Senior Project Delivery Rules of Thumb Physical Appearance Gestures & Movement: 1.Use your hands to emphasize or explain things where appropriate. 2.Practice using gestures for emphasis only. 3.Be calm and natural, not erratic -- don’t flail crazily; avoid standing too still. AVOID: gestures that show nervousness, like gripping notes tightly, hanging onto podium, clenching hands, hands in pockets, crossed arm, hands on hips, etc. Facial Expressions & Eye Contact: 1.Look at various people in the room, and avoid looking at one person, ignoring the rest of the audience. 2.Show interest in your topic and presentation and be friendly! Posture & Stance: 1.Stand up straight – this communicates energy and confidence and also aids your breathing.

Senior Project Delivery Rules of Thumb Voice Volume: Practice varying the volume of your voice (louder or softer) for key points. Nothing tunes out your audience faster than a monotonous voice! Pronunciation & Articulation: 1.Mispronunciation signals a lack of familiarity with your material. Look up words you are not sure about. 2.Enunciate clearly, no slurring. 3.Don’t slur or chop off words: “wanna”, “dint”, “hella” or “lemme” are not acceptable! Pitch 1.Note places in your speech with pitch and inflection in mind (inflection is the raising and lowering of the pitch as you pronounce words). Again, practice this! 2.End speech with a low pitch, so we know you’re finished! Rate: 1.Practice the rate or pace of your speech with an audience. 2.Relax so that you don’t speed and slur words. 3.Pause to stress important points, write in pauses if you need to, and practice counting to four or five during these pauses. 4.TAKE YOUR TIME – it is better to go too fast than too slow.

Senior Project Delivery Rules of Thumb Visual Aids Keep it Short and Simple: 1.One thought per visual 2.Use key words 3.6 words x 6 lines maximum Consistent Look: 1.Borders 2.Lettering 3.Color (no more than 3) 4.Outline all letters in black Readability: 1.Use upper two thirds of board 2.Balance 3.Use plenty of white space 4.Headings shouldn’t overpower text Visual Aid No-No’s: 1.Don’t save paper 2.During your presentation, don’t talk to your charts 3.Don’t use pointers

Senior Project Delivery Rules of Thumb Practice Tips: 1.Read your speech out loud as many times as you can. 2.Memorize as much as you can – especially the introduction. This will give you confidence, and allow you to make more eye contact with audience. 1.TIME your practices to be sure you are not too short or too long (8 minutes is all you get!) 2.Practice for an audience- older siblings, parents, friends who are juniors or seniors- take their advice and incorporate into your delivery. 3.Practice WITH your visual aid. You may not turn your back to us when you use it. 4.Write in (use a highlighter) places you need to pause, and places you need to be louder and softer. For example, if you just can’t seem to pause long enough in one place, on your speech write: (pause! Count to 4 slowly) above or below the place where you need to pause. If the directions are written on your speech, you’ll do a better job. 5.Don’t forget to allow yourself lots of time for oxygen. Breathe! 6.Pause! It is better to go too slow than too fast. 7.Be REALLY prepared! The better prepared you are, the more confidence you’ll have! If you are over prepared, you won’t get very nervous if you lose your place during speech! The more confidence you have, the better your presentation will be!