Many adults, teens, and children fear making an oral presentation. However, mastering public speaking is vital to almost every future path a student will take—whether in higher education or a career.

If you have not yet begun working with your students on their oral presentation skills, here’s a basic checklist of how to help them get started.

Before you begin, be sure to make the requirements of your assignment clear. Book reports and research related to a history unit make good beginning assignments. Once students have a bit more experience, you may want to craft an assignment related to a current issue or controversial topic. (Controversial in this context simply means people hold conflicting views on a certain topic.)

Here’s a checklist of oral presentation tips and questions students can use to make sure they are well prepared for their presentations. This checklist is also easily adaptable into a grading rubric for the presentation.

PREPARATION:

  • Have you researched thoroughly?
  • Have you created an outline of what you will say?
  • Does your introduction clearly state the purpose of your presentation?
  • Does the introduction give a hint (3 main points, pros and cons, etc.) of how you will approach your topic?
  • Do all main points of the body of your talk support your purpose statement?
  • Have you presented detailed evidence to fill out your talk?
  • Are the supporting examples, arguments, and illustrations logical and relevant?
  • Is your information thorough and compelling?
  • Have you used terminology appropriate to your subject matter?
  • Have you restated your purpose and summarized your arguments for your audience?

 

POWERPOINT:

  • Have you included a slide that gives an overview of the question problem or topic?
  • Have you whittled down your information to what the audience will be visually capable of taking in?
  • Have you selected only the most relevant and vital material for the slides?
  • Does the arrangement of words and images on your slides make them easy to read?
  • Have you chosen to share only the quotes that will impact, summarize, or provoke thought?
  • Are all your fonts readable?

 

DELIVERY:

  • Have you practiced keeping your poise? (This means no distracting mannerisms, fidgeting, twitching, gum chewing, playing with objects, etc)
  • Are you enthusiastic when you speak?
  • Do you vary your tone of voice and avoid speaking in a monotone?
  • Have you practiced enough to be at ease with the material?
  • Have you practiced enough to be at ease with whichever technological devices you will be using?
  • Do you make eye contact when you speak?
  • Are you audible in all parts of the room?
  • Have you paced your presentation so that you do not need to rush through any section to get all your points in?

 

GET FEEDBACK FROM A KIND CRITIQUE PARTNER:

  • What are two main weaknesses for you to work on?
  • What are your two main strengths as a speaker?

 

Resource List:

 

 Renee Ann Smith teaches literature in a Christian high school by day and writes stories by night. She reviews books and shares inspirational posts on her blog Doorkeeper at http://reneeannsmith.com/. You can also find her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ReneeAnnSmith.