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75 Unique School Presentation Ideas and Topics Plus Templates

short presentation for students

Are you tired of seeing the same PowerPoints repeating overused and unoriginal school presentation ideas covering repeated topics in your classes?

You know what I’m talking about; we’ve all been there, and sat through yawn-worthy demonstrations, slides, or presentation videos covering everything from the solar system, someone’s favorite pet, past presidents of a country, to why E=mC squared.

school presentation ideas bored cat meme

From grade school to university, first graders to college students, we are obligated to create, perform, and observe academic presentations across a plethora of curriculums and classes, and not all of these public speaking opportunities fall into the category of an ‘interesting topic’.

Yet, have no fear! Here at Piktochart, we are here to help you and your classmates. From giving examples of creative and even interactive presentation ideas, providing presentation videos , and suggesting interactive activities to give your five minutes of fame the ‘wow’ factor that it deserves, this article is your guide!

Our massive collection of unique school and college presentation ideas and templates applies if you’re:

  • A teacher looking to make your class more engaging and fun with student presentations.
  • A student who wants to impress your teacher and the rest of the class with a thought-provoking, interesting topic.

A Curated List of Interesting Topics for School Presentations

Did you know that when it comes to presentations , the more students involved improves retention? The more you know! Yet sometimes, you need a little help to get the wheels moving in your head for your next school presentation .

The great thing about these ideas and topics is you can present them either in face-to-face classes or virtual learning sessions.

Each school presentation idea or topic below also comes with a template that you can use. Create a free Piktochart account to try our presentation maker and get access to the high-quality version of the templates. You can also check out our Piktochart for Education plan .

Want to watch this blog post in video format? The video below is for you!

The templates are further divided into the following categories covering the most popular and best presentation topics. Click the links below to skip to a specific section.

  • Unique science presentation topics to cultivate curiosity in class
  • Engaging culture and history presentation ideas to draw inspiration from
  • Health class presentation topics to help students make healthy lifestyle decisions
  • Data visualization ideas to help students present an overwhelming amount of data and information into clear, engaging visuals
  • First day of school activity ideas to foster classroom camaraderie
  • Communication and media topics to teach students the importance of effective communication
  • Topics to help students prepare for life after school

We hope this list will inspire you and help you nail your next school presentation activity.

Unique Science Presentation Topics to Cultivate Curiosity in Class

Science is a broad field and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed with too many topics to choose for your next presentation.

Cultivate curiosity in the science classroom with the following unique and creative presentation ideas and topics:

1. Can life survive in space?

template for can life survive in space

2. Do plants scream when they’re in pain?

template for do plants scream when they're in pain

3. What are the traits of successful inventors?

template of what are the traits of successful inventors

4. How vaccines work

template for how vaccines work

5. Massive destruction of the Koala’s habitat in Australia

template for massive destruction of the koala's habitat in australia

6. Left brain versus right brain

template for left brain vs right brain

7. What are great sources of calcium?

template for great sources of calcium infographic

8. Recycling facts you need to know

template for recycling facts you need to know

9. Do you have what it takes to be a NASA astronaut?

NASA astronaut template

10. The rise of robots and AI: Should we be afraid of them?

rise of robots template

11. How far down does the sea go?

template for how far down does the sea go

12. The stages of sleep

stages of sleep template

13. Will Mars be our home in 2028?

template for will mars be our home in 2028

14. A quick look at laboratory safety rules

template for laboratory rules

15. The first person in history to break the sound barrier

template for the first person in history to break the sound barrier

Engaging Culture and History Presentation Ideas to Draw Inspiration From

History is filled with equally inspiring and terrifying stories, and there are lessons that students can learn from the events of the past. Meanwhile, interactive presentations about culture help students learn and embrace diversity. 

16. Women in history: A conversation through time

infographic template about women in history: a conversation through time

17. The sweet story of chocolate 

visual for sweet story of chocolate 

18. A history lesson with a twist 

template for a history lesson with a twist

19. The history of basketball 

history of basketball visual template

20. The origin of the Halloween celebration 

origin of the halloween celebration template

21. AI History 

AI history template

22. What you need to know about New Zealand 

infographic template about new zealand facts

23. 1883 volcanic eruption of Krakatoa 

template for volcanic eruption of krakatoa 

24. Roman structures: 2000 years of strength

template for roman structures: 2000 years of strength

25. The most famous art heists in history 

template for the most famous art heists in history 

26. Elmo: The story behind a child icon 

template for elmo: the story behind a child icon 

27. 10 things you should know before you visit South Korea 

template for things you should know before you visit south korea 

28. 8 things you didn’t know about these 8 countries 

eight things you didn't know about these countries, template 

Health Class Presentation Topics to Help Students Make Healthy Lifestyle Decisions

Want to learn how to engage students with healthcare topic ideas? Then consider using these templates for your next interactive presentation.

According to the CDC , school-based health education contributes to the development of functional health knowledge among students. It also helps them adapt and maintain health-promoting behaviors throughout their lives. 

Not only will your presentation help with keeping students engaged, but you’ll also increase class involvement with the right slides.

The following examples of health and wellness interactive presentations include fun ideas and topics that are a good start. 

29. How to look after your mental health?

how to look after your mental health infographic template, mental health, mental health infographic, eating disorders

30. The eradication of Polio

template for the eradication of polio, healthcare infographic, healthcare infographic template

31. How to have a healthy lifestyle 

infographic template about healthy lifestyle, health infographic template

32. 10 handwashing facts 

handwashing infographic template, handwashing visual

33. Myths and facts about depression

infographic template about depression, depression infographic template, infographic on depression

34. Hacks for making fresh food last longer 

hacks for making fresh food last longer template, quarantine infographic

35. Ways to avoid spreading the coronavirus

template about how to avoid spreading the coronavirus, covid infographic

36. Mask protection in 5 simple steps 

template about mask protection, covid infographic

37. Everything you need to know about the flu

cover photo of the presentation about everything you need to know about the flu, flu infographic

38. All about stress: Prevention, tips, and how to cope 

template about stress prevention, tips, and how to cope , stress infographic

39. The importance of sleep 

template about the importance of sleep, sleep infographic

40. Is milk tea bad for you?

template about milk tea is bad for you, health infographic

41. How to boost happiness in 10 minutes

template about how to boost happiness in 10 minutes, happiness infographic

42. How dirty are debit and credit cards 

template of how dirty are debit and credit cards, credit card infographic

43. Why do you need sunscreen protection

template about sunscreen, sunscreen infographic

Data Visualization Ideas to Help Students Present Overwhelming Amounts of Data in Creative Ways

Data visualization is all about using visuals to make sense of data. Students need to pull the main points from their extensive research, and present them by story telling while being mindful of their classmates’ collective attention span.

As far as student assignments go, storytelling with data is a daunting task for students and teachers alike. To keep your audience interested, consider using a non linear presentation that presents key concepts in creative ways.

Inspire your class to be master data storytellers with the following data visualization ideas:

44. Are we slowly losing the Borneo rainforest?

deforestation infographic, template about deforestation, example of how to share about current events

45. Skateboard deck design over the years

skateboard infographic, template about skateboard deck design over the years

46. Food waste during the Super Bowl

super bowl infographic, food waste infographic, template about food waste during the super bowl

47. The weight of the tallest building in the world

building infographic, construction infographic, template about the weight of the tallest building in the world

48. Infographic about data and statistics

data infographic, statistics infographic

49. Stats about cyberbullying

template for stats about cyberbullying, cyberbullying infographic

50. How whales combat climate change

climate change infographic, template for how whales combat climate change

First Day of School Interactive Activity Ideas to Foster Whole-class-Camaraderie

Calling all teachers! Welcome your new students and start the school year with the following back-to-school creative presentation ideas and relevant templates for first-day-of-school activities.

These interactive presentations grab the attention of your students and are remarkably easy to execute (which is the main educator’s goal after all)!

51. Meet the teacher

meet the teacher template, introduction template, meet the teacher visual

52. Example: all about me

introduction infographic, about me visual template

53. Self-introduction

template about self introduction, introduction infographic, about me visual template

54. Tips on how to focus on schoolwork

template about how to productive, productivity infographic, taking notes

55. Course plan and schedule

course plan template, course plan visual, course list

Give our class schedule maker a try to access more templates for free. You can also access our presentation-maker , poster-maker , timeline-maker , and more by simply signing up .

56. Interpreting a student’s report card (for parents)

student report card template, student report card visual

57. Introduction of classroom rules

classroom rules, classroom rules template

58. Assignment schedule

course topics, assignments, course template, course infographic

59. Daily planner

daily planner template

60. Course syllabus presentation

course syllabus template

61. How to write a class presentation

template for how to create a class presentation,

Topics to Teach Students the Importance of Effective Communication

Visual media  helps students retain more of the concepts  taught in the classroom. The following media topics and infographic templates can help you showcase complex concepts in a short amount of time. 

In addition, interactive presentation activities using these templates also encourage the development of a holistic learning process in the classroom because they help focus on the  three domains of learning:  cognitive, affective, and psychomotor. 

62. Interactive presentation do’s and don’ts 

template for presentation dos and donts, presentation infographic

63. How to create an infographic 

template about how to create an infographic 

Recommended reading : How to Make an Infographic in 30 Minutes

64. How to improve your internet security and privacy

infographic template about internet privacy

65. What is design thinking?

what is design thinking infographic template

66. What are your favorite software tools to use in the classroom? 

infographic template about educational software

Presentation Topic Ideas to Help Students Prepare for Life After School

One of the things that makes teaching a rewarding career is seeing your students take the learning and knowledge you’ve instilled in them, and become successful, productive adults.

From pitching a business idea to starting your podcast, the following topics are good starting points to prepare students for the challenges after graduation (aka adulting 101):

67. How to make a resume

resume template

68. How to start a startup

how to start a startup, startup infographic, how to temple

69. Credit card vs. debit card

infographic about credit cards and debit cards, credit card infographic

70. Pros and cons of cryptocurrency

pros and cons of cryptocurrency infographic template

71. How to save on travel

ways to save on travel infographic template

72. How to do a SWOT analysis

swot nalysis infographic

73. How to pitch a business idea

business idea pitch infographic template

74. Habits of successful people

presentation template about habits of successful people

75. Starting your own podcast: A checklist

infographic template about starting your own podcast

Find out how a high school teacher like Jamie Barkin uses Piktochart to improve learning in the classroom for her students.

Pro tip: make your presentation as interactive as possible. Students have an attention span of two to three minutes per year of age. To keep minds from wandering off, include some interactive games or activities in the lesson. For example, if you conducted a lesson on the respiratory system, you could ask them to practice breathing techniques.

Maintain eye contact with your students, and you’ll get instant feedback on how interested they are in the interactive presentation.

Make School Presentation Visuals Without the Hassle of Making Them From Scratch

School presentations, when done right, can help teachers engage their classes and improve students’ education effectively by presenting information using the right presentation topic. 

If you’re pressed for time and resources to make your school presentation visuals , choose a template from Piktochart’s template gallery . Aside from the easy customization options, you can also print and download these templates to your preferred format. 

Piktochart also professional templates to create infographics , posters , brochures , reports , and more.

Creating school-focused, engaging, and interactive presentations can be tedious at first, but with a little bit of research and Piktochart’s handy templates, you’re going to do a great job!

Kaitomboc

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Like what you're reading?

Discover over 60 engaging 5-minute presentation topics

Get your team on prezi – watch this on demand video.

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Anete Ezera August 21, 2023

Delivering impactful presentations doesn’t always require a marathon of speaking. In fact, condensing your message into a succinct 5-minute presentation can be just as powerful. In this article, we’ll explore a 5-minute presentation topics list that captivate your audience’s attention, spark their curiosity, and leave a lasting impression. Whether looking for 5-minute presentation topics for college students, topics for professionals, or simply looking for a suitable subject to share insights, these categorized topics offer a concise platform to convey your message effectively.

Young businesswoman addressing group of people in meeting. Female executive sharing the new presentation theme with colleagues in the startup office.

Exploring a variety of engaging 5-minute presentation topics

Personal growth and well-being.

