics and Tips

2026 Topics, Tips & Resources

Topics by Division

• 2026 Elementary Division Topics (These topics are voluntary and only meant to provide guidance)
• 2026 Junior Division Topics (Speeches must be on one of the provided topics)
• 2026 Senior Division Topics (Speeches must be on one of the provided topics)

Resources

Writing Process

Fillable Speech Outline

Rehearsing Your Speech

Click here to view links to many other resources that will help as you work on your project.

Coaching Appointments

We are offering a flexible writing and speech help center. We can help you with brainstorming ideas, research advice, and speech/essay critique.

To schedule an appointment, please email oratoricalfestival@stgeorge.org. 

Please note: We strongly prefer that parents join the call, or remain within earshot. You play an integral role in your child’s festival performance, and like any type of teaching, whether music, sports, or speaking, your participation will be a huge benefit. If you are not able to make it, we will make sure that one or more of our committee members are on the call per the current Child Safety Policies.

“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

PROVERBS 22:6

FOR ELEMENTARY DIVISION: Register HERE

The purpose of the St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival is to offer children the opportunity to express their feelings about their faith and church and to gain confidence and self-esteem.

 Students are encouraged to participate in 1 of 2 ways:

• 1. by presenting a speech in-person at the Oratorical Festival (30-60 seconds long) on March 1 (an icon, picture or poster may be used as part of the presentation)         

                                                or 

• 2. if not presenting then by submitting an essay, poem or icon writing by March 8 (We understand that not all of our youth are able to get up in front of an audience) 

Some topic suggestions for all students whether speaking, writing an essay, poem or icon are:

• Jesus Christ                 

• Love                           

• Helping Others

• Prayer                          

• My Family                  

• The Bible

• My Church                  

• The Cross                   

• Church School

• Being Kind                 

• Lighting a Candle      

• My Favorite Icon

• My Favorite Parable    

• Life of a Saint             

• My Favorite Hymn       

• One of the Ten Commandments

• One of the Sacraments     

• The Meaning of Pascha

• Byzantine Iconography: Write an icon and talk about it

The topics are flexible! Moreover, you may choose a different topic with the approval of your Sunday School teacher(s). Parents, we ask for your assistance once again in preparing your children for this wonderful educational and spiritual experience.