PowerPoint Presentations

All those articles on PowerPoint and what not to do basically defined every PowerPoint presentation I have ever seen, including teachers' work as well as students'. Everyone always does exactly what you're not supposed to do for a presentation--slap a bunch of words onto a slide and let the audience read it or read it to them. I find PowerPoint presentations extremely annoying because I know how to read and do not particularly enjoy being read to. I have never thought of PowerPoint presentations as a way to emotionally connect to your audience, but it is a good concept. I like that the articles said not to use clip art or pre-packaged style themes--we should pass the word along to my previous teachers.

My five guidelines for Powerpoint Presentations are:
1) Do not use too much text. Talk instead.
2) Make sure you know your material well so you can engage the audience rather than reading off the slide or a note card.
3) Use basic fonts, slide transitions, design, ect. Too much going on distracts the audience from your message and causes them to focus on the presentation instead of you.
4) Have a consistent theme for your presentation--it makes it more visually appealing.
5) Keep the progression of your presentation in mind. It should flow and be easy to follow.