  • The Power of Positivity: How cultivating a positive mindset impacts your daily life.
  • The Journey of Mindfulness: Navigating the benefits of mindfulness and meditation.
  • Overcoming Procrastination: Techniques to boost productivity and break the habit.
  • The Science of Happiness: Unraveling the psychology behind happiness.
  • Cultivating Resilience: Techniques to build resilience and bounce back from setbacks.
  • Mastering Mindful Breathing: Introducing the art of mindful breathing to alleviate stress.

Innovations and sustainability

  • The Rise of Renewable Energy: How sustainable resources are shaping our future.
  • Sustainable Fashion Choices: Shedding light on the environmental impact of clothing choices.
  • Impact of Microplastics: Raising awareness about microplastics’ effects on ecosystems and health.
  • Unveiling Virtual Reality: A brief overview of the transformative potential of VR technology.
  • The Future of Mobility: Discussing innovations in transportation, from electric vehicles to autonomous driving.
  • Introduction to Blockchain: Simplifying the concept of blockchain and its applications.

Communication and personal development

  • The Art of Storytelling: Why stories resonate deeply and influence perceptions.
  • Art of Active Listening: Exploring the significance of active listening in communication.
  • Effective Public Speaking: Tips to enhance speaking skills in various settings.
  • Understanding Body Language: Decoding nonverbal cues in effective communication.
  • Cultivating a Growth Mindset: Insights into the power of a growth mindset.
  • Unconventional Careers: Exploring exciting career paths that defy traditional norms.

Technology and insights

  • Digital Privacy Concerns: Exploring the implications of online data security.
  • The Impact of Social Media: Unveiling its effects on mental health and society.
  • Cybersecurity Essentials: Safeguarding personal data in the digital age.
  • Introduction to Cryptocurrency: Simplifying the complex world of cryptocurrency.
  • Exploring Genetic Engineering: A concise overview of genetic engineering’s science and ethics.
  • The Impact of Artificial Intelligence: Delving into AI’s transformative potential on industries and life.
  • The Future of Work: Exploring how technology is reshaping the workplace.

Practical skills and techniques

  • Tackling Time Management: Demonstrating efficient strategies for organizing your day.
  • Language Learning Hacks: Quick strategies to accelerate language learning.
  • Effective Time Blocking: Techniques for maximizing productivity through structured time management.
  • The Magic of Minimalism: Exploring the benefits of decluttering and simplifying life.
  • Nutrition Hacks: Quick insights into making healthier food choices.
  • The Art of Negotiation: Tips for successful negotiation in personal and professional settings.
  • Crisis Communication: Strategies for effective communication during challenging times.

Creativity and exploration

  • Unlocking Innovative Solutions: Techniques to foster creative thinking and problem-solving.
  • Exploring Astronomy: A brief journey through the universe’s wonders and celestial bodies.
  • The Art of Photography: Unveiling the secrets to capturing captivating and meaningful images.
  • Music Therapy: How music impacts emotions and well-being, and its potential for healing.
  • The World of Origami: Discovering the ancient art of paper folding and its therapeutic benefits.
  • Inspiring Travel Destinations: Showcasing unique places that offer enriching travel experiences.
  • Exploring Local Cuisine: A tantalizing exploration of regional dishes and their cultural significance.
  • The Beauty of Calligraphy: A glimpse into the world of elegant and expressive handwriting.

Environmental awareness and conservation

  • The Importance of Biodiversity: Exploring the significance of diverse ecosystems and their role in sustaining life.
  • Climate Change Solutions: Highlighting actionable steps individuals and communities can take to combat climate change.
  • Ocean Conservation: Shedding light on the challenges facing marine ecosystems and the need for preservation.
  • Green Initiatives in Cities: Showcasing innovative urban projects that prioritize sustainability and green spaces.
  • Wildlife Protection Efforts: Discussing the importance of safeguarding endangered species and their habitats.
  • Upcycling and Repurposing: Creative ways to reduce waste and repurpose materials for a more sustainable lifestyle.
  • Eco-Friendly Gardening: Tips for cultivating gardens that support local biodiversity and minimize environmental impact.
  • Food Waste Reduction: Strategies to minimize food waste and contribute to a more sustainable food system.

Cultural insights and diversity

  • Cultural Traditions Around the World: Exploring unique customs, festivals, and rituals from different cultures.
  • Language Diversity: Showcasing the richness of languages spoken globally and their importance in preserving heritage.
  • Cross-Cultural Communication: Insights into effective communication across diverse cultural backgrounds.
  • Global Cuisines: A culinary journey through the flavors and dishes that define different regions.
  • Traditional Arts and Crafts: Celebrating the craftsmanship and artistic expressions of various cultures.
  • Celebrating Diversity: Embracing the value of inclusivity and the benefits of diverse perspectives.
  • Traveling Responsibly: Tips for respectful and culturally sensitive travel experiences.
  • International Etiquette: Navigating cultural norms and customs when interacting with people from different backgrounds.

Health and wellness

  • The Benefits of Regular Exercise: Exploring the positive impacts of physical activity on overall well-being.
  • Mind-Body Connection: Unveiling the link between mental health and physical well-being.
  • Balanced Nutrition for Optimal Health: Tips for making nutritious food choices that support wellness.
  • Stress Management Techniques: Strategies to cope with stress and maintain mental and emotional balance.
  • Importance of Hydration: Highlighting the role of proper hydration in maintaining good health.
  • Quality Sleep Habits: Discussing the significance of quality sleep and tips for improving sleep patterns.
  • Mental Health Awareness: Shedding light on the importance of understanding and supporting mental health.
  • Holistic Approaches to Wellness: Exploring holistic practices that address mind, body, and spirit.

Historical perspectives

  • Influential Women in History: Celebrating the accomplishments and contributions of remarkable women.
  • Turning Points in History: Exploring pivotal moments that shaped the course of human history.
  • Ancient Civilizations: A glimpse into the achievements and legacies of civilizations from the past.
  • Revolutionary Inventions: Unveiling inventions that revolutionized industries and daily life.
  • World-Changing Events: Discussing events that had a profound impact on societies and cultures.
  • Great Leaders Throughout Time: Highlighting the leadership styles and achievements of notable figures.
  • Cultural Renaissance Periods: Exploring periods of cultural revival and artistic innovation.
  • Lessons from History: Extracting valuable lessons and insights from historical events and figures.

With these categories and their respective examples, you have a comprehensive palette of engaging 5-minute presentation topics catering to various interests and purposes. Whether you’re sparking conversations, sharing insights, or simply enhancing your presentation skills, these topics offer a platform for concise and impactful communication.

For further inspiration on crafting compelling topics, explore Prezi’s comprehensive guide on good presentation topics and presentation night ideas .

Elevating your short-form presentation skills

Creating and delivering a compelling 5-minute presentation requires a strategic approach to ensure your message is concise, engaging, and impactful. Here are some best practices to keep in mind:

Define a clear message

Start by defining the core message or main takeaway you want your audience to remember. Keep it focused and concise to ensure your presentation remains on track.

Structure with purpose

Organize your presentation with a clear structure: introduction, main points, and conclusion. Each section should flow logically and contribute to the overall message.

Learn more about how to effectively structure your presentation by watching the following video:

Engaging opening

Begin with an attention-grabbing opening that hooks your audience and sets the tone for the rest of your presentation. This could be a surprising fact, a thought-provoking question, or a captivating anecdote.

Concise content

Keep your content concise and to the point. Avoid information overload and focus on the most relevant and impactful details that support your main message.

Visual aids

Use visuals sparingly to complement your spoken words. Visual aids should be simple, relevant, and easy to understand. They should enhance your message, not distract from it.

Rehearse your presentation multiple times to become comfortable with the content and timing. Practice helps you refine your delivery and identify areas for improvement.

Time management

Keep a close eye on your time during practice and the actual presentation. Aim to stay within the 5-minute limit to ensure your message is delivered effectively.

Engaging delivery

Maintain good eye contact, use appropriate gestures, and vary your vocal tone to keep your audience engaged. A confident and enthusiastic delivery enhances your message’s impact.

Discover more about engaging delivery by mastering the art of storytelling :

Relevance and depth

Prioritize quality over quantity. Instead of covering numerous points superficially, delve deeper into a few key ideas to provide valuable insights.

Transitions

Use smooth transitions between sections to guide your audience through your presentation. These transitions create a seamless flow that keeps listeners engaged.

Call to action

Conclude your presentation with a clear call to action that aligns with your main message. Encourage your audience to take a specific action or reflect on what they’ve learned.

Choose a relevant topic

Perhaps most importantly, select a topic that is relevant to your audience’s interests, needs, and preferences. Make sure it aligns with the purpose of your presentation and resonates with your listeners. For example, if you’re preparing for an interview, be sure to research 5-minute interview presentation topics. Here are a few examples; 

  • My Professional Journey: Share your career path, highlighting key experiences, and accomplishments, and how they align with the role you’re interviewing for. 
  • Strategic Problem-Solving: Present a real-world challenge you’ve encountered and walk through the steps you took to analyze, strategize, and find a solution. 
  • Innovative Ideas for Company Growth: Propose innovative strategies or initiatives that could drive growth, improve efficiency, or enhance the company’s offerings. 
  • Market Trends and Insights: Present your analysis of current market trends, including opportunities and challenges, and discuss how your insights could benefit the company. 
  • Effective Team Leadership: Describe a situation where you successfully led a team to achieve a common goal, emphasizing your leadership style, communication, and conflict-resolution skills.

Discover more presentation ideas that’ll help you craft a compelling presentation:

Using these topics for 5 minute presentations and delivering them effectively 

Crafting and delivering a 5 minute presentation requires finesse in both content creation and delivery. By selecting a focused topic, structuring your presentation effectively, and practicing your delivery, you can make the most of these brief but effective moments in the spotlight. The diverse array of the best 5 minute presentation topics showcased here offers a launchpad for your creative expression, sparking engaging conversations and leaving a lasting impression on your audience. Remember, it’s not about the duration—it’s about the quality and resonance of your message. To create an attention-grabbing presentation that moves your audience, try Prezi today.

short presentation for students

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50 Creative Ideas to Nail Your College Presentation

short presentation for students

We’d be willing to bet that most college students enjoy presentations about as much as they like their 7am class. Whether they’re designing them, or in the audience, there are likely a million and one things they’d rather be doing (like napping in their dorm room). In fact, 79% will say that most presentations today suck. And 35% of millennials say that they will only engage with content they feel has a great story or theme. With a reputation like that, it’s no wonder students avoid presentations at all costs. 

As a result, many will end up procrastinating, losing sleep over choosing a topic, and piecing a deck together at the last minute. According to research, 47% of presenters put in more than eight hours into designing their presentations. You do the math. Eight hours at the eleventh hour equals an all-nighter.

Luckily, that doesn’t mean the final product has to be a poorly thought-out frankendeck. 

Creative presentation ideas for college students

A lot can ride on a class presentation. It might be your last project at the end of the semester that determines the fate of your final grade, or maybe it’s a group project that counts for half of your participation in the class. Whatever the stakes are, we’re here to help you nail your next college presentation.

short presentation for students

Pick the right topic

Before committing to your topics for presentations in college, you should consider things like what excites you, what you’re knowledgeable in and what you’d be interested in learning more about, books or movies that inspire you, world events, buzz-worthy pop culture, and what topics relate to your class course. How can you apply these things to your next class presentation?

You’re in college, so it’s very likely that your classmates will be sleeping, or staring out the window, while you’re presenting at the front of the room. To keep them engaged, make it interesting with these unique college presentation ideas.

