The document provides guidance on delivering effective oral presentations. It discusses defining goals and understanding the audience. It recommends considering the location, equipment, and type of presentation. The document outlines different types of oral delivery including scripted, outlined, and impromptu talks. It provides tips on using visuals, integrating planning, focusing on key points, using a simple structure with clear signaling, and adopting a conversational style. The document concludes with sections on rehearsal, managing nerves, and assigning a short presentation as a writing exercise.

1. PRESENTATIONS

2. TODAY’S AGENDA
• Delivering Listener-Centered Oral Presentations
• Your Oral Presentation
• Writing Assignment

3. DEFINING GOALS
• Think about who your listeners are
• Determine your goals with the communication
• Consider what listeners expect
• Find out how much time you have
• Shorter is always better
• Enough to deliver the point

4. SCENERY
• Size of the audience
• Location of the presentation
• Equipment

5. AUDIENCE
• Smaller audiences are less formal
• Smaller audiences can take questions during the
presentation
• Larger audiences require more formality
• Questions should wait until the end of the
presentation for a large audience

6. LOCATION
• Fixed seating requires one type of presentation.
• Movable seating allows more flexibility
• Chairs in a circle – less formal
• Chairs in rows facing forward – more formal

7. EQUIPMENT
• Projectors
• Computers
• Determines if you need handouts or can use a
Powerpoint presentation

8. SINGLE SOURCE
• Plan verbal and visual as parts of the same source
material
• Consider – people can only focus on one task
• Reading
• Listening
• Facebooking
• Graphics are easy to scan (“read”), thus can be
used at the same time.

9. GRAPHICS
• Allow for source material to be presented
• Provides interesting and engaging material

10. TYPES OF ORAL DELIVERY
• Scripted Talk
• Outlined Talk
• Impromptu Talk

11. SCRIPTED TALK
• Written out and delivered word for word
• Allows you to work out exact phrasing
• Ideal for complex information
• Ideal for nervous presentation
• All your words are right in front of you
• Keep within a time limit
• Hard to sound natural
• Cannot alter in response to audience

12. OUTLINED TALK
• Prepare an outline of what you will say
• In the middle approach
• Flexible
• Can speed up, slow down, or eliminate material
• Ideal for small groups on familiar topics
• Requires familiarity with subject matter
• May be too flexible for beginning speakers

13. IMPROMPTU TALK
• Spur of the moment, no preparation
• Requires total familiarity with the subject
• Natural speaking style
• Small group

14. VISUAL MEDIUM
• Depends on what is available
• Computer Projection
• Overhead transparencies
• Chalkboard/Whiteboard
• Handouts

15. COMPUTER
• Polished slides
• Prepare slides quickly
• Expand media
• Need a dark room, kind of
• Slides cannot usually be altered during presentation
• Preparation can be time consuming
• Can detract from content

16. TRANSPARENCIES
• Can be made simply
• Widely available
• Can reorder slides as you give talk
• Look plain
• Can’t include other media

17. WHITEBOARD/CHALKBOARD
• Requires no preparation
• Very flexible
• Small meetings
• No media
• Delay presentation while you write

18. HANDOUTS
• Gives viewers a takeaway document
• Aids with note taking
• Can be distracting
• Requires preparation
• Cannot be changed after the fact

19. INTEGRATION PLANNING
• Your purpose and audience
• What the audience expects
• Your resources
• Slides use key words, you use sentences

20. FOCUS
• Focus on a few main points
• Listeners have difficulty focusing
• No more than twenty minutes
• Listeners cannot “flip back”
• Relevant points to listener needs
• Break down into points

21. SIMPLE STRUCTURE
• Introduction > Body > Conclusion
• Intro - Introduce the topic
• Intro - Explain relevance
• Intro - Forecast organization of the presentation
• Body - Present three or four main points
• Conclusion - Sum up your main points
• Conclusion - Identify next steps
• Conclusion - Take questions

22. SIGNALING THE STRUCTURE
• Forecast – tell what the structure will be
• Show a graphic that outlines the major parts
• Signal Transitions – Show a graphic for the next point
• Pause before beginning next topic
• Move about
• Slow pace
• Review – Best for the conclusion

23. CONVERSATIONAL STYLE
• Builds rapport
• When preparing – imaging the audience
• Use you and your
• Use personal pronouns
• Shorter, simple sentences
• Words listeners will understand
• Enthusiasm
• Gestures

24. MAKING GRAPHICS
• Large typeface
• Light background – dark letters (high contrast)
• Easy to read typeface
• Key words
• Bulleted lists
• Brief titles
• Consistent design

25. DISPLAYING GRAPHICS
• Only when you are talking about it
• Long enough for viewers to understand
• Explain key points
• Avoid reading
• Stand beside projections

26. INVOLVING AUDIENCE
• Eye contact
• Outline or script, look away briefly
• Focus on an individual
• Focus AROUND an individual
• Invite questions
• Give “takeaways”
• Business cards
• Handouts

27. PREPARING FOR INTERRUPTIONS
• Respond courteously
• Maintain good relations with the audience
• Even antagonistic audience members
• Mark a clear time for questions
• Speak to interruptions immediately, then return

28. REHEARSAL
• In front of people
• Delivery of key points
• Timing
• Rehearse with graphics

29. NERVES
• Accept it.
• Arrive early
• Relax before the talk
• Speak with audience before the presentation
• Everyone understands
• Use the energy

30. YOUR PRESENTATION
• 3 minute minimum – 5 minute maximum
• Progress Report
• Proposal and Research
• Possible directions
• Difficulty you’re having
• Interesting information you’ve found

31. WRITING ASSIGNMENT
• Script a short presentation to a classmate about
your favorite hobby.
• Tell your classmate about the following
• What is the hobby?
• How popular is it in North America?
• How popular is it worldwide?
• How did you find out about the hobby?
• What introduced you to it?
• How often do you engage in the hobby?
• Outline and write as much as you can of the
presentation until the end of class.