How To Build a
PowerPoint for
Mr. Fowler’s
Class
Overview Thoughts
The purpose of the PowerPoint is to
communicate, not prove you can
create cool effects.
Use standardized position, colors and
styles
Include only necessary information
Use colors that contrast
Be consistent with effects,
transitions and animation should be
smooth and not just for effect.
Plan carefully
Do your research
Know your audience
Time your presentation
Practice your presentation
Speak comfortably and
clearly
Develop the body first
Every presentation has three
essential components:
an opening,
a body,
and a closing.
Since the body is the longest part of
the presentation, developing it first
will save time to create an opening
and a closing that tie together.
Select a framework to help you
develop the body of your
presentation. A framework is simply
an organizational tool. Some
frameworks for organization include:
A personal story
Three main points
Comparison and contrast
Past present and future
(in any order.)
Another easy framework to use in
developing the body is an acronym.
For example I use the TOAD
acronym when explaining what
makes "presentations croak. " The
"TOAD" acronym stands for,
Timing, Organization, Audience,
and Delivery. The TOAD acronym is
the body of the speech with three
minutes devoted to each topic.
Make yourself cue cards.
Don’t put them on the screen.
Put them in your hand. Now,
you can use the cue cards you
made to make sure you’re
saying what you came to say.
Make slides that reinforce your
words, not repeat them.
Talking about pollution in
Houston? Instead of giving four
bullet points of EPA data, why
not read me the stats but show
me a photo of a bunch of dead
birds, some smog and even a
diseased lung? It works.
Tips for Making Effective
PowerPoint Presentations
Use the slide master feature to
create a consistent and simple
design template. It is fine to
vary the content presentation
(i.e. bulleted list, 2-column text,
text & image), but be consistent
with other elements such as font,
colors, and background.
Overuse of special effects such as
animation and sounds may make
your presentation "cutesy" and
negatively impact your
credibility.
Use good quality images that
reinforce and complement your
message.
Simplify and limit the number of
words on each screen. Use key
phrases and include only
essential information.
Limit punctuation and avoid
putting words in all capital
letters.
Empty space on the slides
enhance readability.
Use contrasting colors for text and
background. Dark text on a light
background is best. Patterned
backgrounds reduce text
readability.
Avoid using of flashy transitions
such as text fly-ins. These features
may seem impressive at first, but
are slow, distracting and get old
quickly.
Make sure your slides are
readable from the back row
seats. Text and graphics should
be large enough to read, but not
so large as to appear "loud.“
Practice moving forward AND
backward within your
presentation. Audiences often
ask to see the previous screen
again.
Practice with someone who has never
seen your presentation. Ask them
for honest feedback about colors,
content, and any effects or graphics
you've included.
Do not read from your slides. The
content of your slides is for the
audience, not for the presenter.
Do not speak to your slides. Poor
presenters face the direction of their
presentation rather than their
audience.
Do not apologize for anything in your
presentation. If you believe
something will be hard to read or
understand, don't use it.
Text guidelines
Generally no more than 6 words
a line
Generally no more than 6 lines a
slide
Avoid long sentences
Larger font indicates more
important information
Text guidelines
Font size generally ranges from 24 to
48 point
Be sure text contrasts with
background
Fancy fonts can be hard to read
CAPITAL letters are hard to read
Avoid abbreviations
Limit punctuation marks
Clip Art and Graphics
Balance the slide
Enhance the text, not overwhelm
it
Do not put text over pictures.
Place text on one side and
graphics on the other
The next slide is an example.
Put a Title Here
Put text here
Use a Font that
is easy to read
Make sure the
font is large
enough to read.
This is Bookman
Old Style 28
point Font.
The final slides are
samples from
unsuccessful student
presentations – What
is wrong with these
slides?
Quote about Author
According to a source on the Internet,
“Here lie the ashes of Dorothy Parker (1893 1967) humorist, writer, critic. Defender of human
and civil rights. For her epitaph she suggested,
'Excuse my dust'. This memorial garden is
dedicated to her noble spirit which celebrated
the oneness of humankind and to the bonds of
everlasting friendship between black and Jewish
people. Dedicated by the National Association
for the Advancement of Colored People. October
28, 1988.”
This slide is poorly
constructed, the font and
background colors do not
contrast rendering the
page almost impossible to
read.

Dickinson's father introduced her to a
young man from his law office named
Benjamin Franklin Newton. Newton
had joined the law office in 1847 when
Dickinson was away at school. He was
a frequent visitor to the Dickinson
house, Emily and Benjamin began
spending a great deal of time together.
They took long walks, admired the
natural surroundings discussing and
debating literature. Dickinson even
consented to show Benjamin some of
her poetry. Benjamin was impressed
by Dickinson's work, but told her she
would have to work extremely hard to
become great. This encouraged her
and she came to think of Newton as a
tutor of sorts. He recommended
authors to her and she read nearly
every book he suggested. In 1849,
Benjamin Newton told Dickinson that
he had decided to move back to
Worcester, Massachusetts, the town
in which he grew up. Dickinson was
devastated by his departure. As a
parting gift, Benjamin gave her a copy
of Ralph Waldo Emerson's Poems
Benjamin Newton (Emily
Dickinson's inspirer)
This slide has far too
much text.
While the visual isn’t
problematic, there is too
much text for one page.
There is enough text for
four or more pages.
"Hope is a thing with feathers
That perches in the soul;
And sings the tune without words
And never stops at all."
-Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)
Student name removed
Period 5
The quality of the
photograph on this slide is
poor and when projected it
degrades further.
The color of the font does
not have enough contrast
to the background.
The End