This is Mock Trial’s third year as an activity in Morris Area, and we are looking forward to this year’s case. Every year, a new case is given for the team to dissect, and parts are handed out to each team member. This year, the case is about fraud. A man has made up stories that are meant to pull at your heartstrings and get you to donate to that cause, but the catch is that the cause doesn’t exist.
Our team gets the chance to play both the prosecution side and the defense side. As a witness, you test your acting skills and defend your character as if they are yourself. As an attorney, you direct your witness in the court and cross-examine the other team’s witnesses. It’s a chance to learn about law, to practice your acting, speaking, and debate skills, and you make some new friends in the process. (Not to mention you get an excuse to dress up… and skip school.)
I interviewed Mock Trial’s senior, Sam Jordan (coincidentally also my brother), to see what his thoughts on Mock Trial are. Here are his responses:
- What is your favorite part of Mock Trial?
“Probably learning about the new case every year, and sleuthing and piecing everything together at the start. Also working it out with my fellow attorneys and witnesses so we can provide the best case we can.”
- How does being in Mock Trial help you in the long run?
“Mock Trial has really helped me in my college classes because it helps me learn how to read in an analytic sense, so I can actually figure out what the message conveyed. I can learn from what I’m reading instead of just reading over it. It has also helped me speak in front of people, and in stressful situations, because sometimes speaking in front of a judge as a high schooler can give you nerves of steel. So at this point, speaking in front of students and teachers seems like a piece of cake.”
- Why should people join Mock Trial?
“Because if you want to learn how to speak in front of people in the real world, Mock Trial is a great way to start. Most people in their entire lives will never have to speak from the point of view of an attorney, and hopefully not as a witness in front of a judge. But having the ability to speak in a confident sense to get your point across is invaluable in the modern world, and a quickly disappearing skill amongst my generation.”
If you are interested in joining Mock Trial or learning more about it, come to the information meeting on November 8th at 3:30 in Mr. Kelly’s room at the high school.