Powerpoint slide show

· PowerPoint is a visual tool, you should make the most of it. Minimize the amount of text on the slides, and combine it with pictures, photos, tables, charts, or diagrams as relevant.

· Pay attention to your choice of slide design. You want something that links well to your presentation and is visually appealing, but you don’t want a background that competes against your content. Your instructor has to be able to read your slides.

· Also to enhance visual appeal, think about using some features in SmartArt (under the Insert tab of the PowerPoint menu) to organize your content. The AVPs in this course offer examples of SmartArt.

· When you use text, don’t include too much information on one slide. Instead of writing paragraphs, use phrases arranged in bullet points. As a rule, you should not use a font size smaller than 20 for your text. Think about using colors to make important phrases or words stand out. Think of PowerPoint as a detailed outline of what you are going to say. Summarize the key information on your slides, not everything you will say

· Do NOT include direct quotes from any sources. Paraphrase and summarize ideas instead. This will help you control the amount of text in your slides.

· Think about the sequencing of your slides. They have to flow smoothly from one to the next.

· Be judicious in your use of slide animations (text that appears as you click). Using it helps keep the audience engaged, but too much of it will slow down your presentation.

· Preview your presentation using the Slideshow tool before submitting it. Make sure that all your content fits in the slides and your slide animations or transitions work the way you intend them to.