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Being able to create and share a presentation with the public is an essential skill for students beginning in middle school on through high school and beyond. Public speaking is a component of many careers and giving students a strong foundation of the presentation process is essential to successful opportunities that lie ahead.

This is a step-by-step guide for preparing students for presentations.

Step 1: Determine the purpose of the presentation

The first step in preparing a presentation is to clearly understand what the purpose is of the presentation. Having a clear understanding of the purpose directs the presentation preparation. Three common purposes of presentations are to inform, to persuade and to entertain. Most topics and presentation requests will fall into these categories. For example the approach is much different for a speech persuading the public to vote for a new elementary school than informing the public about the services that a school district offers new students. Having a clear purpose before committing time and resources to the project is essential.

Step 2: Determine the audience

An often overlooked component of presentations is the audience. The speaker should be clear about who will be in the audience. Speaking to a group of 6 year olds is much different than speaking to classmates or to a group of senior citizens at a retirement community. Before preparing the presentation, the speaker must have fairly clear expectations about who will be in the audience. Failure to correctly analyze the audience can result in a presentation that is not as effective or well received.

Step 3: Determine the topic

Once the purpose and the audience are determined, the daunting task of selecting a topic is the next step. This can be the most crucial aspect of the presentation process, often because it is easy to procrastinate and not choose a topic soon enough. Failure to promptly select a topic neglects the time that is available for the preparation of the presentation. This also leads to less practice time and a less polished end product. Set a definite time and date in which a choice must be made about the topic. It is often best if possible to select a topic that the speaker has a vested interest in.

Step 4: Determine specific time guidelines

It is important that the presentation is long enough to fully cover the topic while at the same time short enough to capture the attention of the audience for the allotted amount of time. If there

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