College presentation ideas

  • The evolution of a specific product— like the cell phone
  • A presentation on your favorite celebrity
  • A history of the most influential presidents of the United States
  • How modern medicine is made
  • The highest paid [BLANK] in 2021
  • A how-to presentation on something you’re passionate about— like building cars
  • A book that you think should be made into a movie (and why)
  • Your favorite cultural recipe
  • Who built the Sphinx of Egypt
  • Social media now and then
  • Shakespeare’s hits and misses
  • Debunking a conspiracy theory
  • Unexpected traditions
  • Who invented the SAT, and what is it?
  • The most popular travel destinations for young adults in their 20s
  • What is van life anyway?
  • How is education different now than it was in the ‘70s
  • How to live a more sustainable life
  • The evolution of humans
  • The history of the Internet
  • Is organic really better?
  • How to get the most out of an internship
  • What employers are actually looking for on your resume, and how to write one
  • Everything you need to know about global warming
  • The top places with the most expensive cost of living in the United States
  • The rise of TikTok
  • What is influencer marketing and why is it so important?
  • Classic movies that should be cancelled in 2021, and why
  • Is eating vegan really better for your health?
  • Are aliens real?
  • Everything you need to know about the Big Bang Theory
  • Why streaming services are the demise of classic cable
  • Marijuana then and now: the process of getting it legalized
  • 15 Memorable things about [blank]
  • A comprehensive timeline of feminism
  • Is print— newspapers, magazines, books— dead?
  • The easiest foreign language to learn on your own
  • The best life hacks I learned on TikTok
  • What does white privilege mean to millennials and Generation Z?
  • Understanding finance for young adults 101
  • Everything you need to know about life after college
  • The difference between electric cars and gas cars
  • What is artificial intelligence anyway?
  • How thrifting can help the environment
  • The evolution of presentations: from caveman to TedTalks
  • Applying your degree in real life
  • The origins of your favorite music genre
  • Everything you need to about becoming a surgeon
  • The life cycle of [blank] 
  • Life without technology: where would we be without modern technology?

Make it beautiful

You have your topic, now what? Did you wait until the absolute last second to get started? Here’s the good news: no need for an all-nighter. Beautiful.ai can help you nail your college presentation in a pinch. The ease of use, and intuitive controls, help you create something brilliant in minutes, not hours. Start inspired with our inspiration gallery of pre-built templates and customize them to fit your content.

It’s important to connect with your audience on an emotional level, so make sure to pick trendy colors, modern fonts, and high-quality visual assets to compliment your presentation and evoke emotion. Engage your audience (especially your professor) with dynamic animations, or videos, to help control the narrative and direct their attention to the key takeaways. 

Pro tip: use the shareable link to share your deck out with classmates, teachers, or social media friends after class. 

Jordan Turner

Jordan Turner

Jordan is a Bay Area writer, social media manager, and content strategist.

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Tips for Online Students , Tips for Students

Presentation Tips For Students – Show And Tell Like A Pro!

Updated: July 15, 2022

Published: May 4, 2020

Presentation-Tips-For-Students---Show-And-Tell-Like-A-Pro

Giving a presentation to fellow classmates can be a bit daunting, especially if you are new to oral and visual presenting. But with the right PowerPoint tips, public speaking skills, and plenty of practice, you can present like a pro at your upcoming presentation. Here, we’ve laid out the best college presentation tips for students. And once you have one successful presentation, you’ll get better each time!

The Best Presentation Tips for Students

1. arrive early and be technically prepared.

Get to the room early and make sure you leave plenty of time for technical set up and technical difficulties. Have several backup drives (including an online version if possible) so that you are prepared for anything!

2. Know More

Be educated on more than just what you are sharing. That way, you can add points, speak candidly and confidently, and be prepared to answer any audience or teacher questions.

3. Share Your Passion With Your Audience

Connect with your audience by showing that you are passionate about your topic. Do this with the right tone, eye contact, and enthusiasm in your speech.

Photo by  Austin Distel  on  Unsplash

4. pace yourself.

When student presenters are nervous, they tend to speed up their speech. This can be a problem, however, because your speed may be distracting, hard to understand, and you may run under your time.

5. Rehearse Thoroughly

Don’t just practice, rehearse your college presentation. Rehearse the entire delivery, including standing up, using gestures, and going through the slides.

6. Show Your Personality

You don’t need to be professional to the point of stiffness during your college presentation . Don’t be afraid to show your personality while presenting. It will make your presentation more interesting, and you will seem more approachable and confident.

7. Improvise

You can’t be 100% certain what will happen during your presentation. If things aren’t exactly as you expected, don’t be afraid to improvise and run off script.

8. Pump Yourself Up

Get yourself excited and full of energy before your college presentation! Your mood sets the tone for your presentation, and if you get excited right before, you will likely carry that throughout and you’ll make your audience excited about your topic as well.

9. Remember To Pause

Pausing not only only prevents filler words and helps you recollect your thoughts, it can also be a powerful indicator of importance within your presentation.

10. Create “Um” Alternatives

Try hard not to use filler words as they make you look unprofessional and uncertain. The best alternatives to “um” “like” and “so” are taking a breath or a silent pause to collect your thoughts.

11. Using Your Hands

Using your hands makes your college presentation more interesting and helps to get your points across. Point at the slide, use common hand gestures, or mimic a motion.

12. Eye Contact

Eye contact is one of the most important presentation tips for students . Many students are nervous, so they look at their notes or their feet. It is important that you show your confidence and engage your audience by making eye contact. The more presentations you give, the more eye contact will feel natural.

13. The Right Tone

The best public speakers vary their tone and pitch throughout their presentation. Try to change it up, and choose the right tone for your message.

Preparing an Effective College Presentation

1. open strong.

Grab your fellow students’ attention by starting strong with a powerful quote, intriguing scenario, or prompt for internal dialogue.

2. Start With A Mind Map

Mind mapping is literally creating a map of the contents of your college presentation. It is a visual representation and flow of your topics and can help you see the big picture, along with smaller details.

Photo by  Teemu Paananen  on  Unsplash

3. edit yourself.

Some students make the mistake of including too much information in their college presentations. Instead of putting all of the information in there, choose the most important or relevant points, and elaborate on the spot if you feel it’s necessary.

4. Tell A Story

People love stories — they capture interest in ways that figures and facts cannot. Make your presentation relatable by including a story, or presenting in a story format.

5. The Power Of Humor

Using humor in your college presentation is one of the best presentation tips for students. Laughter will relax both you and the audience, and make your presentation more interesting

PowerPoint Tips for Students

1. use key phrases.

Choose a few key phrases that remain throughout your PowerPoint presentation. These should be phrases that really illustrate your point, and items that your audience will remember afterwards.

2. Limit Number Of Slides

Having too many slides will cause you to feel you need to rush through them to finish on time. Instead, include key points on a slide and take the time to talk about them. Try to think about including one slide per one minute of speech.

3. Plan Slide Layouts

Take some time to plan out how information will be displayed on your PowerPoint. Titles should be at the top, and bullets underneath. You may want to add title slides if you are changing to a new topic.

Photo by  NeONBRAND  on  Unsplash

4. the right fonts.

Choose an easy-to-read font that isn’t stylized. Sans serif fonts tend to be easier to read when they are large. Try to stick to only two different fonts as well to keep the presentation clean.

5. Choosing Colors And Images

When it comes to colors, use contrasting ones: light on dark or dark on light. Try to choose a few main colors to use throughout the presentation. Choose quality images, and make sure to provide the source for the images.

6. Use Beautiful Visual Aids

Keep your presentation interesting and your audience awake by adding visual aids to your PowerPoint. Add captivating photos, data representations, or infographics to illustrate your information.

7. Don’t Read Straight From Your Notes

When you read straight from your notes, your tone tends to remain monotonous, you don’t leave much room for eye contact. Try looking up often, or memorizing portions of your presentation.

8. Avoid Too Much Text

PowerPoint was made for images and bullets, not for your entire speech to be written in paragraph form. Too much text can lose your adiences’ interest and understanding.

9. Try A Theme

Choosing the right theme is one of those presentation tips for students that is often overlooked. When you find the right theme, you keep your college presentation looking interesting, professional, and relevant.

10. Be Careful With Transitions And Animations

Animations and transitions can add a lot to your presentation, but don’t add to many or it will end up being distracting.

Public Speaking Tips for Students

1. choose your topic wisely.

If you are able to pick your topic, try to pick something that interests you and something that you want to learn about. Your interest will come through your speech.

2. Visit The Room Beforehand

If your presentation is being held somewhere outside of class, try to visit the location beforehand to prep your mind and calm your nerves.

3. Practice Makes Perfect

Practice, practice, practice! The only way you will feel fully confident is by practicing many times, both on your own and in front of others.

Photo by  Product School  on  Unsplash

4. talk to someone about anxiety.

If you feel anxious about your college presentation, tell someone. It could be a friend, family member, your teacher, or a counselor. They will be able to help you with some strategies that will work best for you.

5. Remind Yourself Of Your Audience

Remember, you are presenting to your peers! They all likely have to make a presentation too at some point, and so have been or will be in the same boat. Remembering that your audience is on your side will help you stay cool and collected.

6. Observe Other Speakers

Look at famous leaders, or just other students who typically do well presenting. Notice what they are doing and how you can adapt your performance in those ways.

7. Remind Yourself Of Your Message

If you can come up with a central message, or goal, of your college presentation, you can remind yourself of it throughout your speech and let it guide you.

8. Don’t Apologize

If you make a mistake, don’t apologize. It is likely that no one even noticed! If you do feel you need to point out your own mistake, simply say it and keep moving on with your presentation. No need to be embarrassed, it happens even to the best presenters!

When you smile, you appear warm and inviting as a speaker. You will also relax yourself with your own smile.

The Bottom Line

It can be nerve racking presenting as a college student, but if you use our presentation tips for students, preparing and presenting your college presentation will be a breeze!

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class presentation tips for students

31 of the best class presentation tips for students

Katie September 20, 2022 communication , grades

short presentation for students

By Katie Azevedo, M.Ed.

Giving class presentations is just part of the school experience. Some students dread presenting to their classmates, and others prefer class presentations to written assessments. If you’re new to this, or if you’re just looking for some ideas, I share my best class presentation tips for students in the post below. 

Class presentations often involve a visual component, and an audio and delivery component. The tips in this post are for class presentations that involve SLIDES, such as Google Slides or PowerPoint. Therefore, I break down the class presentation tips for students into the following categories:

  • text and content
  • Audio and delivery class presentation tips
  • Bonus class presentation tips to up-level your game

Class presentation tips for VISUALS

The following tips will enhance the visual component of your school presentation. The strategies are further categorized by format, text, and images.

Class presentation tips for slide FORMAT 

The visual format of your presentation must be clear and easy to read.

1. Use a slide deck.

This class presentation tip is obvious, but I can’t leave it off the list. If you’re presenting to your fellow students, you will need some kind of visual representation of the information you’re delivering. Very rarely will you present to your class without slides. Google Slides and PowerPoint are the two primary products to make slides. 

2. Use the right number of slides.

Class presentations in high school and college will likely be 5 minutes or less. Follow your teacher’s guidelines, of course, but generally, students will use 1-2 slides per minute. (That would be 5-10 slides for a 5-minute presentation.)

3. Use an appropriate slide template and theme.

PowerPoint and Google Slides come with default slide templates (themes). Most of the default templates are suitable for class presentations, and so you should be fine choosing one of those. You can also find templates on the free version of Canva. I like slidesgo.com for free templates (it’s not sketchy – I’ve personally used it. I also like SlidesCarnival.com but you have to import the templates into Canva first, and then export them from Canva into Google Slides or PowerPoint. 

4. Use clear fonts.

Pick your font based on clarity, not creativity. Your audience should be able to read your text effortlessly and from the back of the classroom. Here are some rules:

  • Avoid cursive / script fonts
  • Avoid writing in all capital letters
  • Avoid fonts that are entirely in italics (slanted)

5. Use a maximum of two fonts.

Stick to two fonts: one for headings and titles, and one for body text. More than two fonts make your slides hard to read.

6. Use 3-4 colors.

Stick to a basic color palette of no more than four colors. It’s fine to use images that are outside your color scheme, but besides images, avoid too many colors. Most default templates stick to four colors or less, so you’re safe if you use a pre-made template. 

7. Use high-contrast text-on-background combinations.

Your text needs to stand out from the background color. Black font on a white background or white font on a black background provides the highest contrast and best readability. This website here provides excellent information and examples about color combinations.

Class presentation tips for slide TEXT and CONTENT

8. start with a simple title slide..

