1. Research Presentation Tips
Mrs. Satterthwaite
LA10

2. In the beginning…
Your intro slide should states your topic (not thesis), your name, and your hour.
The next slide should be your attention-grabber.
The third slide should be your thesis STATEMENT—not a question!

3. The following slides should…
Be one of the points on your outline.
Sometimes they will be pictures, a video clip or a chart/diagram that goes with a point on your outline.
Less is more…don’t put too many words on a slide.

4. Example of a bad slide…
This page contains too many words for a presentation slide. It is not written in point form, making it difficult both for your audience to read and for you to present each point. Although there are exactly the same number of points on this slide as the previous slide, it looks much more complicated. In short, your audience will spend too much time trying to read this paragraph instead of listening to you.

5. Font tips… Use at least a 24-point font.
Use different size fonts for main points and secondary points.
This font is 24-point, the main point font is 28-point, and the title font is 46-point.
Use a standard sans serif font like Arial or Tw Cen MT (not Times New Roman).

6. Bad fonts… CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. STOP YELLING AT ME!
If you use a small font, your audience won’t be able to read what you have written.
CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. STOP YELLING AT ME!
Don’t use a complicated font.

7. Color done right…
Use a color of font that contrasts sharply with the background.
Ex: blue font on white background
Use color to reinforce the logic of your structure.
Ex: light blue title and dark blue text
Use color to emphasize a point …
But only use this occasionally.

8. Color done wrong…
Using a font color that does not contrast with the background color is hard to read.
Using color for decoration is distracting and annoying.
Using a different color for each point is unnecessary.
Using a different color for secondary points is also unnecessary.
Trying to be creative can also be bad.

9. Backgrounds done right…
Use backgrounds such as this one that are attractive, but simple.
Use light backgrounds (or dark backgrounds with very light text).
Use backgrounds consistently (same looking transition slides; same looking “information” slides).

10. Backgrounds done wrong…
Avoid backgrounds that are distracting or difficult to read.
Pictures as backgrounds are REALLY challenging (unless it’s a transition slide). Try to avoid them and place photos NEXT to text … don’t use it as a background.

11. Other tips…
Transitions: Include a transition slide for each new section of your PowerPoint: intro (title slide with name and hour), background, causes, effects, solutions, conclusion. Don’t present new information on these transition slides.
Fix Typos: There are not too many words on each PowerPoint slide, so PROOFREAD!

12. Citations…
If it is a quote OR a paraphrase—it should be clearly cited on your PowerPoint.
Your PowerPoint needs to match with your outline, but not necessarily word-for-word. Your outline will be in complete sentences and your PowerPoint might use bullets, “unless you are using a quotation” (“Title”) or (Author #).
Make sure you cite video clips, charts or graphs, and pictures that you use (either at bottom of the slide or at end of presentation).

13. Video clips…
Presentations should be between 4-6 minutes. Using videos is great (30 second clips of videos is even better), but make sure you talk for at least three minutes (1-3 minutes of video)!
Embed videos into your presentation so we don’t have to wait for you to click the link and load the video.

14. PowerPoint must match outline…
Everything in your presentation should correspond with your outline.
If you change your presentation as you’re working tomorrow and Friday (and probably over the weekend at home), you need to change your outline and possibly works cited page as well.

15. Presentations begin Tuesday…
A final copy of your works cited, outline and PowerPoint need to be saved in your folder in GroupWork 2 the day you present.
You can come to the B123 Lab from 7:00–7:35 a.m. any day next week to save final drafts of these three items in the correct location. I’d strongly recommend you all BE READY on Tuesday, even if you draw a large number (absences, short presentations, not prepared, etc.).
Title your documents as follows:
Works Cited
Outline
PowerPoint

16. Review… Slide #1: Intro – topic, name, hour Slide #2: attention-getter
Slide #3: thesis statement
Slide #4: Background (transition slide)
Slide #5: A. …
Slide #6: 1. …
Slide #7: 2. …
Slide #8: a. …
Slide #9: b. …
Slide #10: 3. …
Slide #11: Causes (transition slide) …
Final slides: Review main points, restate thesis

17. Review continued …
Bullet your information, unless it’s a direct quote.
Use at LEAST 24-point font (bigger is better).
Use a standard, sans serif font.
Don’t capitalize unnecessarily – IT’S NOT NICE!
Backgrounds shouldn’t be too busy.
Light background/dark font; dark background/light font
Use transition slides for intro, background, causes, effects, solutions, and review/conclusion.
Use citations for ALL quotes and paraphrased information (should be 10 citations – at least one for each of your sources).

18. Review continued …
Use 30 second to 1-minute video clips; embed these into your presentation.
Fix ALL typos … seriously … have a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th person edit and double-check your work!
Spell correctly.
Capitalize correctly.
Use commas and periods correctly.
Use semi-colons correctly; this is how to do it.
Cite sources correctly (“Article”).

19. Review continued …
Save your FINAL DRAFTS of your works cited (list of sources), outline (with all 10 sources cited), and PowerPoint (with all 10 sources, videos, images, charts/graphs, etc. cited) by the day you present.
In the Collab: GroupWork2 folder (you must do this at school)
Document titles:
Works Cited
Outline
PowerPoint

20. Questions? And Next Step…
Select a partner to peer edit with, then have one person go through his or her presentation outline while the other listens carefully and provides feedback.
Is the attention-getter really interesting?
Is the thesis a clear, succinct statement?
Is there a sufficient amount of info. about the background?
Does he/she clearly explain what caused the issue?
Does he/she present several specific examples/evidence of the effects of the issue?
Does he/she present specific, implementable solutions (what is currently being done or what could be done)?
Does he/she repeat the clear thesis in different phrasing?
Does he/she review the important details?
Does the conclusion convince you to believe him/her?
Is the outline written in complete sentences (except headings)? Is there info. cited from all 10 sources?