Presentation Skills

PlanningThe first stage of any presentation is planning.You need to form a group, outline your ideas and organise them into order of importance.This will form the foundation of your presentation.

Planning ExampleExample: You have to present on themes in Shakespeare.You want your readers to understand:What a theme is.How themes fit into Shakespeare.Ways to analyse themes.Definition of a theme.Examples of themes in ShakespearePlays how themes present in different plays.Example of themes.How themes help us to understand Shakespeare.Characters how different characters are examples of different themes.

Group rolesWhen working in a group it is important to be organised and allocate roles.

For example: with the themes presentation, people need to focus on different aspects (what is a theme, how themes fit into Shakespeare, ways to analyse themes.)

It is important to work together, stick to the roles allocated and get on with it!

K.I.S.S Keep it short and sweet.

Keep to your point and dont bore the audience with waffle!

Bullet-point ideas on a slide and talk around them rather than putting a script of exactly what you will say.

Use resources (more on this later) to assist you if you need to.

K.I.S.S example. DO:DONT:Themes:Provide context to the play.Help us understand plot and characters in detail.An example of a theme in Hamlet is betrayal.

Themes in Shakespeare are very important as they give us an over-arching view of his plays and help us to understand the plot and characters in more detail. For example, a theme in Hamlet is betrayal and this helps us to understand why he acts like he does.

Developing confidenceEverybody watching your presentation will benefit from what you have to say.Most of the time you will be presenting to friends and peers who want to listen to your ideas.You will usually be in a group alongside your friends who can help you if youre unsure about anything.There will be a class teacher present to make sure everything goes well.Stick to the plan and it will be over sooner than you think!

Remember: were all human!

Engaging AudienceIn order to engage your audience, you need to:

Speak clearly.Maintain eye contact.Incorporate appropriate humour if you are confident doing so.

Top tip: Give the audience short and simple activities to complete to keep them engaged and ease the pressure on yourself.

Resources.Provide a note-format printout of your presentation. This will help the audience follow it and you wont have to deal with interruptions. They can also make notes.

Cue cards are great for helping you remember your main points and keeping the nerves at bay.

If you have any activities for the audience to do, give them a handout so that you dont have to over-explain the task.

Resources example

What are themes?

Main idea or underlying meaning of literary work.

Example: love, betrayal, tragedy.

Themes are important in Shakespeare.

How to print presentations in note format.Cue cardExample