Your teacher will likely require a title slide in the syllabus. Even if it’s not required, make one anyway. A title slide should be simple: the name of the presentation, your name, and a simple graphic or image. 

9. Include a roadmap slide.

A roadmap slide (I made up that term, but it works) is like a table of contents. It tells your classmates what they will learn from your presentation. Even if your presentation is only 6 slides long, a roadmap slide can be helpful. Below is an example. 

tips for class presentations for students - roadmap slide

10. Include enough white space.

White space is the blank space that doesn’t contain text or images. White space is very important for readability. In the image below, you can see the impact white space has on readability. 

tips for class presentations for students - include margin

11. Use bullet points.

Whenever possible, use bullet points instead of complete sentences. Most slides should include no more than 5-6 bullet points. If you need to say more, continue the bullet points on another slide.

12. Leave some text off the slides.

Your slides should include minimal to moderate text that you will elaborate on during your class presentation. In other words, don’t cram the slides full of everything you want to share on the topic. The only exception to this rule is if you are not verbally presenting to the class, but are instead just sharing the slides with your classmates to view on their own.

13. Include examples.

Examples make most things clearer. When possible, include an example for all your main points. 

14. Include statistics and other quantitative information.

Use numbers in place of text when you can. Numbers and statistics can be easier for your audience to process. Example below:

  • Instead of saying this: There is one-third as many Giant Pandas living in 2020 as there were in 2014.
  • Say this: Giant Panda population in 2140 = 1864 | Giant Panda population in 2020 = 600 [ source ]

15. Include a summary slide

Consider adding a final summary slide to your class presentation. This is an excellent strategy because it will increase your audience’s understanding of your main points. The text on this slide should be in bullet-point format. The information on this slide might align with the information on your roadmap slide.

tips for class presentations for students - summary slide

Class presentation tips for slide IMAGES

16. include an image or graphical element on each slide..

Every slide should have some kind of graphical element to complement the text. Some slides might even have an image and no text. (You would explain the image in your verbal presentation to the class.) Note: be sure to cite all images.

17. Use images / graphics for illustration and emphasis, not decoration .

Avoid using images for decoration. Images and graphics should do one of the following:

  • Add something valuable to the text
  • Illustrate the idea on the slide
  • Represent the idea on the slide
  • Emphasize an element of the slide (such as underlines, stars, etc.)

18. Resize and reformat images.

Resize images and graphics to fit the scale of your slide. It should be big enough to see clearly, but still allow for plenty of white space (Class Presentation Tip #10). You can remove the background of an image using a mobile app, or something like the paid version of Canva or PicMonkey. Again, be sure to cite your images.

19. Use video when appropriate.

If your presentation calls for it, include short video clips. Only use video if it adds value. 

20. Use icons for emphasis.

Use icons like stars, 3D shapes, speech bubbles, and arrows to emphasize important text. Keep these icons within your color scheme. You can find free icons within Google Slides and PowerPoint, or you can use Google Images or Canva.

21. Use graphs and charts.

Too much text is confusing. Too many images is boring. Solve this problem by using pie charts, bar graphs and other graphical ways of representing data.

Class presentation tips for SPEAKING

You might have the best slides in the class, but your presentation is not complete until you deliver it to your classmates. The following tips are for improving your audio and delivery.

22. Never read directly from the slides.

Use the slides as a reference, but don’t read word-for-word. How do you do this? First change to the next slide. Then look at it for cues. Next, speak directly to your classmates, making eye contact as your speak. It’s okay to glance back at the slide if you need to.

23. Face your audience.

Your body should always face the audience. Stand or sit either straight on, or at a 45-degree angle. Never have your body square to the presentation screen.

24. Explain the images.

When you present each slide, you should spend some time on the text and some time on the images. If your images add value (which they should), then this should be simple to do.

25. Speak slowly and clearly.

Speak slower than you naturally speak. Practice difficult words until they are smooth.

26. Use verbal transitions between topics.

When you change topics, use transition expressions such as “Next, we are going to look at …” or “Now, let’s move on to …”

27. Practice more than you want to.

Practicing your class presentation over and over improves your delivery and increases your confidence. Practice in front of the mirror, in front of others, or in front of your camera (to be watched later, of course).

Bonus class presentation tips for students: How to up-level your game 

The following bonus tips are for students looking to take their class presentations to the next level. Keep in mind that some of the ideas below are best suited for college and university students.

28. Provide a printed note-catcher.

An engaged audience is the best audience. To increase your classmates’ active focus, provide each student a printed note-catcher they can use to follow along with your presentation. PowerPoint and Google Slides both have features that enable you to print out your presentation with the slides on the left and space to take notes on the right. 

29. Ask questions and survey your classmates.

Another way to engage your audience is by asking them questions. You can build these questions into the slides themselves, or you can pause your presentation to ask questions before moving to a slide with the answers.

30. Use the Speaker Notes section .

The text on your slides should vary from the words you speak to your classmates during your presentation. Either you practice your presentation so much that you memorize it, or you use the Speaker Notes section on PowerPoint or Google Slides.

31. Open with a question, and close with an answer . 

A great class presentation tip for students is to open with a question you pose to your classmates at the beginning, and then close with the answer. You could put the question on its own opening slide and then close with another slide that re-poses the question and features the answer. 

For example, if you are presenting on Susan B. Anthony, your question could be Who was Susan B. Anthony? and the answer – which is the point of your presentation – could be Susan B. Anthony was one of America’s greatest champions for freedom and equality of women and slaves. College-level presentations would have more complex question-and-answer pairings than this example, but you get the idea.

Class presentation tips for students – summary notes

It’s important to follow your teacher’s requirements when creating your class presentation. Use these tips and strategies to maximize your grade, impression on the class, and your content delivery – but always consult your syllabus first. 

And finally, the greatest tip of all is to PRACTICE. In Tip #27 I emphasize the importance of practicing more than you want to. Watch TED talks and other notable speakers to see how smooth they speak – these presenters have practiced the same presentation hundreds of times. Practice is the key.

More resources

  • How to ask for help in school: 4 tips for self-advocacy
  • What to do when you’re confused in class
  • 5 life skills all students need to be functional adults

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Home / How to make a great Free PowerPoint Templates presentation for college (plus 12 free templates)

How to make a great PowerPoint presentation for college (plus 12 free templates)

During your college career, you’ll sit through your fair share of PowerPoint presentations . And you’ll probably find yourself presenting a few of your own too.

A presentation is a great way to demonstrate what you’ve learned — hours of study condensed into a few short minutes. But great presentations aren’t just about great content. They’re also about design.

Let’s start with a quick disclaimer — good presentation design won’t fix bad content. However, bad design can ruin an otherwise exemplary presentation .

So what should you do? You’ve checked the box for pitch perfect content. But your design is lacking and your deadline is looming. It’s time to read through our tips for great class presentation design.

Without any prior presentation design experience, you can create a presentation that looks as good as it sounds (and hopefully helps you bag those top grades too!). What’s more, these presentation skills will serve you well throughout your college years and your professional life to come.

Here’s how to ace your presentation design…

  • Consistency — but not monotony
  • Avoid too much text
  • Highlight important keywords
  • Make use of charts and graphs
  • Use visual communication strategies
  • Adapt to your environment
  • Speed up the design process with a presentation template (but not a default one)
  • Top 12 class presentation template designs for students

8 presentation tips for creating a stand-out PowerPoint for college

Tip 1: consistency — but not monotony.

We’ve all been there. Sitting in front of a PowerPoint presentation with slide after slide in exactly the same layout.

What happens? You drift off. You sneak a look at your mobile. You stop engaging with the content of the presentation.

So how can you stop your presentation from suffering a similar fate? You engage your audience with varied but consistent design. Here’s what that means:

Vary your slide layout and how you present your content. One slide may have just bullet points, another only images, and another with a mixture of text and pictures.

Keep it consistent

Variety is a good thing. But not if it ends up making your presentation look muddled and unprofessional. So stick to the same font and color scheme. And make sure the same design features run through the whole of your presentation to create a cohesive look and feel. 

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Turn Boring PowerPoint Into Interesting Presentation Vary Layout

Get the right mix of variety and consistency in your presentation design and you’ll find it easier to catch and maintain the attention of your audience.

Tip 2: Avoid too much text

Text-heavy presentation slides are a big no-no. You end up reading from the slides rather than presenting. And your audience ends up either overwhelmed or just plain bored.  

While it’s tempting to showcase all your hard-earned research and knowledge, your class presentation slides shouldn’t include everything you want to communicate.

Instead, treat your slides as a support for what you plan to say; a visual aid that helps to bring a little extra clarity to your verbal points.

That means using your slides to highlight just the main points. You can do this by:

Getting rid of bullet points

Wordy bullet points defy the point of bullet pointing. So break up your bullets by presenting one per page. Use icons instead of bullets to bring life to your text. Or try splitting your text into columns to prevent bullet point overload.

You can read more about how you can banish bullet points from your presentation .

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template what can i use instead of bullet points in a presentation

Maintaining white space

When we talk about white space, we mean the parts of a slide that don’t feature any text, photos, or illustrations. Maintaining a good proportion of white space on your slides helps your audience to understand the content (and it looks better too!).

Get some tips on white space .

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Design Graphic Secrets for Presentations 1 White Space

Tip 3: Highlight important keywords

Within your text, you should draw attention to keywords. This will make it even easier for your audience to understand and absorb the key points of your presentation.

Bold fonts, contrast colors, highlight text with a background color — these are all really easy ways you can make your keywords stand out. Just avoid using all capital letters as this comes across as YELLING!

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Design PowerPoint for college Highlight Keywords

Tip 4: Make use of charts and graphs

We all love a good stat. Charts and graphs are a great way to present quantitative evidence and confirm the legitimacy of your claims . They make your presentation more visually appealing and make your data more memorable too.

But don’t delve too deep into the details. Providing an overview of key data insights is the best approach if you’re planning to hold an audience’s attention.

Your chart will only be up on the screen for minutes, if not seconds. So adopt a less is more approach. You can do this by customizing your chart and highlighting the stuff that matters most . Color, arrows, bold text — these are all ways you can draw attention to important data.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Pitch Deck Design Custom data charts 1

As well as making your presentation more engaging, customizing charts to fit with your overall design has the added benefit of making your presentation look more professional.

Tip 5: Use visual communication strategies

Speech and text aren’t the only ways we can communicate an idea. Your presentation visuals can do a lot of the talking for you. By visuals, we mean images, graphs, videos, infographics and even the fonts you use.

Content with visual elements is easier to process and more accessible too. It’s also really good at creating emotion in your audience. It’s the backbone of great presentation design.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Pitch Deck Design Use Visuals Key Moments

Interested in giving your presentation a visual communication edge? Start by taking a look at these visual communication tips .

Tip 6: Adapt to your environment

Think about where you’ll be delivering your presentation. How big is the room? What shape is it? What is the lighting like? Practical considerations like these should always be taken into account when coming up with a class presentation design.

If your presentation space is very well-lit, creating a strong contrast between your presentation text and background will make the text more legible.

If your classroom is huge, increasing the size of your font and any graphic elements will ensure your presentation can be seen even by those sitting right at the back.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Design Graphic Secrets for Presentations 12 Contrast

Take some time to consider your surroundings and then design your presentation accordingly.

Tip 7: End strong

Go out with a bang! The conclusion of your presentation should be a call to action. Use direct language and make impactful summary points.

And if your content ends on a strong note, so too should your presentation slide. Create a slide design that carries as much weight as your words by including big text, big images, and/or a boldly colored background.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Design Graphic Secrets for Presentations 4 Scale

Tip 8: Speed up the design process with a presentation template (but not a default one)

We’re guessing that you want to create a great class presentation. But you most likely don’t want to spend days slaving over its design. If this sounds about right, a template can really speed things up.

But there are some pitfalls to avoid. Opt for a default template available through PowerPoint and chances are your audience will have seen it many ( many ) times before. Outdated and overused templates are definitely not the way to make a good impression.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Design PowerPoint for college Use Template

Picking a template with a contemporary, relevant slide design can make all the difference. A fresh template is more than just a set of colors and font choices. It will come loaded with ideas for slide design and visual content , giving you a huge head start.

