A presentation is a story
Think of your favourite programme. It tells a story, and you want to keep watching. A good presentation is also a story for your audience. A presentation program and a word processor give you tools to make the story clear. Use one or two colours to show what is most important. Put key words in bold. Decorated text can add impact to a title, but do not decorate everything. Use a plain background colour that does not hide the words. Choose photographs that fit your message and not just any pretty picture. Add shapes, or your own drawings, to show ideas. Keep the slide simple, and make sure the audience can read it from the back of the room.
| Tool | What it does for the story |
|---|---|
| One or two colours | shows what matters most |
| Bold key words | helps the eye find the main ideas |
| Plain background | keeps the words easy to read |
| Photos that fit | catch the eye and match the message |
| Shapes and drawings | show ideas in a simple way |
Slide makeover on paper. Draw a plain slide with the title ‘Our Nile’ and four lines of text in one colour. Then redraw it so that it tells the story better: use one or two colours for emphasis, put the key words in bold, choose a background, draw one picture that fits and one shape. Write three sentences that explain your choices. Show the old and new slides to a partner. Which does the partner prefer, and why?