Ideas flourish at the 12th annual Langley Speechfest finals

April 30, 2019

It’s commonly said that no one envies the job of the judges during Speechfest. They have the hardest job every year. This year, however, must have been that much more difficult for them.

The 12th Annual Speechfest finals took place on Friday, April 26 and Monday, April 29. Thirty-two students from around the district, grades 1 to 8 shared their speeches live at the School Board Office. All of them were brilliant and all of them were inspiring.

“Kids are innately brilliant,” says Vanessa Jaggi, Principal at Langley Meadows, and organizer of Speechfest, “and they have so many unique, interesting ideas to share with the world and Speech Festival allows them the opportunity to explore something they are passionate about.”

According to Vanessa, kids explore their ideas through research, then share their findings through their speech “in a dynamic way”. “Not all kids are athletic or artists,” she says, “but this is another venue for certain kids to flourish.”

This year’s topics included discussions about our parents, environmentalism, mental health, among many other amazing things. They were all well articulated and well researched. “The kids always amaze me at the caliber of ideas they share. The topics they pick are always impactful in some way,” says Vanessa.

Be sure to congratulate all Speechfest finalists! And be happy you weren’t one of the judges, who had to make the most difficult decisions in selecting the best of an amazing group of kids.