Once you have your template of choice, you can drop your own content into the placeholders, skipping the hard work of creating a new presentation completely from scratch.

Our top 12 class presentation template designs for students

At SlidesCarnival , we have tons of professional presentation template options to choose from. The best part? They’re completely free! Here are twelve of our favorite template designs, sure to give your class presentation real impact.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Free marketing Powerpoint template Google Slides theme transparent frame

Subtle Bevel Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free inspiring powerpoint template or google slides theme with photo backgrounds 2

Big Photo Backgrounds Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Free technology Powerpoint template Google Slides theme transparent illustrations

Tech Illustrated Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Free cool Powerpoint template Google Slides theme diverse people

Diverse People Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free professional and corporate blue presentation powerpoint template or google slides theme

Blue Professional Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free geometric powerpoint template or google slides theme

Business Geometric Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Thaliard 1200x675

Stats & Graphs Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free medical powerpoint template or google slides theme

Blue Medical Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free nature inspired powerpoint template or google slides theme

Inspiring Nature Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free professional and clean powerpoint template or google slides theme

Clean Business Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free professional corporate powerpoint template or google slides theme 2

Blue Corporate Presentation Template

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template free powerpoint template or google slides theme with connections design

Blue Connections Presentation Template

One reply to “how to make a great powerpoint presentation for college (plus 12 free templates)”.

Excellent guide! I’ve found these tips very helpful for creating presentations. The free templates are a bonus. Thanks, SlideCarnival

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How to make a great presentation

Stressed about an upcoming presentation? These talks are full of helpful tips on how to get up in front of an audience and make a lasting impression.

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A Comprehensive Guide on Short Presentations

Hrideep barot.

  • Body Language & Delivery , Presentation , Public Speaking , Speech Writing , Workplace Communication

short presentations are presentation that have limited number of slides ranging from 12-20 and time duration ranging from 2-15 minutes

A short presentation is a presentation that conveys a point or a topic in brief within the span of 5 to 12 mins. It generally sticks to the main idea with a speed of 120-160 words per minute. Short presentations approximately have 12-20 slides depending on the depth of the topic and also differ in length from person to person.

Imagine a situation where you missed your presentation day due to some reasons and now your teacher/ senior is furious and is threatening you that they will give a remark that could be damaging to your student/work résumé. But somehow you convince them to give you a second chance. However, the condition is that the presentation that you had prepared for should be now presented in just 2-5 minutes or else give up. What to do? And how to do it? 

A short presentation. What is that? So, when you must research a particular concept or topic in detail but explain or present it in brief that is 5 to 10 mins is known as a short presentation. One gives a short presentation with the thought in mind that their audience’s attention span is small. Short presentations are even used in daily life while convincing someone, explaining a thought, pitching an idea, etc. in a well-presented manner. For instance, to convince your parents to let you go on a trip with your friends you make a short presentation on ‘XX reasons why I should be allowed to go on a trip with my friends’ ‘or why should you be allowed to adopt a pet’. 

Furthermore, recent research showed that the 12 slide presentations pitches outclassed their longer counterparts and were also stated as more effective.  

Short Presentation Terms   

Additionally, there are some terms used for short presentations. One of the terms is known as lightning talk; this is a noticeably short presentation given in forums or conferences that lasts for only a few minutes. They only focus on certain important key points and discuss as many ideas as possible in a fleeting time span. 

Furthermore, other types of short presentations include Ignite and Pecha Kucha. Having the Japanese meaning of chit chat, Pecha Kucha is adopted from the phrase “talk less show more”. Here the presenter talks for exactly 6 minutes and 40 seconds with 20 slides lasting 20 seconds (set to change periodically). Pecha Kucha nights involve people sharing personal presentations about their work or any specific topic with 8 to 14 presentations per event. 

Likewise, ignite talks is a series of events (somewhat like ted talks) where the presenter is given 5 minutes to present 20 slides with each taking 15 seconds and then automatically advancing. It was presumably inspired from Pecha Kucha and started in Seatle before reaching to more than 350 countries. 

To know more about the several types and styles of presentation, read our article – The 6 Types Of Presentation (And Why You Need Them)

Creation, Practice and Presentation   

How do you execute a successful short presentation? In order to do that you need to be proficient with the ‘CPP’ of the presentation that is creation, practice/preparation, and presentation. If you become familiar with these steps it could be easier for you to make a compelling presentation. 

Creation   

 Creating a presentation is the first and the most crucial step to a good presentation. Knowing what to add and how much to add can have a profound impact during the demonstration.  

1. Correct Topic

Firstly, choosing the correct topic if given a choice is a major decision. Selecting a topic that is too complex and lengthy might confuse you as well as your audience and create a bad impression. Easier topics might result in less information overload and more information grasping or perceiving. 

2. Information Filter

Subsequently, filter out the points that you feel are the most important to be added after completing your research. Taking up points with extra information could take up your presentation time. 

3. Target audience Knowledge

Tertiarily, know your target audience. Having the time constraints, you do not want to bore the audience with the information that they already know or the information that they do not want to know or is useless to them. Thus, do you research well and only add the points that are relevant to your audience.  

4. Presentation Quantity and Quality

Try to keep the average number of slides between 12-20 depending on the time that you have in your hand. Moreover, use a good template, even if the presentation is short, it should appear appealing to the audience.  

5.Timed Intervals

Keep your transitions interval coupled with the time you want to take on a particular slide; that is use auto transition during your slideshow so that you are aware of your time limit. 

6. Effective Opening

Make your opening one that steals the attention of the audience. Since you have less time to present make sure the audience focuses from the start, if they would not be able to do this you would anyways have to end presentation in the next few minutes (as you less time) with no one getting what you just presented or getting your idea. Some of the good opening remarks are included in our article – 10 Of The Best Things To Say In Opening Remarks

7. Crammed vs Clean

Lastly, avoid cramming in much information on a slide, try to keep your slide more visual and cleaner. Too much information on a slide could look unappealing and the audience could also not be able to complete reading before the slide transitions.  

Practice/Preparation  

short presentations give you more time for practice/ preparation and thorough practice makes you more confident on stage.

The second step is preparation or practice. Now as the slides are less and the creation part is completed quickly one gets a lot of time to practice.

A) Time Yourself

Start off with timing your presentation, make sure you finish off with your presentation on the allotted time limit, 10 secs here and there is fine but try to refrain from taking more time than that. Specifically, practice in slideshow mode so that you can synchronize your speaking time with the transitioning of the slides. 

B) Rehearse with Coach Feature

If nobody is around to practice with, you could use rehearse with Coach feature (only available if you have made your presentation on PowerPoint) to correctly time and practice your presentation. It analyses your pace, use of filler words (like uh, uhm, etc.), your pitch, if you are simply just reading from the slide, culturally sensitive terms etc. 

To learn to use the rehearse with coach feature, watch the video below: 

C) Pace perfecting

Practicing your pace is essential. You ought to pick up a perfect pace, do not speak too fast just because you are timed (though sometimes you might speak fast unconsciously so practice thoroughly), choose a pace where the audience can contemplate what you are saying. Do not speak so slowly that you surpass your cutoff time. Try to avoid fillers, this can decrease your time and give you more speaking time. However, time your speech such that you finish before the time limit as sometimes you unconsciously also might use the fillers and end up pausing frequently.  

D) Understand and Memorize

Likewise, try to memorize (although do not mug it up!) your speech as much as possible resist simply reading from a paper or slides, it looks unprofessional. 

Presentation   

The final and the most unnerving step is the presentation. This is the evaluation day where all your effort will be examined and judged. First of all, make sure that you calm yourself before the presentation. If you start panicking or become nervous you might mess up the presentation and as it is a short presentation, you might not even have time to cover up. 

Use different techniques to be calm like meditation, talking to a close one, bioenergetics etc., to learn about being less nervous watch our video – 

Remember the practice that you have done, remember all the important points (like your pace should not be too fast), revise your content and make sure you look confident and interactive. Lastly, do not be extremely nervous, remember you just have to present for 5-10 mins but make that time count and impress the audience. 

Importance of Short Presentations  

So, short presentations are omnipresent and used in almost every field. Therefore, they become an important soft skill to acquire. Some reasons highlighting the importance of short presentations comprise of: 

Time constraint. In this technological era people are available 24*7 and can be contacted anytime. Hence, with increased online hours to keep themselves updated with the world and work hours; people have very less time to spare to attend long presentations of you pitching in your ideas. Therefore, short presentations work as saviors here in getting your idea to the audience without taking much of their time. 

Moreover, it helps you identify and focus on your key message. Short presentations improve your identification and inclusion of important points. It enhances your skill to explain your skill to explain your point in short even in daily life, preventing you from losing the interest of others and from becoming that boring person in the room that explains way too much. As a bonus it also increases the chance of your senior choosing you to interact with the client. 

Why Short Presentations  are Better 

What makes short presentations so widely used and convenient? There are many benefits of short presentations. 

1. Time saving

As mentioned above, short presentations save the audience as well as the presenter a lot of time, and besides, they also cover loads of topics in truly little time, giving each person a chance to put forth their ideas and thoughts. It also saves time on the creation part of the presenter thus giving them more time to practice. 

2. Less attention time

This is a desirable alternative for those who hate long stage time or presenting in front of others (either due to anxiety, stage fear or any other reasons). This could furthermore be a stepping stone for those who want to get rid of their fears of prolonged hours on stage but want to systematically desensitize themselves to it and not in one go. 

3. End moment revision

Short presentations are helpful in explaining everything in a gist and hence they are great resources for end moment revision before an exam when one has less time to study in detail. Teachers can use it during revision lectures or students can use them as reference notes as they are self-explanatory. 

4. Useful for short attention spans

Nowadays people have a short attention span and they are less tolerant towards long presentations. They are not interested in the long thesis of a topic, they need what, why and how it will affect or benefit them. Therefore, short presentations keep them focused on what you are saying and make them understand your idea more effectively. 

5. More time to practice

With short presentations after completing the creation part one gets a lot of time to practice and do some extra research to get well acquainted with the topic that they are presenting on. This further helps them during the questions and answers sessions to solve the audience’s doubt clearly. 

6. Easier evaluation

Short presentations are easier for the professors or the authorities to evaluate. If they assign short presentations to their students or employees, authorities can get a clear understanding of their presentation and research skills in a shorter time. The short length makes evaluating skills 40-50 people simpler and less tiring.  

7. Additional benefits

Added advantages of short presentations include getting more time for the interactive or QandA sessions with the audience. Consequently, you also have the time to know the opinions, thoughts, and experience of the audience; along with their reviews. 

Challenges of a short presentation  

Short presentations are many times thought of as easier because of their limited number of slides and the short duration. However it comes with its own challenges and drawbacks.  

Concise Points

The most important skill to make a short presentation is the ability to keep your points concise but understandable. The audience should be able to get the idea even in 4 words. Lack of this skill could make it quite difficult for you to end your presentation in a given time limit. 

Tight Time Constraints

Besides, as you have time constraints, it gets difficult to add all the information that you find important. You would need to filter out the essential information from the additional ones and further select the information that you think of as the most important. Keep the rest as backup slides in case you need it (for a proper guide on backup slides check out our article – Backup Slides: The Six Situations Saviors ). This takes up a lot of your cognitive resources. 

Less but not Incomplete

Next is that you need to choose the right and sufficient information. Giving out incomplete information that does not make sense. It becomes incomprehensible to your audience and they might end up misunderstanding and taking away the wrong message or even worse lose attention during your presentation.  

Uses up a lot of cognitive resources

Every second counts during a short presentation. Creating a short presentation requires more focus, efficacy, and better attention to detail. Therefore, short presentations become cognitively more taxing to deal with.  

Limited Interactive Elements

Furthermore, don’t beat around the bush while presenting. You need to come straight to your point and explain it in brief. Hence, you might not be able to add interactive elements like storytelling, activities, or social experiments. However, you could add these after you complete your presentations if extra time is left. 

Duration and word limit per minute   

The duration of short presentations might range from 2-15 minutes depending on the topic one chooses or the time limit given to them. However, the average duration of a short presentation could be around 7 mins. 

