Speaking and writing: giving a presentation
Intermediate to higher level (B1-C1) 

Have you ever listened to a presentation and thought: ‘Why are they just reading what’s on the slide?’? Not only can this quickly send the listener to sleep but it’s also a waste of a great opportunity. Here are some tips for giving a presentation:Of course there are different kinds of presentation and some will need to include more information than others. However, in my opinion, the speaker should be adding to the slides and engaging with their audience. Giving a presentation in English or any other language is an opportunity to communicate in enjoyable and memorable ways but being a slave to the slides makes this difficult.

Here are some suggestions:

– keep the number of slides as small as you can. Too many slides is a sure way to make people switch off.
– only put a few points on each slide
– don’t read the whole of each slide during the presentation but give your audience time to do that themselves
– use your speaking time to put your slides in context, show emphasis and expand on your points
– by not being a slave to your slides, you will have more time to make eye contact with your audience and inject a little spontaneity. This is particularly welcome by the audience when the speaker is not using their mother tongue.