Study Skills > General Skills > Projects & Presentations
Presenting Projects
Basic elements of presentations:
Basic goals of your presentation
Develop your presentation's topic to a few main ideas
Audience characteristics and knowledge base
Cover mutual ground as a starting point
Compare and adapt the presentation's goals with the interests of the audience
Thesis statement
State where you are going and what you will prove
Argument
Convince them with facts and logic
Be sure of your purpose and the speaker's purpose
Review and summary
Summarise what you've told them
Check for comprehension
Questions and discussion
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Practice by rehearsing the presentation, recording it, or reciting it to a few friends |
Techniques of delivery:
Put your audience at ease with a relevant anecdote or joke, or get their attention with a dramatic gesture or event...
Use personal pronouns in your delivery;
Make eye contact with the audience;
Present your report with a conversational voice though vary it for emphasis;
Use transitions to signal the audience you're moving to a new idea;
Direct questions to your audience to get them more involved;
Conclude by summing up your main ideas, points, or arguments;
Leave time for questions, and invite feedback on
- the content (un-addressed, related ideas)
- the conclusions
- your manner of presentation
Leave your contact information for further questions
Using visual aids or media:
- Call early and make sure hardware is compatible with your software; and software versions of your documents are compatible with versions of their software
- Have several versions of computerised files (on your hard drive, disk, web site, and overhead and/or paper(!) just in case
- Come early and make sure everything works and that any media (audio, visual, computer) can be seen, heard, understood by all
- Keep all visual materials simple in large text for visibility
Have supportive materials for each idea
- Do not distribute handouts, even outlines, before your speech (or the audience will focus on the reading material instead of listening to you)
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