Similarly, the average pace of the speaker should be 120-160 words per minute so that the speaker sounds comprehensive to the audience (however even this could differ from speaker to speaker).  

The right duration and pace would affect the evaluation of the authority. This further might earn you some points so keep that in mind while presenting. 

Checklist  

It is important to keep the points mentioned above in mind as a guide for a short presentation. Hence to make it easier to verify, here is a checklist of the guidelines:  

Effective short presentations in shorter time   

Imagine that some client your organization wanted to have a meeting with since many days. They have suddenly cleared up their schedule and wants to arrange a meeting with you tomorrow. However, you still have not prepared the short presentation for the meeting, what would you do? Here are some tips that you could take into account  

First off, starting with creation make your presentation as short as possible. The audience is not going to focus on the quantity of your content but the quality and the important points. Remember that even if your presentation is short, you should have a thorough knowledge of your content. 

Try to add an interactive section if possible, this would help you connect with the audience but more importantly lessen your speaking part as the audience would take that up.  

Consequently, keep your talking points simple. Do not add complex points and explanations making it difficult to remember in less time and recall during the presentation. You could add a story or personal experience that you remember, this way you would have less content to memorize as you already know it. 

Lastly, even if you have less time to practice try to appear confident. As quoted “fake it till you make it.” This would possibly increase the audience’s belief in what you say. 

If you want to be clued more up on how to prepare for presentation with no preparation time, learn from our video: 

Short Presentation Examples   

Short presentations are short with fewer points and its visuals are also simple and sober. There are no too fancy animations, transitions, or designs, just something that looks appealing and conveys the message effectively. Some of these kinds of presentations of a few brands are: –  

Conclusion   

Short presentations are a part and parcel of life used in every work-field, as well as for day-to-day purposes. Short presentations have several benefits but not without their challenges. Learning to make an effective short presentation is a skill to acquire. By correctly using all the guidelines there would be no reason for you to not have a successful performance. 

Hrideep Barot

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short presentation for students

How to Make a 5 Minute Presentation with 30 Topic Ideas in 2024

How to Make a 5 Minute Presentation with 30 Topic Ideas in 2024

Leah Nguyen • 05 Apr 2024 • 9 min read

Are you looking for 5 minute presentation ideas? How to make a 5 minute presentation properly? What should I cram into my presentation? Is it okay if I cut this out? What information is valuable to the audience? 

The struggle is real, guys. The five-minute presentation, though intriguing to your audience (no one likes to sit through a one-hour-feels-like-a-decade kind of talk), is a nuisance when you have to decide what to cut and what to put in. It may seem like everything happens in a blink of an eye.  

The clock is ticking, but you can keep your panic attack at bay with our step-by-step guide with free topics and examples. Get the full lowdown on how make 5 minute presentation for a team meeting, college class, sales pitch, or wherever else you need it! So, let’s check out 5-minute presentation samples!

Table of Contents

  • Present better with AhaSlides
  • 5-Minute Presentation Topic List
  • How to Make a 5-Minute Presentation
  • 5 Common Mistakes

5-Minute Presentation Examples

Present better with ahaslides.

  • Types of Presentation
  • 10 20 30 Rule Presentations
  • Top 10 Office games
  • 95++ Fun questions to ask students
  • 21+ Ice breaker games
  • Better Engagement by Fun Brainstorm Tools like AhaSlides  Word Cloud
  • Use Randomness to Decide your Fate by AhaSlides  Spinner Wheel

5 Minute Presentation Ideas

How to make a 5-Minute Presentation? What are the best topics for a 5-minute oral presentation? Ignite the sparkle in the eyes of the audience with this 5-minute presentation topics list.

  • The danger of cyberbullying
  • Freelancing under the gig economy
  • Fast fashion and its environmental impacts
  • How podcast has evolved
  • Dystopian society in George Orwell’s literature
  • Common health disorders you might have
  • What is aphasia?
  • Caffeine myths – are they real?
  • The perks of having a personality test
  • The rise and fall of Genghis Khan 
  • What happens to the brain when you’re in long-distance relationships?
  • Is it too late to care about the environment?
  • The consequences of relying on Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • The ways anxiety disorders disrupt our life
  • 6 economic terms you need to know 
  • Gods in Greek mythology versus Roman mythology
  • Origins of Kungfu
  • Ethics of genetic modification
  • The supernatural strength of cockroaches
  • Is social media detox necessary?
  • The history of the Silk Road
  • What is the world’s most dangerous disease in the 21st century?
  • Reasons to do self-journaling everyday
  • New trends in careers
  • Five reasons to get some quality time for yourself
  • The best food to cook when you’re in a hurry
  • How to order the best Starbucks drink ever
  • Ideas and practices that you follow and would like others to know about
  • 5 ways to make a pancake
  • Introduction to blockchain 

Alternative Text

Start in seconds.

Get any of the above examples as templates. Sign up for free and take what you want from the template library!

Hope you’ve had abundant ideas for your 5-minute presentation topics. Before going way to deep of how to make a 5-minute presentation, together, let’s walk through tips for 10-minutes presentation one! With the clock starts running down, every single second counts, and you begin to sweat then how can you pull out a great 10 minutes presentation under that pressure?

In this video, we want to share with you how we overcome the challenge to create 10 minutes presentation structure. Hope you enjoy this video and find it helpful in preparing for your quick presentation! Let us know what you feel.

Bonus Video ▶ Going for 10 Minutes ?

If you feel like a 5-minute presentation would be too stifling, stretch it to 10! Here’s how to do that…

How to Make a 5-Minute Presentation?

Remember, less is more, except when it comes to ice cream. 

That’s why amid hundreds of methods to use, we’ve boiled it down into these four simple steps to make a killer 5-minute presentation.

Let’s jump right in!

#1 – Choose your topic  

Wooden blocks spelling the word topic with a on/off block at the start. Use a 5-minute presentation topic list to choose the right topic for your short presentation

How do you know if that topic is “the one” for you? For us, the right topic ticks everything on this checklist:

✅ Stick to one key point. It’s unlikely you’ll have time to address more than one topic, so limit yourself to one and don’t go over it! 

✅ Know your audience. You don’t want to waste time covering information they already know. Everyone knows 2 plus 2 is 4, so move on and never look back.

✅ Go with a simple topic. Again, explaining something that requires time should be off the checklist since you can’t cover it all.

✅ Don’t dwell on unfamiliar topics to minimise the time and effort you spend preparing the presentation. It should be something you already have on your mind.

Need some help finding the right topic for your short presentation? We’ve got 30 topics with different themes to captivate your audience.

#2 – Create your slides 

How many slides for a 5-minute presentation? Unlike the long presentation format in which you can have as many slides as you want, a five-minute presentation typically has significantly fewer slides. Because imagine each slide would take you roughly 40 seconds to 1 minute to go through, that’s already five slides in total. Not much to think about, eh? 

However, your slide count doesn’t matter more than the essence each slide contains. We know that it’s tempting to pack it full of text, but keep in mind that you should be the subject your audience focuses on, not a wall of text. 

Check these examples below.

Make the text bold to highlight important parts and use italics primarily to denote titles and the names of particular works or objects to allow that title or name to stand out from the surrounding sentence. The underlining text also helps draw attention to it, but it is most commonly used to represent a hyperlink on a webpage.

You obviously saw the second example and thought there’s no way you’re going to read through this on the big screen.

The point is this: keep slides straight, concise, and short, as you’ve got 5 minutes only. 99% of the info should come from your mouth.

When you’re keeping text minimal, don’t forget to befriend visuals , as they can be your best sidekicks. Startling statistics, infographics, short animations, pictures of whales, etc., all are great attention grabbers and help you sprinkle your unique trademark and personality on each slide. 

And how many words should be there in a 5-minute speech script? It mainly depends on the visuals or data you show in your slides and also your speech speed. However, a 5-minute speech is roughly 700 words long. 

Secret tip: Go the extra length by making your presentation interactive. You can add a live poll , Q&A section , or quiz that illustrates your points and leaves a lasting impression on the audience.

Get Interactive, Fast 🏃‍♀️

Make the most of your 5 minutes with a free interactive presentation tool!

#3 – Get the timing right

When you’re looking at this, we only have one thing to say: STOP PROCRASTINATING! For such a short presentation, there’s virtually no time for “ah”, “uh” or short pauses, because every moment counts. So, plan the timing of each section with military precision. 

How should it look? Check out the example below: 

  • 30 seconds on the introduction . And no more. If you spend too much time on the intro, your main part will have to be sacrificed, which is a no-no.
  • 1 minute on stating the problem . Tell the audience the problem you are trying to solve for them, i.e, what they are here for. 
  • 3 minutes on the solution . This is where you deliver the most essential info to the audience. Tell them what they need to know, not what is “nice to have”. For example, if you’re presenting how to make a cake, list each item’s ingredients or measurement, as that’s all essential information. However, additional information like icing and presentation is not essential and can be cut.
  • 30 seconds on the conclusion . This is where you reinforce your main points, wrap up and have a call to action.
  • You can end with a small Q&A .  Since it isn’t technically a part of the 5-minute presentation, you can take as much time as you want to answer the questions. 

How many times should you practice a 5-minute speech? To nail these timings down, make sure you practice religiously. A 5-minute presentation requires more practice than a regular one, as you won’t have as much wiggle room or chance for improvisation.

Also, don’t forget to check your equipment to ensure everything runs smoothly. When you’ve only got 5 minutes, you don’t want to waste any time fixing the mic,  presentation, or other equipment.

#4 – Deliver your presentation 

this picture describes a women who is delivering her 5 minute presentation in a confident manner

Imagine you’re watching an exciting video but it keeps.lagging.every.10.seconds. You’d be super annoyed, right? Well, so would your audience if you keep confusing them with abrupt, unnatural speech. 

It’s normal to feel pressured to talk because you feel every minute is precious. But crafting the convo in a way that makes the crowd understand the assignment is so much more important. 

Our first tip for delivering a great presentation is to practice flowing . From the introduction to the conclusion, every part needs to connect and link with each other like glue.

Go between the sections repeatedly (remember to set the timer). If there’s any part in which you feel the urge to speed up, then consider trimming it down or articulating it differently.

Our second tip is for reeling in the audience from the first sentence .

There are countless ways to start a presentation . You can get factual with a shocking, on-topic fact or mention a humorous quote that gets your audience laughing and melting away their (and your) tension.

Secret tip: Don’t know if your 5-minute presentation makes an impact? Use a feedback tool to collect the audience’s sentiment right away. It takes minimal effort, and you avoid losing valuable feedback along the way.

Use a feedback tool such as AhaSlides to collect the audience's sentiment right away.

5 Common Mistakes When Giving a 5-Minute Presentation

We overcome and adapt through trial and error, but it’s easier to avoid rookie mistakes if you know what they are👇

  • Going way past your allotted time slot. Since the 15 or 30-minute presentation format has long dominated the scene, keeping it brief is difficult. But unlike the long format, which gives you a bit of flexibility on time, the audience knows exactly what 5 minutes feels like and, therefore will expect you to condense the information within the time limit.
  • Having a decade-long introduction. Rookie mistake. Spending your precious time telling people who you are or what you’re going to do isn’t the best plan. As we said, we’ve got a bunch of beginning tips for you here . 
  • Don’t dedicate enough time to prepare. Most people skip the practice part since they think it’s 5 minutes, and they can quickly fill that up, which is an issue. If in a 30-minute presentation, you can get away with “filler” content, the 5-minute presentation doesn’t even allow you to pause for more than 10 seconds.    
  • Devote too much time explaining complicated concepts. A 5-minute presentation doesn’t have room for that. If one point you’re explaining needs to link to other points for further elaboration, it’s always a good idea to revise it and dig deeper into only one aspect of the topic.
  • Putting too many complex elements. When making a 30-minute presentation, you might add different elements, such as storytelling and animation, to keep the audience engaged. In a much shorter form, everything needs to be straight to the point, so choose your words or the transition carefully.

To help you grasp how to make a 5-minute presentation, check these short presentation examples, to nail any message!

