Should I read my speech word for word, since it's important that way, I won't make any mistakes? No, No. and No. If you do that you're actually making the biggest mistake you could possibly make, which is you're going to bore your audience to death because adults do not like other people reading to them, especially if they're not professionally trained actors. The second you read, you've destroyed eye contact. You've made your voice monotone.

You're showing the audience you don't even care if they're alive. Basically, you've pretty much destroyed your ability to communicate. So no, don't read your speech from a paper text in front of you. Unless there are a few exceptions. It is a highly specific legal issue and you don't care if anyone in the audience gets it or not. You want to make sure you get each word just right so not to be sued in that case, fine.

Any other time you're actually giving a presentation because you want to communicate. Don't read a speech word for word.