Recipes for Creative Club Meetings

Thanks to Dr. Irma Ortega Perry, DTM for many of the following suggestions:

Table Topics
1. Telephone conversations, i.e., 'Loan Shark' and 'victim'
2. Pet Peeve Sessions
3. Talk Show with guests and audience
4. Role Play to demonstrate 'rudeness', etc.
5. Debate with two teams of two
6. Describe items (or uses of items) in a grab bag.
7. News or sports show.
8. Dear Abby questions to participants.
9. Table Topic Night - everyone brings topics
10. Topics of Persuasion: Convince the IRS Agent that your pet should be a 'dependant', etc.
11. Unusual telegrams: Send $3,000 Bail Money Quick. Will explain later, etc.
12. Small Claims Court. Defend yourself or file a damage claim, etc.
13. Job Interviews
14. Fortune Cookies
15. Newspaper headlines
16. Panel discussion with moderator. Everyone discusses the same topic.
17. Quotes: Give each member a quote and ask them to explain.
18. Travel brochures: give members a brochure, have them sell the audience, tell about the location, etc.
19. Songs that have changed lives
20. Famous people we would like to meet
21. List your secret or not so secret diet tips
22. What would you do if you were a 10 (or 5 or 8) year old again for just one day?
23. If you had a garden and a green thumb, what would you grow?
24. What are the merits of teach music to children?
25. What are the benefits of sports for children?

Theme Meetings
1. "Hay or Sleigh ride" to a meeting location (member's farm)
2. Roast the Club President
3. Anniversary Night. Invite former members. Club and TM history.
4. Picnic and Demo Night. Bring food item, Demo preparation, evaluate product, etc.
5. Video tape meting. (Show and discuss)
6. White elephant Auction. Bring item, convince club members to buy item.
7. Story Telling Festival (use festive occasions, Hanukkah, Christmas, etc.)
8. Masquerade Meeting. Let topics and speeches revolve around the costumes.
9. Hollywood Celebrities Night
10. High School Days
11. Cruise Ship
12. Foreign ports
13. Historical
14. Friday the 13th
15. Invite the boss
16. Joint meeting
17. Meet the Family Night
18. Olympic Games
19. Patio Night
20. Salute a local business
21. Speech contests
22. Visual aid workshop
23. Western
24. World's Fair
25. Search calendars for a list of special events such as "National Pickle Month"
26. Hold a meeting in a shopping mall
27. Story Night: Count off by threes. Each group gets 5 minutes to write a story. One member then reads the story.
28. Literary: Everyone must bring a book. Then read a passage and explain it's importance to the reader.

THEME MEETING SUGGESTIONS BY MONTH

January
Inauguration Day
Martin Luther King Day
New Year Resolutions
Super Bowl Sunday
Robert E. Lee (19th)
Emancipation Proclamation(1863)
Roget's Birthday (thesaurus) (1779)

February
Black history Month
Groundhog Day
Valentine's Day
President's Day
Leap year
Dr. Smedley's Birthday (2-22-1878)

March
Plant Your Garden
Star Spangled Banner Day (law signed 3-3-31)
Mardi Gras
Ides of March
Buzzards return to Hinkley, Ohio
Swallows return to Capistrano, California

April
April Fool
Army Day (6th)
Tax Day (15th)
Confederate Memorial Day
Cherry Blossom Time

May
Bunny Hop
Time Springs Forward
Mother's Day
Memorial Day
Armed Forces Day (20th)
Victoria Day (Canada)
May Day
Kentucky Derby

June
Graduation Day
Flag Day
Father's Day
Jefferson Davis (3rd)
Rose Festival
Custer's Last Stand

July
Fireworks
Independence Day
Canada Day (1st)
Class reunions
State Fairs

August
Dog Days of Summer
Rodeo Roundup
Coast Guard Day (4th)
V-J Day (14th)
Gold Rush Days
Soap Box Derby
19th Amendment (1920)
Social Security Act (1935)

September
Back to School
Labor Day
Fair Time
Air Force Day (17th)

October
Christopher Columbus
Halloween
Indian Summer
Oktoberfest
Time Falls Back
Yom Kippur
Navy Day (27th)
Thanksgiving Day (Canada) (11th)
Toastmaster's International Anniversary (1924)

November
Election Day
Veteran's Day
Rememberance Day (Canada) (11th)
Thanksgiving Day
Gettysburg Address (1863)

December
Holidays of Faith
Snow Days
Boxing Day (Canada) (26th)
Christmas
Hanukka

Educational Sessions
1. Lectern Protocol
2. Importance of Applause
3. The Mentor Program
4. The Supply Catalog
5. The Distinguished Club Program
6. Introducing the Speaker
7. Arriving Early to Meetings
8. Using Humor in Speeches
9. Proper Speech Preparation
10. Duties of the Toastmaster
11. Filling out a Membership Application
12. The Toastmaster Organization
13. Duties of Each Club Officer
14. Essentials of Effective Evaluations

Special Programs
1. Dinner or Theater Night. Discuss, evaluate or act out stories at next meeting.
2. Backwards Meeting
3. Movie review. Decorate with posters, serve popcorn, have trivia questions about the movie.
4. Children/Youth Night. Gear program to their interests. Invite some local Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts Clubs.
5. Show and Tell. Members talk about hobbies and interests.
6. Quarterly Award Night (Recognition)
7. Complete Success/Leadership in several meetings How to Conduct Productive Meetings, #236 How to Listen Effectively, #242 Improving Your Management Skills, #259 From Speaker to Trainer, #257
8. Pot Luck Dinner. Bring the family
9. Birthday Party Night. Celebrate everyone's birthdays at once. Bring baby pictures, etc.

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