Clear Instructions on How to Do Oral Presentations and Good PowerPoint Presentations


Research:

You will search the internet for information about the topic you chose and I approved.  You may also use books, magazines, etc.  You may not change your project after I approved it unless you have gotten my permission first.

Length of Time for Your Presentation:

Look on the rubric I gave you.

For a regular presentation, normally you  should take about 3-5 minutes to do your presentation.  (If you do not speak for long enough, you may have to do your presentation again.)  In most cases, you should not speak for over 6 minutes for a regular presentation.  However, for a major project, you will be expected to speak for the time I have written on your rubric.

You may show a brief (really good) VDO from YouTube if it matches closely with your presentation, but it should not be more than 1½ minutes long.  However, the time of the video will NOT be counted towards your speaking time.  Thus, if you speak for 1 minute and 30 seconds and then show a 1½ minute-long video, you have only spoken for 1 minute and 30 seconds, not three minutes!

Rubric:

I have already given you a rubric (or I will post it online).  Do not lose the rubric!  Hand it to me before you begin your project.  Read the rubric carefully to understand how you will be assessed.

Props and Costumes:

You may use them to make your presentation more interesting. You will get one bonus point for doing so.  However, you are not required to in most cases.

Point Form Notes / “Cheat Sheet”:

You will type up a ½ page A4 sheet with point-form notes that you may use during your presentation.  There should be no full sentences anywhere on the page!  DO NOT READ FROM THIS SHEET!  See how you will be graded on your rubric that I have given to you.

Email Me a Copy of Your PowerPoint and “Cheat Sheet”:

Email me ONE Microsoft Word File that has your “cheat sheet” and your PowerPoint presentation.  My email is send2mrwilliam@yahoo.com.  Thus, I should receive one email with two attached files.  The title of your email and the title of your files should be [Topic][Nickname][Grade]. For example, SamuraiPloyG7 or NeanderthalsG6Tan.

Hard Copies (if I have asked for them):

You may be asked to give me a hard copy of everything including your PowerPoint presentation on the day this project is due.  However, unless I tell you, you will only have to give me a hard copy  of your “cheat sheet.”

When you go to print your PowerPoint presentation (if I have asked for it), click on PRINT WHAT, select HANDOUTS and then choose 6 SLIDES PER PAGE.

PowerPoint Presentation:

You will prepare a PowerPoint presentation that you will use throughout your presentation.  Make sure it looks beautiful and that there are a lot of pictures that compliment your presentation.  Only use point form or have a few short sentences on each slide—do not flood each slide with tons of text!  DO NOT READ FROM YOUR POWERPOINT PRESENTATION.  You should only use Microsoft software.  The school’s computers can read PowerPoint software.

You need to follow these very clear directions:

  • MAKE THE TITLE BIG AND CLEAR!  Use the title as a way of showing your main points to help guide your audience through your presentation.
  • MAKE THE WORDS LARGE ENOUGH TO READ!  Use about a size 30+ font.  Only Use Times New Roman because the school computers cannot read strange fonts.
  • Don’t fill up the screen with too much text – USE POINT-FORM NOTES OR ONLY HAVE A FEW SHORT SENTENCES.
  • USE LARGE, CLEAR PICTURES THAT MATCH THE CONTENT OF YOUR SLIDE!
  • Don’t read your PowerPoint slides!  PREPARE POINT-FORM NOTES, PRACTICE YOUR PRESENTATION BEFOREHAND, AND SPEAK WITH CONFIDENCE THAT COMES FROM PRACTICE AND KNOWING YOUR SUBJECT!  REFER TO YOUR NOTES SOMETIMES, BUT MAINTAIN EYE CONTACT WITH YOUR AUDIENCE!
  • USE PICTURES ON AS MANY SLIDES AS POSSIBLE.  Only use a one or two pictures per slide so we can see them clearly.  Do not be afraid to have some slides that only have pictures.
  • LABEL THE PICTURES as much as possible.
  • DO NOT COPY TOO MUCH OFF OF WEBSITES.  TRY TO PUT THINGS IN YOUR OWN WORDS!  AND MAKE SURE YOU CITE WHERE YOU GET IT FROM at the end of your essay!
  • Keep track of where you get your information by putting a slide called SOURCES at the end of your presentation.  The SOURCES slide should have all the websites, books, etc. you used to make your presentation.  For example, Taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megafauna

A Few More Tips on Your PowerPoint Presentations:

  • Make your presentations look beautiful!
  • Use as little text as possible and use as much pictures as possible.  (Only use words to communicate main points.)
  • To find pictures, go to Google and type in your subject and just add the word “pictures” or “images” on the end.
  • Choose a background and that will not make your text and pictures disappear!  Make sure you choose BLACK as the color of your text or some other color that allows you to read the text easily.
  • Remember to use TIMES NEW ROMAN because the school computers do not read strange fonts.
  • Remember to send me a copy of your PowerPoint presentation to send2mrwilliam@yahoo.com and bring a USB as a backup.
  • Practice saying your presentation (using your point-form notes) as you click through the different PowerPoint slides.
  • Practice saying your presentation (without reading your point-form notes) as you click through the different PowerPoint slides.
  • Practice saying your presentation (without memorizing your speech) as you click through the different PowerPoint slides.
  • Practice saying your presentation (without looking at your point-form notes too much) as you click through the different PowerPoint slides.
  • Practice saying your presentation as you click through the different PowerPoint slides.

If you do not have PowerPoint on your computer at home, you can go to www.filehippo.com and download the free and legal “OpenOffice.org” software that is very similar to Microsoft’s Office.  In fact, “OpenOffice.org Impress” is compatible with PowerPoint–the school’s computers should be able to open it if you save it as a PowerPoint document.  (After choosing “Save As…”, look for the “Save as type:” options, choose “Microsoft PowerPoint 97/2000/XP (.ppt)” and then click “Save” and you will be able to open the file at school.

One Final Note:

Be prepared to give your presentation in advance because other students may not be ready and this will force students further down the list to give their presentations before they thought they had to.  There may be serious consequences for those who are not ready to give their presentation in the order that they are scheduled.