a few presentation “rules”

WHY TALK ABOUT “RULES?”

1. the “rules” aren’t so much rules as they are conventions—aspects people are used to and comfortable with

2. you have to know the rules to be able to break them

3. you have to know your audience to know whether or not it’s appropriate for you to break the rules

RULESET #1

• do not copy and paste entire paragraphs into your slideshow; rather, whittle your arguments down to a few key points per slide

• include no more than three or four bullet points per slide

• use short—but descriptive!—phrases in your bullet points

RULESET #2• make sure each slide has a clear,

descriptive heading

• use a large, readable font face and size for your headings, for instance, this slideshow is set up to use Arial 50 pt

• use a medium, readable font face and size for your bullet text, for instance, this slideshow is set up to use Arial 24 pt

RULESET #3• adopt an overall design scheme that lends

visual consistency to your slideshow

• avoid garish, distracting backgrounds (just because PowerPoint lets you use them doesn’t mean you should)

• make sure your visual content—photos, icons, clipart, etc.—complements the purpose and focus of your presentation

• think deeply about how your audience will respond to the visual elements of your presentation

RULESET #4

• read and review and proof and proof and edit and polish and proof

• make sure there are no spelling errors, grammar errors, or typos in your slideshow

RULESET #5• test your presentation!

– if you created it on a Mac using PowerPoint 2003, test it on a PC

– if you created it on a PC using PowerPoint 2007, test it on PowerPoint 2000 and 2003

slideshows that hurt people

CLOWNS VS. MIMES:MENDING A LEGACY OF HATE

Using PowerPoint Templates

• File New “From design template”

Creating Custom Design Schemes

• View Master Slide Master

– Slide Master view allows you to choose your font faces, font color, and background color, and embed images

– adjusting the Slide Master affects your entire PowerPoint presentation

– REMEMBER: font faces don’t follow you from machine to machine (stick with system fonts or create title images in Photoshop and embed them in PowerPoint

Creating Your Own Slideshow Templates

• will generally require you to use additional applications beyond Microsoft PowerPoint

Slideshow Designs > Lessons Learned

• templates are just templates—they are starting points

• be sure to choose a template that complements the content of your presentation

• familiarize yourself with the resources available to use to customize your slideshows (like Microsoft’s download site, where you can download tons of PowerPoint templates)

Slideshow Basics > Lessons Learned

• PowerPoint and other applications are incredibly powerful ways of visually and textually and orally presenting information

• but only if used well

presenting your projects

• it’s okay that your paper is in rough draft form: making the PowerPoint presentation will actually help you organize and hone your paper

• note that you will only have approximately 15 minutes for your presentation, so plan your time carefully—practice and prepare

• Because we cannot always be sure of how the computers will act in this room, be sure to both load your Pp presentation into your group wiki page AND have it saved on a thumb drive

• Your entire Pp presentation cannot exceed 10mbs or the wiki will not let you upload it

• in your presentation, be sure to address the following ideas:

The contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity of your visual elements

The layout and data displays (if these apply) of your visual elements

Images used (within larger contexts) Color Font and typeface The audience for your visual elements The purpose of the visual elements The effectiveness of the visual elements (make a claim

—evaluate how well they accomplish their purpose)

what I’m looking for

• Content (is the presentation focused on key points? have the presenters carefully selected the material to share and talk about?)

• Delivery (are the presenters prepared? Are they appropriately formal? do the presenters make eye contact? Does everyone participate?)

• Visuals (are visual elements well-prepared, well-integrated, and appropriate? do any visuals support the main point of the presentation?)

• Time (is the presenter prepared and ready to go? does the presenter make best use of presentation time?)

how to fail your presentation

• come to class unprepared—if you haven’t carefully prepared, if you present for 2 minutes or if you present for 20 minutes, and/or if it’s clear that you haven’t thought much about your presentation, you will lose points

• be rude to other presenters—if I see IM windows open, or if you’re typing away during a presentation, you will lose points on your presentation

outline and prepare• before you present, leave yourself plenty of time to, first, create an

outline for your 15-minute presentation, and, second, to PRACTICE your presentation; for your outline, you might consider:

– what are my talking points? what do I definitely want to cover? in what order? (and will this order make sense to everyone?)

– how will I start my presentation and introduce my work?

– what do I want to show? how will I show it?

– are there class materials—readings, discussions, etc.—that I can/should draw upon in my presentation?

– how will I end my presentation?