A short presentation about how to talk about visuals that include graphs and how to structure your talk

2. Talking about Graphs and
Structuring your Talk

3. How to Use Visual Aids

4. How to Use Visual Aids
• Introducing Visuals
• Commenting on Visuals
• Change and Development

5. Introducing Visuals
• Visuals are:
• Highly memorable
• Reduce the amount of talking
• Used to speak for you

6. Types of Visuals
0.0
45.0
90.0
135.0
180.0
1st
Qtr
2nd
Qtr
3rd
Qtr
4th
Qtr
North
West
East
1st Qtr
2nd Qtr
3rd Qtr
4th Qtr
Graphs
Charts
Diagrams

7. Introducing Visuals
• If you don’t know the different types of visual,
simply say:
• Have/Take a look at this.
• As you can see here … and here … .

8. Commenting on Visuals
• Use visuals for situations, developments,
events and processes that would take a long
time to explain.
• Good visuals speak for themselves and
require little or no description.

9. Commenting on Visuals
• You often need to draw attention to one or
more key points before you discuss in more
detail:
• Highlights Which part of the visual
are most significant?
• Comments Why?
• Interpretations What conclusions can you
draw?

10. Commenting on Visuals
• Highlighting Important Information
• I’d like to look at …
• I’d like us to focus our attention on …
• I’d like you to think about…
• I’d like to point out …
• I’d like to draw your attention to …

11. Commenting on Visuals
• Commenting on Important Information
• As you can see, there …
• If you look at it more closely, you’ll …
• However you try to explain it, this is very
bad news.
• Whatever the reason for this, the
underlying trend is obvious.
• Whichever way you look at it, these are
some of our best results ever.

12. Commenting on Visuals
Interpreting Important Information
• I’m sure the conclusions to be drawn from
this are …
• I’m sure the lesson to be learned from this
is …
• I’m sure the implications of this are clear to
all of us.
• I’m sure the significance of this is …
• I’m sure the message here is …

13. Change and Development
• Vocabulary to talk about changes and
developments:
increase decrease shoot up plunge
rise fall take off slump
fluctuate recover pick up stabilize
level off remain peak hit a low
bottom out grow expand shrink
decline

14. Change and Development
• Vocabulary to talk about the scale or the speed
of the change and to comment on its
significance:
substantial rapid encouraging
slight spectacular disastrous
moderate disappointing steady
enormous
a(n) ……………… increase

15. Change and Development
• Except in complex technical and scientific
presentations, you don’t quote precise figures.
• Include important figures in a separate
handout or report at the beginning or end of
the presentation.
• When describing detailed visual aids, mention
overall trends and approximate figures.

16. Training 1
• Together with a partner talk about the line
graph below using the language for changes
and development.
increase decrease shoot up plunge
rise fall take off slump
fluctuate recover pick up stabilize
level off remain peak hit a low
bottom out grow expand shrink
decline

17. Training 3
• Together with a partner talk about the bar
graph below.
increase decrease shoot up plunge
rise fall take off slump
fluctuate recover pick up stabilize
level off remain peak hit a low
bottom out grow expand shrink
decline
substantial rapid encouraging slight spectacular
disastrous moderate disappointing steady enormous

18. Training (5)
You brought a graph with you that is relevant to
your field of interest. Team up with a partner
and, without showing the graph, describe the
the shape of graph to him/her using the
language for Change and Development on the
screen. Your partner is going to recreate your
graph based on your instructions. After you have
finished, check the graph your partner drew and
compare. After you have finished, change roles.

19. Structuring your talk

20. Structuring your talk
• A presentation has 3 parts
• an introduction
• a body
• a conclusion

21. Structuring your talk
• The introduction is about:
• who you are
• what you going to talk about (topic +
subtopics)
• how long your talk is going to be
• ‘hooking’ your audience

22. Structuring your talk
• The body is about:
• developing your subtopics
• Talk about your subtopics in the same order as
you mentioned them in your introduction.
• giving more information about each subtopic
• Using examples where possible.
• Using ‘signposts’ between subtopics.

23. Structuring your talk
• The conclusion is about:
• repeating your important points in different
words
• giving advice if possible
• giving a ‘road map’ for the future if
possible