Teaching or training session
Presenter cue cards for a 45-minute training session or workshop: objectives, a starter, teach-show-practise blocks, checks for understanding, a recap and next steps.
Speech10 cardsAbout 10 min to speakBeginnerSchool
School assembly talk
A ten-minute assembly for teachers, principals or student leaders: a hook, a theme like kindness or resilience, a story, a challenge for the week and notices.
Free to use, edit, print and study. No account needed: your set stays on this device.
The cards
- 1
Settle and greet
Good morning, [school name]. Good morning, [Year groups / staff / visitors].
Wait for full quiet before continuing. Smile.
- 2
Hook
Hands up if you've ever [a relatable moment, e.g. forgotten your lunch / been the new kid / missed a goal].
[Or show an object, picture or short clip.]
- 3
This week's theme
This week we're thinking about [theme: kindness, resilience, respect, honesty, curiosity, belonging].
In our school, that means [one sentence linked to school values].
- 4
A story
[A short story: something that happened to you, a fable or folk tale, or a well-known public figure's story told in your own words with checked facts.]
Pause at the key moment.
- 5
What the story shows
So what can we learn? [Two or three sentences linking the story to the theme.]
Ask the hall: [a question for them to think about, not answer aloud].
- 6
What it looks like here
- In class: [example]
- In the playground: [example]
- At home or online: [example]
- 7
A student voice
[Optional: invite a student, class or prefect to share 30 seconds on what the theme means to them, prepared in advance with a teacher.]
Thank you, [name]. Let's give them a round of applause.
- 8
Challenge for the week
This week, I challenge you to [one small action].
Teachers will be looking out for it, and we'll share some examples at [next assembly].
- 9
Celebrations and notices
- Congratulations to [names / teams] for [achievement]
- [Event, date]
- [Reminder]
- 10
Close
[Moment of reflection / school song / thank you.]
Please leave quietly, starting with [year group], when your teacher asks.
How to use this template
This school assembly talk template is for principals, head teachers, teachers, chaplains and student leaders who need to speak to a whole year group or school for about ten minutes. Assemblies work best when they have one theme, one story and one small challenge that students can actually try that week. The cards open with a greeting and a hook that gets hands in the air, introduce the theme in the language of your school values, tell a story and draw out what it shows, give examples from class, the playground and online life, set a challenge, and then cover celebrations and notices before a calm dismissal. Fill in the brackets with your theme and story, and adjust the examples to the age of your students. An optional student voice card lets a pupil share the theme in their own words, which often lands better with peers than anything an adult says.
Tips
- Choose a story you can tell rather than read; eye contact holds a hall far better than a script.
- If you tell the story of a real public figure, check the facts from a reliable source and say it in your own words.
- Keep notices to the end so they do not interrupt the message, and put long ones in the newsletter.
- Speak more slowly than in a classroom and use a microphone in large halls so the back rows can hear.
- Rehearse the timing; assemblies that overrun cut into the first lesson and lose staff goodwill.
- Avoid singling out individual students for poor behaviour in front of the school.
Make it fit
- For primary school, use a picture book, puppet or object and invite one or two children up to help.
- For secondary school, use a news story, a short video you have the right to show, or a student speaker.
- For a faith school, add a short prayer or reading reference on the close card in line with the school's tradition.
- For an awareness day or week, such as anti-bullying or mental health, add a card on where students can get help.
- For an online or class-by-class broadcast assembly, shorten it to seven minutes and give teachers a follow-up question.
Updated October 28, 2026