William Kamkwamba: ‘How I Harnessed the Wind’ 

This TED Talk video presents the story of William Kamkwamba, an inventor from Malawi who, as a kid experiencing poverty, built a windmill to pump water and generate electricity for his village. Kamkwamba’s natural and straightforward storytelling was able to captivate the audience, and his usage of short pauses for people to laugh is also another great technique.

Susan V. Fisk: ‘The Importance of Being Concise’

This training video offers helpful tips for scientists to structure their talk to fit the “5 Minute Rapid” presentation format, which is also explained in 5 minutes. If you plan to create a “How-to” quick presentation, look at this example.

Jonathan Bell: ‘How to Create a Great Brand Name’

As the title refers to itself, the speaker Jonathan Bell will give you a step-by-step guide on how to create a lasting brand name. He gets straight to the point with his topic and then breaks it down into smaller components. A good example to learn from.

PACE Invoice: ‘5 Min Pitch at Startupbootcamp’

This video shows how PACE Invoice , a start-up specialising in multi-currency payment processing, was able to pitch its ideas to the investors clearly and concisely.

Will Stephen: ‘How to Sound Smart in Your TEDx Talk’

Using a humorous and creative approach, Will Stephen’s TEDx Talk guides people through the general skills of public speaking. A must-watch to craft your presentation into a masterpiece.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why 5-minute presentation is important.

A 5-minute presentation shows ability to manage time, grab audience attention, clarification as it requires lots of practice to make it perfect! Besides, there are various suitable speech topics for 5 minutes that you can refer to and adapt to your own.

Who gave the best 5-Minute Presentation?

There are lots of impactful presenters overtimes, with the most famous man named Sir Ken Robinson’s TED talk titled “Do Schools Kill Creativity?”, which has been viewed millions of times and has become one of the most-watched TED talks of all time. In the talk, Robinson delivers a humorous and engaging presentation on the importance of nurturing creativity in education and society.

Why is Ted Talks famous for presentation?

TED Talks is successful as it’s present in a short format, engaging speakers, diverse topics, high production value and it’s accessible everywhere!

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Leah Nguyen

Words that convert, stories that stick. I turn complex ideas into engaging narratives - helping audiences learn, remember, and take action.

More from AhaSlides

120+ Examples of Interesting Topic For Speaking in 2024

Creative Resources for ESL/EFL Teachers

ESL presentation topics

ESL Presentation Topics: 12 Mini Presentations

ESL presentation topics for intermediate and upper intermediate students. Great as a warm-up or a speaking lesson.

You can use the slideshow and share your screen on Zoom or other app when teaching online. Just click on the full screen option in the top right corner of the slideshow.

I used it with my students during our online lesson and we didn’t even have time to discuss all the topics, because they couldn’t stop talking. I was quite impressed how much they knew and also how well they could express their opinions.

One of the reasons why I love conversation activities is that I learn so much about my students. I think that we often underestimate our students and see them as the stereotypical lazy teenagers. Activities like these can show us that they are much more than that.

You can also download the PDF for easy printing below.

Other picture-based resources:

ESL Exam Speaking Picture Description and Questions

No-Prep ESL Picture Description Speaking Activity

Picture Based Speaking Activity For ESL/EFL Classes

Picture Prompts for Speaking and Writing: An ESL Activity

ESL Picture Description: Exam Skills Practice

Food and Travel ESL Lesson: Interactive Online Lesson

Conversation resources:

Popular Conversation Topics for (not only) Adults and Teenagers: 50 Questions

Conversation Starters: 30 Interesting Conversation Questions Not Only For ESL Students

Conversation Questions Gerunds and Infinitives: ESL Speaking Activity

30 Hypothetical Conversation Questions for ESL Students

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short presentation for students

Travel ESL Conversation Questions

This is an excellent speaking activity for students when engaged in a conversation about travel, as well as for adult students in any program or one-on-one lessons. Travel words on the list include – journey, flights, destination, trip, license, accommodation, backpacking, international, leisure, and countries. The free discussion worksheet for…

esl role play science

ESL Communication Activity: Science Role-Plays

Communication Activity: Science Role Plays. Download this free PDF worksheet with three role plays discussing controversial opinions on vaccination, cancer treatment and so-called chemtrails.

travel compound nouns dominoes

ESL/EFL Vocabulary Activity: Travel Compound Nouns Dominoes

Vocabulary activity: compound nouns. Download the free PDF here.

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Amazing! Thanks a lot

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My Speech Class

Public Speaking Tips & Speech Topics

169 Five-Minute Topics for a Killer Speech or Presentation

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Jim Peterson has over 20 years experience on speech writing. He wrote over 300 free speech topic ideas and how-to guides for any kind of public speaking and speech writing assignments at My Speech Class.

There are pros and cons to giving a 5-minute presentation. One good thing is the length. Long presentations can easily become boring, and you have a much better chance of keeping your audience engaged from beginning to end than with a 5-minute speech.

In this article:

Food & Drink

Relationships, social media, supernatural, list of topics for a 5-minute speech or presentation.

5 minute speech topics

Choosing a topic is extremely important. To help you getting started, here is a list of some killer topics for 5-minute speech or presentation.

  • Why it’s better to adopt a pet from a shelter
  • Choosing the perfect leash for your dog
  • What is the best food for your pet?
  • How much exercise does your pet need?
  • The horror of puppy mills
  • Bringing back endangered species
  • How long are giraffes in labor
  • Domestication of horses
  • Picking the right vet
  • Sleeping with your dog
  • Why should you get goats in pairs
  • Ethics of zoos
  • The domestication of dogs
  • How to keep a goldfish alive for a long time
  • How to choose the right pet
  • Why cats are so independent
  • When to get a dog
  • What kind of dog is best for a household with children
  • Why therapy animals work
  • How to find the money to go to college
  • How much control should the federal government have over curriculum design?
  • How to choose a college
  • Ideas for narrowing down a career choice
  • When to declare a major
  • Benefits of charter schools
  • Why charter schools are bad
  • Negative effects of school vouchers
  • Attracting the right people to the teaching profession
  • Discipline in the classroom
  • Memory tricks that work
  • Why homework is bad
  • Should students still have to use the books in the library?
  • Why cursive should still be taught in schools
  • Textbooks vs. tablets
  • Benefits of going to a trade school
  • Are there positives to taking a gap year?
  • The problem with low teacher pay
  • Social media in the classroom
  • Benefits of integrating apps into the classroom
  • The importance of attachment
  • How to compromise on names for your kids
  • What is the ideal age to start a family
  • How important are grandparents
  • Traveling with children
  • Strategies for potty training
  • How to help a child with nightmares
  • Middle child syndrome
  • How many kids should you have?
  • How to recognize a gifted child
  • When your child doesn’t like to eat
  • How to encourage good eating habits
  • When to intervene with a bully
  • Being active in your child’s school
  • The benefits of aunts and uncles
  • When family falls apart
  • The first days with a new baby
  • When to call the doctor
  • Caring for an ailing parent
  • Balancing home and career
  • When to start saving for retirement
  • IRA vs. Roth IRA
  • When should you start saving for your children’s college education?
  • Crowdfunded loans vs. the bank
  • How Kickstarter changed everything
  • Using your HSA
  • How to apply for a mortgage
  • Improving your credit score
  • How to negotiate a raise
  • Renting vs. buying
  • How does compound interest work?
  • How to ask for a promotion
  • When is it time to get a new job?
  • What to do when you find out a coworker makes more than you
  • How much of a down payment on a house do you really need?
  • Living on minimum wage
  • Is it better to lease or buy a new car?
  • How to budget for a new car
  • What to do when you lose your job
  • Using credit cards responsibly
  • Is rare meat safe?
  • Vegan vs. vegetarian
  • Microbrews vs. standard brewing
  • How to make your own wine
  • What are hops?
  • Best plants for a backyard garden
  • When to transplant sprouts
  • Bananas and plantains
  • How to make a brine for pickling
  • Where did brunch begin?
  • Why pineapple belongs on a pizza
  • When to order in
  • Planning a menu
  • Meal planning and grocery lists
  • Is free range really better?
  • The perfect macaroni and cheese
  • Growing your own herbs
  • How to make your own pasta
  • How to make cookies that are softer
  • Benefits of drinking black coffee
  • Benefits of a gluten-free diet
  • Is the paleo diet accurate?
  • Effects of not getting enough sleep
  • Are meal subscription services worth it?
  • Downsides to Crossfit
  • Benefits of yoga
  • How to meditate
  • Can therapy change the way your mind works?
  • Are GMOs really dangerous?
  • The truth about diet soda
  • Importance of hydration
  • Why cleanses don’t work
  • Best juice diet
  • Most effective exercise for burning calories
  • Do essential oils really work?
  • The history of television
  • When the railway was king
  • Thwarted assassination attempts
  • The first Olympics
  • Media during World War II
  • Military advancements between World War I and World War II
  • War photographers
  • Things you didn’t learn in history class
  • Historical lies
  • The early Internet
  • Why podcasts are great
  • Most unbiased news channel
  • When do people tune into the news most
  • How relevant are women’s magazines?
  • Cable vs. Netflix
  • How worried should you be about your browsing history?
  • How to limit screen time
  • Why it’s bad to use your smartphone right before bed
  • Apple vs. Android
  • The best age to get married
  • How to get an amicable divorce
  • Finding a roommate
  • Splitting financial responsibilities evenly among the household
  • How to have a happy marriage
  • Choosing your family
  • How to fight effectively
  • Signs of an abusive relationship
  • What to look for in a spouse
  • When to let it go
  • How to overcome self-doubt
  • Faking confidence
  • Becoming comfortable with yourself
  • How to say no
  • Relaxation techniques
  • Controlling anxiety
  • Qualities of a leader
  • The importance of self-care
  • Identifying triggers
  • How to eliminate negativity
  • Making new habits
  • Ethics of posting pictures of your children on social media
  • How Internet ads are tailored to you
  • How to advertise your business on Facebook
  • Privacy and social media
  • How to protect your personal information
  • When to allow your kids to get their own social media accounts
  • Why you shouldn’t post your location on social media
  • How to use a hashtag
  • Uncovering Twitter Bots
  • Snapchat etiquette
  • Proof that aliens exist
  • Debunking crop circles
  • Is Bigfoot real?
  • Proof that ghosts exist

Good 2-Minute Speech Topics for Students

13 All-Time Best TED Talks

23 thoughts on “169 Five-Minute Topics for a Killer Speech or Presentation”

Ideal Teacher

is life really a blessing?

This has helped me so much for my English class thank you!

Why personal (private) rules are helpful

I got an A!!!!!

Risks of abortion Wage gap How social media impacts education/mental health Why it’s important to have a good stable mental health Do teenagers really spend all their time on their phones Gsce requirements unfair or reasonable

Here is a kind of a dense topic, domestic abuse. Why does it happen? What are some ways to identify a abusive relationship? How does it affect families? Why is the abuser abusive?

We have presentation next week. I can’t think about the topic. Please help me!

i want a topic that involves supernatural: HELP

Is water wet?

death, what if the earth loses air entirely for five minutes, what is the most common death.

I have presentation next two day concerning with my classroom. I must choose five topics but i can’t think how to choose these topics. Please! help me

Tanks for giving me an A in drama

so helpful thank you

thanks this helped with my speach at school

i need a best topic to present on that is educational to consumer science and food nutrition students. can i please be assisted

what if the earth stopped spinning pros and cons of being an artist how Gen Z affected slang why people are afraid of the dark why knowing how to play an instrument is beneficial/not needed

Here’s a controversial one: are trans, intersex and non-binary people getting the same right as every else?

I have a presentation this week I don’t understand how to find a good title please help me I’m a diploma student the speech must have more than 10 minutes

How do create presentation for famous place in Sri Lanka

i need something for my oral communication class. it must be attention grabbing and not an argument. please help

I need ideas on a slide show presentation, a kid appropiate topic.

