This document provides tips for creating an effective visual aid for a presentation using PowerPoint. It recommends keeping slides simple with only the essential information, knowing the content and audience, using consistent formatting, and using notes to expand on the slides rather than reading slides verbatim. The visual aid should enhance the presentation by visually representing the key ideas in a way that helps the audience understand and remember the content.

1. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
PowerPoint
Creating an Effective Visual
Aid for Your Presentation

2. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Presentation Basics
 Know your content
 Know your audience
 Know your teacher’s expectations

3. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
A Good Visual Aid…
 enhances the presentation
 gives the audience a visual that is directly
related to what you are saying
 presents the biggest and most important
ideas, the things the audience should
remember
 shows images, video, audio that helps the
audience better understand the content

4. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Begin with the title
 Keep it short
 Accurately introduce the presentation

5. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Add a slide
 Click “New Slide”
 Choose the
appropriate slide
template
 Type only the
essential
information

6. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Keep It Simple Silly
 The templates will help your slides have the right amount of content.
 Don’t overfill the slide – your audience will be lost in reading the slide and will not focus on
you.
 YOU are the most important part of the presentation.
 The worst thing is when a presenter reads their slides. Do you like it when someone reads to
you in a monotone voice?
 If the PowerPoint or other visual aid were the most important thing, you could just post it to a
website and be done.
 Can you even read this?
 Do you really want to read this?
 Does this help you understand what I’m saying?
 Really, I could type in a whole bunch of nonsense talk but it would look like I had many,
many important things to say.
 But you wouldn’t see them because there’s too much here.
 And you wouldn’t hear me because you would be trying to read this.
 My favorite animals are cows and monkeys.
 The Devils are the best hockey team ever.
 This amount of information really should be on at least 6 slides.
 If you’re reading this, you probably weren’t listening to the super important details I was
sharing.
 And really, everything I say is very important, so this slide is completely irrelevant.

7. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Keep formatting simple
Too many typfaces, colors,
and GRAPHICS distract the
audience from your PRESENTATION.

8. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Style with Purpose
A cohesive format presents a cohesive
idea
 A change in style or formatting indicates
that something is different, or more
important
 What do you want your audience to see?
 What do you want them to think about
while you are talking?

9. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Slides vs. Notes
 Essential content and big ideas go on the
slide
 The information you want your audience
to remember goes on the slide
 Everything else goes in the notes.

10. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Add notes
 Type your notes in
the space below
the slide editor
 This is where you
can type the script,
citations, and
anything relevant
to that slide.

11. Mrs. Bond, GTSD Library Media Specialist
Review
 Know your content.
 Know your audience.
 Keep It Simple Silly.
 Style with purpose.
 Use the notes field.
 Proofread each slide. Do it again.