1. HOME
  2. Speech topics
  3. 10-minute demonstration speech topics

10-minute demonstration speech topics

100 + short 3-10 minute how to speech ideas

By: Susan Dugdale 

If you've been asked to put together a 10 minute, or less, demonstration speech for your speech class, look these 'how-to' ideas over. They're perfect for preparing short show and tell presentations to teach a new task succinctly and quickly.

Use the quick links below to get around the page easily. The topics are arranged in four batches. Begin with 'Why demonstrate something simple and ordinary?'. It could save you a lot of time!

What's on this page

Why demonstrate something simple and ordinary?

Images: squeezed toothpaste tube and toothbrush, cute cat, 6 porcelain teacups. Text: 100 plus 10-minute demonstration speech topics: how to clean teeth, how to make a perfect cup of tea...

Before you settle on a topic, please don't overlook demonstrating a skill or a process you regard as commonplace.

If we already know how to do something competently, we have an understandable tendency to dismiss whatever it is as far too simple, and too ordinary to turn it into a demonstration speech.

And yet, that assumption can be so wrong.

There are audiences who will want to know how to do some of the things we do so efficiently and easily, that we forget we had to learn how to do them in the first place!  Many of those things are on this list.

For instance, a group of people who don’t spend a lot of time online, could find why and how to set up a safe password valuable knowledge to have. It might stop them from being hacked!

Likewise teaching people who intend to explore the great outdoors, and haven't had much prior experience, how to use a portable gas stove safely is extremely useful.

Or showing parents of children with long hair how to plait it. That will save a lot of time and tears when it comes to brushing.

And I'll always be grateful to the person who showed me how to give medicine to my beloved cat, without being scratched to bits!

Think about your audience. What would be useful for them to know? Sharing something of real benefit and value will help keep them actively interested. *

*For more on how to choose a great demonstration speech topic.

Return to Top

25 3 to 10-minute demonstration speech topics

Once you’ve got your topic be sure to collect a printable demonstration speech outline to help you prepare your speech. You’ll find the link for that at the foot of the page. The outline will help you efficiently plan, organize and deliver a well-structured speech.

Now here's the first batch of the 100, and more, topics. 

Image: 6 vintage porcelain teacups. Text: 10-minute demonstration speech topics - How to make the most perfect cup of tea.
  1. How to set up a safe password
  2. How to avoid ID theft
  3. How to use Google docs well
  4. How to set up Google analytics on a website quickly
  5. How to create a simple presentation using Microsoft Powerpoint or Apple Keynote
  6. How to back up your important files
  7. How to set up a wifi connection
  8. How to report online bullying
  9. How to fill out online forms well
  10. How to clear cookies off your computer
  11. How to identify and report spam
  12. How to set up a Spotify account
  13. How to use online banking
  14. How to use a credit card responsibly
  15. How to use online grocery shopping to save
  16. How to defend yourself against a random personal physical attack
  17. How to pack a travel bag efficiently
  18. How to help someone who is choking
  19. How to lift heavy objects without damaging yourself
  20. How to make a perfect cup of tea
  21. How to shop for groceries efficiently in a supermarket
  22. How to use a dryer to make your own dried fruit
  23. How to can vegetables safely
  24. How to freeze excess produce
  25. How to make perfect fruit jam

Return to Top

25 ideas for short how-to speeches

Image: squeezed tube of toothpaste and toothpaste on brush. Text: 10-minute demonstration speech topics - How to clean your teeth properly.
  1. How to chop vegetables safely and quickly
  2. How to carve a chicken, turkey...
  3. How to store raw chicken in the fridge safely
  4. How to prepare a simple healthy meal from basic ingredients
  5. How to plan an affordable weekly dinner menu
  6. How to iron a shirt
  7. How to tie a neck tie
  8. How to sort laundry, use a washing machine and dry your clothes
  9. How to hand wash delicate fabrics
  10. How to use a knife and fork correctly
  11. How to use a pair of chop sticks properly
  12. How to know what cutlery to use when you’re at a formal dinner party
  13. How to plait long hair
  14. How to brush a long-haired dog or cat well
  15. How to brush your teeth correctly
  16. How to do a press up correctly
  17. How to choose a haircut to suit your face shape
  18. How to a jacket to suit your body shape
  19. How to dress well on a limited budget
  20. How to make a simple healthy dessert
  21. How to ice a cake simply and effectively
  22. How to upcycle a tee shirt
  23. How to mend a fallen hem
  24. How to sew on a button
  25. How to make a bookcase from recycled materials

