At local, zone and state judging, you will be asked initially a number of questions about yourself. These are to put you at ease with the judges, as well as enabling the judges to get to know you.
(READ the Form B tab under the Competition information tab - this is very important for the judging).
This is an opportunity for you to tell your story - this is quite difficult for a lot of young ladies, as talking about yourself can seem a bit egotistical... But don't worry, this website is going to try to help you out a bit.
The best advice I can give you in terms of talking about yourself, be it in your on-stage interview or in the interview, is to tell stories. I will elaborate on this further under the Form B tab.
(READ the Form B tab under the Competition information tab - this is very important for the judging).
This is an opportunity for you to tell your story - this is quite difficult for a lot of young ladies, as talking about yourself can seem a bit egotistical... But don't worry, this website is going to try to help you out a bit.
The best advice I can give you in terms of talking about yourself, be it in your on-stage interview or in the interview, is to tell stories. I will elaborate on this further under the Form B tab.
Local LevelAt local show level, you can expect to be asked the following:
* Discussion regarding your community - primary production, industries and local areas of interest * Local attractions * Local, State and Federal representatives names for the area you are representing * Major issues at the time, both in agriculture and current affairs * Your involvement in your local show * President, secretary and treasurer of your local show Dr. Harry dancing at the 2013 Griffith show with Emily Chilvers, Griffith Showgirl 2013
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Zone LevelAt zone, you will be asked to discuss
* International event knowledge * National leaders including agriculture associated ministers * Universal agricultural issues eg: climate change, water shortage/ drought, food shortage, live export You will have to do a 3 minute (or 180 second) on-stage interview. The first couple of questions will be about yourself, and the last will ask you about a current issue (eg: mining). Judges David Williams, Andrew Marshall and Susan Bower; with Zone 1 final winners Melanie Loomes, Alstonville; and Tayla Maloney, Casino
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State LevelIf you get through to state level, then that is an amazing achievement. At the 2013 Sydney Royal Easter Show, 16 girls made it out of around 800 entrants state-wide.
At state level, the questions will be similar to zone, although broader. You will be judged on your argument structure and delivery as well as your local, national and international knowledge. The focus, however, will probably be on your delivery and structure of responses. You should know the leading Australian political personalities involved in the major news stories of the day. Jasmine Nixon, 2012 Sydney Showgirl, Crookwell; Jemma Welsh - Robertson, Goulburn; Claire Walker, Griffith; Ashleigh Skinner, Mendooran; Samantha Chilton, Kyogle; Emily Butler, Junee; Amy Minaham, Yass; and 2012 Queensland Showgirl Jessica Robinson
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ARGUMENT STRUCTURE
There are a number of ways to structure your argument. This is important to know how to do, as it helps what you are saying make sense and flow in a structured manner. The main one I used, is:
STATE the situation
ANSWER the question
STATE your opinion/ optimistic recommendation
Your optimistic recommendation should be a balanced opinion showing that you have considered both sides of the story - it is easy to get caught up in media hype and bias, so try to avoid that and use multiple sources to get your information from.
Another way to structure your argument:
POINT
REASON
EXPLAIN
POINT
STATE the situation
ANSWER the question
STATE your opinion/ optimistic recommendation
Your optimistic recommendation should be a balanced opinion showing that you have considered both sides of the story - it is easy to get caught up in media hype and bias, so try to avoid that and use multiple sources to get your information from.
Another way to structure your argument:
POINT
REASON
EXPLAIN
POINT
Showgirl Development Weekends
There are two development weekends in NSW (please contact me and let me know if there are more that I am not aware of) - one at Glen Innes and one at Dubbo.
Some show societies send their girls to both, if they are located between them. These two weekends differ from each other. Dubbo focuses on deportment, and is not dissimilar to a June Dally Watkins course. It is useful, as you never know who you will be sitting next to at dinner! It could be the Queen, the governor-general, or it could be the President of the NSWFA. Which fork is which, how to set a table for a formal function and so forth. This weekend also gives great tips for public speaking, learning how to walk in high heels, the difference between day time and night time make up, and so on. Also, how to walk down stairs in high heels is a valuable skill not to be dismissed! And it's a lot of fun learning all of this with the other showgirls.
It teaches you what will be expected of an ambassador for young women in terms of this. Now, I know what some of you country girls are thinking (I am NOT interested in all that make up, girly stuff), but I am a tomboy at heart as well and got a lot out of this weekend in Dubbo. And I find it useful every time I go somewhere, attend a dinner, or have a work meeting.
The Glen Innes weekend differs from Dubbo. Not having attended this weekend, I unfortunately cannot give you a lot of information on it - watch this space, as I am hoping to contact the coordinator.
Some show societies send their girls to both, if they are located between them. These two weekends differ from each other. Dubbo focuses on deportment, and is not dissimilar to a June Dally Watkins course. It is useful, as you never know who you will be sitting next to at dinner! It could be the Queen, the governor-general, or it could be the President of the NSWFA. Which fork is which, how to set a table for a formal function and so forth. This weekend also gives great tips for public speaking, learning how to walk in high heels, the difference between day time and night time make up, and so on. Also, how to walk down stairs in high heels is a valuable skill not to be dismissed! And it's a lot of fun learning all of this with the other showgirls.
It teaches you what will be expected of an ambassador for young women in terms of this. Now, I know what some of you country girls are thinking (I am NOT interested in all that make up, girly stuff), but I am a tomboy at heart as well and got a lot out of this weekend in Dubbo. And I find it useful every time I go somewhere, attend a dinner, or have a work meeting.
The Glen Innes weekend differs from Dubbo. Not having attended this weekend, I unfortunately cannot give you a lot of information on it - watch this space, as I am hoping to contact the coordinator.
"Oh no... I missed the Development weekend...."
It's very unfortunate if you miss this weekend - you get great tips for the competition as well as learning life skills that will help you in any job or formal dinner situation. However, the following competition information booklet, written by 2009 2nd Runner-Up Lauren Elkins, is a good resource to use. It's not the whole weekend crammed into one booklet, but it's the next best thing you will have (other than talking to past showgirls).