Those students, Jayne Yang and Bum Jin Lee, were selected for the festival from a field of 100 other students at the school. The students selected are not necessarily the top academic performers, so the festival opens up an opportunity for students with other strengths to excel, Itoga said.

Bum Jin has been participating in the speech program since third grade. "There's been a great improvement," Itoga said. "When he was in the third grade, he couldn't speak very well. Now he's very confident and he can talk in front of people. He's not as scared."

For Bum Jin, the speech program has offered a way to break out of his shell and his fear of being ridiculed for making mistakes. "(Through speech) I could learn to talk in front of big crowds," he said. And rather than worrying too much about making mistakes, he now uses them as a learning experience, he said.

Jayne sees speech as a way to prepare for future endeavors. "It might help in college," she said.

However, she is already feeling the benefits of participating. "It makes you gain more self-confidence," she said.

The speech program helps students meet the state standards for oral communication, as they work on reading, writing, standing in front of an audience, enunciating and projecting. At the festival, the students not only recite a poem, but also craft an introduction to the piece.

Both students have had to give presentations in front of the class, but participating in the speech festival is different. "Giving it to the class is easier. You know the people," Jayne said.

But Bum Jin said the audience at the speech festival fuels his enthusiasm for delivering a good performance. "They laugh sometimes and it makes you want to make them laugh more," he said. His poem was a humorous piece by Jack Prelutsky about "Dan the Invisible Man."

The festival is a low-stakes way for students to get public speaking experience. There is no competition, everyone gets a medal and all the students are reviewed by a panel of judges who score them on things such as introductions, vocal elements, rhythm and visible techniques.

Their evaluations include recommendations, such as speaking louder or developing introductions. "I think they judged us pretty good," Jayne said. "It's good because you know what's wrong and how to make it better."

Itoga, who has coached speech students for seven years, says the experience is valuable, and one that participants won't forget. "They'll remember what they have to work on to improve their verbal skills," she said.