Return to Top

26 topics for show-and-tell speeches

Image: 3 pots of basil Text: 10-minute demonstration speech topics - How to grow fresh kitchen herbs on your window sill
  1. How make a simple personal budget
  2. How to grow kitchen herbs in a window box
  3. How to escape from a sinking car
  4. How to use a blanket to move heavy objects
  5. How to sharpen a knife
  6. How use a thermometer correctly
  7. How to use a compass
  8. How read a simple topographical map
  9. How to use a portable gas stove safely out of doors
  10. How to put out a stove top fire
  11. How to change a light bulb
  12. How to clear a blocked sink
  13. How to clean a bathroom well
  14. How to make a bed
  15. How to use the local public transport system
  16. How to hold a baby properly
  17. How to change a baby’s diaper
  18. How to dress a baby
  19. How to dress a wound
  20. How to make an emergency call
  21. How to administer first aid for burns
  22. How to treat hypothermia
  23. How to handle frostbite
  24. How to handle someone having a seizure
  25. How to use CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation)
  26. How to shine a pair of shoes

Return to Top

32 demonstrative topics for 10-minute speeches

Image: drawing of a very cute cat. Text: 10-minute demonstration speech topics - How to give a cat medicine
  1. How to book a taxicab
  2. How to arrange flowers in a vase
  3. How to sow flower or vegetable seeds
  4. How to re-pot an indoor plant
  5. How to take a cutting from a plant
  6. How to prune a rose
  7. How to dry or press flowers
  8. How to forage for edible plants
  9. How to set a mouse trap
  10. How to make good lecture notes
  11. How to set a meeting agenda
  12. How to run a meeting efficiently
  13. How to read body language – what shows a person is unsure, shy, angry, confident...
  14. How to effectively and easily join a conversation between people you don’t know at a gathering
  15. How to make a personalized greeting card – birthday, wedding, anniversary, Christmas...
  16. How to make paper flowers
  17. How to make touchstones for children
  18. How to make a personalized birthday crown
  19. How to make colorful party bunting
  20. How to make a yarn ball
  21. How to make finger puppets
  22. How to felt wool balls for a garland
  23. How to decoupage a box, tray...
  24. How to make a pasta necklace
  25. How to make personalized pencil and pen holders from tin cans
  26. How to mend a tear in a favorite piece of clothing
  27. How to organize your wardrobe, kitchen counter, pantry...
  28. How to give medicine to a cat or a dog safely
  29. How to see a situation from another person’s point of view
  30. How to encourage and practice creative thinking
  31. How to make a friendship bracelet
  32. How to make a family pinboard

Return to Top

How plan and prepare your demonstration speech

To be really effective you'll want to plan and prepare your 'how-to' speech thoroughly - even if you know the subject inside out!

Demonstration speeches that haven't been thought through and practiced carefully have a nasty habit of suddenly sliding sideways super-fast. Then what you want to happen and what actually does are miles apart - two quite different things. 

To avoid that read planning, preparation & delivery of your demonstration speech

Return to Top

Get the printable demonstration speech outline 

Click the link to access to printable demonstration speech outline(It goes to the same page on planning and preparation linked to above. While you are there be sure to read the FAQs, especially the information about cue cards. If you haven't given a demonstration speech before you'll find it useful.)

Other topics for demonstration speeches

Image: Cartoon figures - Happy family - father and son, mother and daughter. Text: Share, show and tell about soft skills. They're vital for healthy relationships.

If you've not found the how-to speech idea you want here, here's the link to access four more pages of demonstration speech topics. Collectively, that's 100s of suggestions! They include soft skills: the skills we need to communicate well with each other.

Return to Top