FAQ Seattle University Tournament
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Click your question below—after clicking, look to the
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How Important is it that we register for the Tournament?
What Events should I register for?
What topics can they use for their speeches?
What are the main differences between the different days
of the Tournament?
Can I drop off my child at Seattle University?
Does my child need to be there for the whole tournament?
Who participates in the tournament?
Who will my child debate with?
Is doing two tournaments too much?
Is doing Speech and Debate together too much?
The Sunday tournament seems long—can my kid handle it?
My Question isn’t answered here.
Dates-Times of the Tournament
See the registration form. It will tell you.
What is the Cost?
Fees are $50 to $75.
Costs depend on the
event entered. Entering two events costs more.
See the registration form for details.
Low Income/Rainier Scholars receive the same discounts as in our program fees.
How Important is it that we register for the Tournament?
Very important. This may be a transformative moment for your child.
Many students “find” themselves in the tournaments—they have a group of friends that share their passion and interest.
Even for students who just participate—they will grow tremendously in their speaking and thinking skills during the tournament.
What Events should I register for?
Register for the
events your child is taking in our program.
So, for example, if your child is in the elementary debate program, sign up for
elementary debate.
They will be fully ready as our program directly prepares students to
participate in the tournament.
If your child knows an event well but isn’t in the program for that, they can also register for that event.
What topics will they debate?
The tournament uses the same topics we use in our program. See the Dashboard.
What topics can they use for their speeches?
Students use the exact same speeches they have prepared for PowerPoint, Platform, and Interp in our classes.
Extemp questions will
be provided a day or two before the tournament begins.
These are similar to the questions we practice with in
class.
Impromptu topics will
be provided by the judge in the round
(students get the topic and have a short time to prepare and to speak).
The impromptu topics are similar to the ones we use in
class.
What are the main differences between the different days of the Tournament?
Friday is online and is shorter than the in-person Saturday and Sunday tournaments.
Friday is for
speaking events, PF debate, MS 33 debate, and congress.
Saturday is for middle schoolers doing debate only and is a full day experience.
Sat happens in person at Seattle University.
Sunday is for all
ages and is a full day experience.
On Sunday, we have
elementary debate, middle school debate, and speech events.
Sun happens in person at Seattle University.
For elementary school debaters, You can participate in debate on Sunday in person only. We expect 12 to 20 teams.
For middle school debaters, You can participate in debate on Saturday or Sunday.
Saturday in person, 3 rounds plus finals, expected 80-100 teams (in May, 20-30 teams). Congress has 5 to 10 students.
Sunday in person, 4 rounds plus finals, expected 30-50 teams. Congress offered.
Speaking Events, you can do on Friday (3 rounds online) or Sunday (3 rounds in person).
Can I drop off my child at Seattle University?
Yes but we STRONGLY ENCOURAGE parents of 3rd and 4th graders to remain with their child at Seattle University.
We’ll have a staff
member there in the mornings to guide them into the Piggott building.
Climb students meet with an adult leader in a “school room” between rounds.
Children are together with adult supervision throughout the tournament.
Yes
you can park at the school and be there with your child
(we recommend this for 3rd and 4th graders but many parents
also come in-person
to see their older kids because they want to celebrate in their child’s
achievements).
Does my child need to be there for the whole tournament?
Being there the whole time is by far the best option.
Debaters debate in
ALL debates.
Speakers present 3 times at different times in the schedule.
If you can’t be there the whole time, please contact Jim Hanson at jim@climbthemountain.us and we can see if that will work.
Who participates in the tournament?
All of the Climb programs participate. Schools in the Puget Sound area plus British Columbia participate and sometimes online, a program in China also participates.
Who will my child debate with?
When you register, tell us who you want and don’t want as a debate partner.
And if you really want that person—coordinate with them to attend the tournament on the same day.
We put students
together based on their preferences and beyond that
also based on having similar speaking scores in the program so they are equally
matched up.
Is doing two tournaments too much?
Always depends on
your child. I’d say Friday evening online and Sunday in-person would be fine.
Students might get overwhelmed by doing Saturday and Sunday both.
Is doing Speech and Debate together too much?
Again, depends on
your child. Doing them together on Sunday will be a lot to do, keeping your
child busy.
That said, we’ve had a number of students do it and it
was just fine for them.
The Sunday tournament seems long—can my kid handle it?
I worried about this
when we started but what I have found is that the vast
majority of kids
thrive in the environment of the tournament. They’ll be tired at the end but
during the
tournament, they’ll have lots of energy and can handle it.
My Question isn’t answered here.
Contact Jim Hanson at jim@climbthemountain.us and ask.
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