communication
5 Ways Being Ready to Speak Will Help Your Student This School Year
[Updated 2026] For almost 30 years, The Institute for Cultural Communicators has been helping the next generation get ready to speak. With all the needs in the world, why is this the focus of this organization I lead? Being ready to speak in any situation is a foundational skill for success in education and in life. It prepares students for every stage, gives them tools for whatever comes their way. Here are five ways communication skills help your student at school and beyond. Your student is bully resilient. Johns Hopkins Medicine warns today’s parents and educators: “Bullying is a serious issue that affects up to 75% of kids at…
A Time to Listen – Why EQ is Essential for Christian Communication
Adapted from Mary Gunther’s Focus Podcast A Look at ICC’s Vital Skills through the Lens of Spiritual Formation “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19, NIV) We live in a culture obsessed with the art of the presentation. We train our students to craft the perfect argument, polish their delivery, and project confidence. But if we are not careful, we can mistake performance for communication. Communication isn’t primarily about speaking well. It’s about listening – really listening – in a way that most people, at any age, have never…
The Heart of the Matter – Why EQ is a Kingdom Skill
I had just finished speaking to a group of parent educators when a mom approached me, her brow furrowed. “I’m not as worried about my son’s public speaking skills,” she said. “I just want him to have good character. I want him to be a person who actually cares about others.” I smiled, because I hear this often. We tend to put “skills” (like speaking, leadership, or academics) in one bucket and “character” (like empathy, kindness, and self-control) in another. But in my years of coaching students to be ready to speak, I’ve discovered a vital truth: You only cultivate world-changing skills with Emotional Intelligence. What is EQ,…
Literacy in Motion: Why Speaking Is the Secret to Stronger Readers and Writers
At the start of eighth grade, thirteen-year-old Leo was drowning in a sea of disconnected ideas. His essays were often returned with notes about “fragmented organization.” At home, he would stare at blank documents for hours. His mother, Sarah, watched him struggle to untangle his thoughts and turn them into essays, unsure of how to help. The turning point came from a source Sarah didn’t expect: a communications club he started attending. To prepare for a mini-debate, Leo had to organize a two-minute speech with a clear beginning, middle, and end. He had to swap words like “stuff” for precise nouns and anticipate what his audience needed to hear.…
Connecting to Your Audience Through Pathos
There’s an old story often told in the United States that goes something like this: Once, a husband saw his wife preparing dinner and asked her: “Why are you cutting off the best part of the roast?!” His wife, a bit taken aback by the question, responded, “That’s how my mother always did it. I’m not sure why.” So they called up her mother and asked. Her response: “My mother always cut off the end of the roast – but I never asked why. Let’s call her.” So they did. When they questioned Grandma about it, she said: “Well, I don’t know why you cut it off, but my pan…
Building Exemplary Character Through Ethos
I sat in the audience, listening to the man share his beliefs. Beliefs that were pretty much in line with my own. And yet, when I walked away, my face felt warm and I averted the gazes of those around me. I thought, I hope no one thinks I’m aligned with him. The well-known American pastor-turned-politician spoke eloquently. He had competent arguments. He had all the logos: the rationale, the reasoning, the logical points. Despite the fact that I agreed with so much of his logos, I did not want anyone to think I was aligned with him. He had the competency, but he had no respect for other…
Finding Confidence to Speak Through Logos
Youth pastor Simeon Bell had spent years working in ministry, but he noticed one particularly great challenge among his students. They were paralyzed when it came to sharing the gospel. As Pastor Bell shares his experience, he underscores that even if they wanted to, and even if they were empowered with the words to say, they didn’t know how to share it. They lacked the competence to speak up. Their faith and motivation were drowned in a fair of failure. I’m the president of an organization that hosts conferences called Ready to Speak. We talk about how in order to be truly ready for our Great Commission, we…
A Story to Tell | An Institute for Cultural Communicators Christmas Poem
A poem based on a true story from the Institute for Cultural Communicators. ‘Twas a month before Christmas, and all through the town The public school librarians were running around Calling all of the students they knew, for you see, Soon they’d host an event promoting literacy. As their calendar filled, so their hearts did – with cheer – At the thought of all of the stories they’d hear For the students had promised to read lots of books To all local families – no one overlooked! But alas, when that fateful day arrived, The students weren’t there – for as much as they strived The librarians could…