Pls I need more ideas on self help

hi lol i like these topics but i need a trendy one like something new or like a natural phenomene or someth like that… 🙂

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How to Use Oral Presentations to Help English Language Learners Succeed

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short presentation for students

Excerpted from “ The ELL Teacher’s Toolbox: Hundreds of Practical Ideas to Support Your Students ,” by Larry Ferlazzo and Katie Hull Sypnieski, with permission from the authors.

Having the confidence to speak in front of others is challenging for most people. For English Language Learners, this anxiety can be heightened because they are also speaking in a new language. We’ve found several benefits to incorporating opportunities for students to present to their peers in a positive and safe classroom environment. It helps them focus on pronunciation and clarity and also boosts their confidence. This type of practice is useful since students will surely have to make presentations in other classes, in college, and/or in their future jobs. However, what may be even more valuable is giving students the chance to take these risks in a collaborative, supportive environment.

Presentations also offer students the opportunity to become the teacher—something we welcome and they enjoy! They can further provide valuable listening practice for the rest of the class, especially when students are given a task to focus their listening.

Research confirms that in order for ELLs to acquire English they must engage in oral language practice and be given the opportunity to use language in meaningful ways for social and academic purposes (Williams & Roberts, 2011). Teaching students to design effective oral presentations has also been found to support thinking development as “the quality of presentation actually improves the quality of thought, and vice versa” (Živković, 2014, p. 474). Additionally, t he Common Core Speaking and Listening Standards specifically focus on oral presentations. These standards call for students to make effective and well-organized presentations and to use technology to enhance understanding of them.

GUIDELINES AND APPLICATION

Oral presentations can take many different forms in the ELL classroom—ranging from students briefly presenting their learning in small groups to creating a multi-slide presentation for the whole class. In this section, we give some general guidelines for oral presentations with ELLs. We then share ideas for helping students develop their presentation skills and describe specific ways we scaffold both short and long oral presentations.

We keep the following guidelines in mind when incorporating oral presentations into ELL instruction:

short presentation for students

Length —We have students develop and deliver short presentations (usually 2-4 minutes) on a regular basis so they can practice their presentation skills with smaller, less overwhelming tasks. These presentations are often to another student or a small group. Once or twice a semester, students do a longer presentation (usually 5-8 minutes), many times with a partner or in a small group.

Novelty —Mixing up how students present (in small groups, in pairs, individually) and what they use to present (a poster, a paper placed under the document camera, props, a slide presentation, etc.) can increase engagement for students and the teacher!

Whole Class Processing -- We want to avoid students “tuning out” during oral presentations. Not only can it be frustrating for the speakers, but students also miss out on valuable listening practice. During oral presentations, and in any activity, we want to maximize the probability that all students are thinking and learning all the time. Jim Peterson and Ted Appel, administrators with whom we’ve worked closely, call this “whole class processing” (Ferlazzo, 2011, August 16) and it is also known as active participation. All students can be encouraged to actively participate in oral presentations by being given a listening task-- taking notes on a graphic organizer, providing written feedback to the speaker, using a checklist to evaluate presenters, etc.

Language Support —It is critical to provide ELLs, especially at the lower levels of English proficiency, with language support for oral presentations. In other words, thinking about what vocabulary, language features and organizational structures they may need, and then providing students with scaffolding, like speaking frames and graphic organizers. Oral presentations can also provide an opportunity for students to practice their summarizing skills. When students are presenting information on a topic they have researched, we remind them to summarize using their own words and to give credit when using someone else’s words.

Technology Support —It can’t be assumed that students have experience using technology tools in presentations. We find it most helpful using simple tools that are easy for students to learn (like Powerpoint without all the “bells and whistles” or Google Slides). We also emphasize to students that digital media should be used to help the audience understand what they are saying and not just to make a presentation flashy or pretty. We also share with our students what is known as “The Picture Superiority Effect”-- a body of research showing that people are better able to learn and recall information presented as pictures as opposed to just being presented with words (Kagan, 2013).

Groups -- Giving ELLs the opportunity to work and present in small groups is helpful in several ways. Presenting as a group (as opposed to by yourself) can help students feel less anxious. It also offers language-building opportunities as students communicate to develop and practice their presentations. Creating new knowledge as a group promotes collaboration and language acquisition--an ideal equation for a successful ELL classroom!

Teacher feedback/student evaluation --The focus of oral presentations with ELL students should be on the practice and skills they are gaining, not on the grade or “score” they are earning. Teachers can give out a simple rubric before students create their presentations. Then students can keep these expectations in mind as they develop and practice their presentations. The teacher, or classmates, can then use the rubric to offer feedback to the speaker. We also often ask students to reflect on their own presentation and complete the rubric as a form of self-assessment. Figure 30.1 – “Presentation Peer Evaluation Rubric” , developed by talented student teacher Kevin Inlay (who is now a teacher in his own classroom), is a simple rubric we used to improve group presentations in our ELL World History class.

short presentation for students

Teaching Presentation Skills

We use the following two lesson ideas to explicitly teach how to develop effective presentation skills:

LESSON ONE: Speaking and Listening Do’s and Don’ts

We help our students understand and practice general presentation skills through an activity we call Speaking and Listening “Do’s and Don’ts.” We usually spread this lesson out among two class periods.

We first ask students to create a simple T-chart by folding a piece of paper in half and labeling one side “Do” and the other side “Don’t.” We then post Figure 30.2 “Speaking Do’s and Don’ts” on the document camera and display the first statement (the rest we cover with a blank sheet of paper).

We read the first statement, “Make eye contact with the audience,” and ask students if this is something they want to do when they are giving a presentation or if it is something they don’t want to do. Students write the statement where they think it belongs--under the “Do” column or “Don’t” Column. Students then share their answer with a partner and discuss why they put it in that column. After calling on a few pairs to share with the class, we move down the list repeating the same process of categorizing each statement as a “Do” or a “Don’t.” Students write it on their chart and discuss why it should be placed there.

After categorizing the statements for speaking, we give students Figure 30.3 “Listening Do’s and Don’ts .” We tell students to work in pairs to categorize the statements as something they do or something they don’t want to do when listening to a student presentation. This time, we ask students to make a quick poster with the headings “Do’s” and “Don’ts” for Listening. Under each heading students must list the corresponding statements--the teacher can circulate to check for accuracy. Students are asked to talk about why each statement belongs in each category and should be prepared to share their reasoning with the class. Students must also choose one “do” statement and one “don’t” statement to illustrate on their poster. Students can present their posters in small groups or with the whole class. This serves as a great opportunity to apply the speaking and listening “do’s” they just reviewed and heightens their awareness of the “don’ts!”

short presentation for students

A fun twist, that also serves as a good review on a subsequent day, is to ask groups of students to pick two or three “do’s” and “don’ts” from both Speaking and Listening to act out in front of the class.

LESSON TWO Slide Presentations Concept Attainment

We periodically ask students to make slide presentations using PowerPoint or Google Slides to give them practice with developing visual aids (see the Home Culture activity later in this section). We show students how to make better slides, along with giving students the language support they may need in the form of an outline or sentence starters. An easy and effective way to do this is through Concept Attainment.

Concept Attainment involves the teacher identifying both "good" and "bad" examples of the intended learning objective. In this case, we use a PowerPoint containing three “good” slides and three “bad” ones (see them at The Best Resources For Teaching Students The Difference Between A Good and a Bad Slide ).

We start by showing students the first example of a “good” or “yes” slide (containing very little text and two images) and saying, “This is a yes.” However, we don’t explain why it is a “yes.” Then we show a “bad” or “no” example of a slide (containing multiple images randomly placed with a very “busy background”), saying, “This is a no” without explaining why. Students are then asked to think about them, and share with a partner why they think one is a "yes" and one is a "no."

At this point, we make a quick chart on a large sheet of paper (students can make individual charts on a piece of paper) and ask students to list the good and bad qualities they have observed so far. For example, under the “Good/Yes” column it might say “Has less words and the background is simple” and under the “Bad/No” column “Has too many pictures and the background is distracting.”

We then show the second “yes” example (containing one image with a short amount of text in a clear font) and the “no” example (containing way too much text and using a less clear font style). Students repeat the “think-pair-share” process and then the class again discusses what students are noticing about the “yes” and “no” examples. Then they add these observations to their chart.

Students repeat the whole process a final time with the third examples. The third “yes” example slide contains one image, minimal text and one bullet point. The third “no” example, on the other hand, contains multiple bullet points.

To reinforce this lesson at a later date, the teacher could show students more examples, or students could look for more “yes” and “no” examples online. They could continue to add more qualities of good and bad slides to their chart. See the Technology Connections section for links to good and bad PowerPoint examples, including the PowerPoint we use for this Concept Attainment lesson.

You can learn more about other presentations that support public speaking, such as home culture presentations, speed dating, talking points, top 5 and PechaKucha Book talks in our book, “ The ELL Teacher’s Toolbox: Hundreds of Practical Ideas to Support Your Students .”

short presentation for students

Larry Ferlazzo has taught English Language Learners, mainstream and International Baccalaureate students at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento for 15 years. He has authored eight books on education, hosts a popular blog for educators, and  writes a weekly teacher advice column for Education Week Teacher .  He was a community organizer for 19 years prior to becoming a high school teacher.

short presentation for students

Katie Hull Sypnieski has worked with English Language Learners at the secondary level for over 20 years.  She currently teaches middle school ELA and ELD at Rosa Parks K-8 School in Sacramento, California. She is a teaching consultant with the Area 3 Writing Project at the University of California, Davis and has leads professional development for teachers of ELLs. She is co-author (with Larry Ferlazzo) of The ESL/ELL Teacher’s Survival Guide and Navigating the Common Core with English Language Learners .

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What Are Effective Presentation Skills (and How to Improve Them)

Presentation skills are essential for your personal and professional life. Learn about effective presentations and how to boost your presenting techniques.

[Featured Image]: The marketing manager, wearing a yellow top, is making a PowerPoint presentation.

At least seven out of 10 Americans agree that presentation skills are essential for a successful career [ 1 ]. Although it might be tempting to think that these are skills reserved for people interested in public speaking roles, they're critical in a diverse range of jobs. For example, you might need to brief your supervisor on research results.

Presentation skills are also essential in other scenarios, including working with a team and explaining your thought process, walking clients through project ideas and timelines, and highlighting your strengths and achievements to your manager during performance reviews.

Whatever the scenario, you have very little time to capture your audience’s attention and get your point across when presenting information—about three seconds, according to research [ 2 ]. Effective presentation skills help you get your point across and connect with the people you’re communicating with, which is why nearly every employer requires them.

Understanding what presentation skills are is only half the battle. Honing your presenting techniques is essential for mastering presentations of all kinds and in all settings.

What are presentation skills?

Presentation skills are the abilities and qualities necessary for creating and delivering a compelling presentation that effectively communicates information and ideas. They encompass what you say, how you structure it, and the materials you include to support what you say, such as slides, videos, or images.

You'll make presentations at various times in your life. Examples include:

Making speeches at a wedding, conference, or another event

Making a toast at a dinner or event

Explaining projects to a team 

Delivering results and findings to management teams

Teaching people specific methods or information

Proposing a vote at community group meetings

Pitching a new idea or business to potential partners or investors

Why are presentation skills important? 

Delivering effective presentations is critical in your professional and personal life. You’ll need to hone your presentation skills in various areas, such as when giving a speech, convincing your partner to make a substantial purchase, and talking to friends and family about an important situation.

No matter if you’re using them in a personal or professional setting, these are the skills that make it easier and more effective to convey your ideas, convince or persuade others, and experience success. A few of the benefits that often accompany improving your presentation skills include:

Enriched written and verbal communication skills

Enhanced confidence and self-image

Boosted critical thinking and problem-solving capabilities

Better motivational techniques

Increased leadership skills

Expanded time management, negotiation, and creativity

The better your presenting techniques, the more engaging your presentations will be. You could also have greater opportunities to make positive impacts in business and other areas of your life.

Effective presentation skills

Imagine yourself in the audience at a TED Talk or sitting with your coworkers at a big meeting held by your employer. What would you be looking for in how they deliver their message? What would make you feel engaged?

These are a few questions to ask yourself as you review this list of some of the most effective presentation skills.

Verbal communication

How you use language and deliver messages play essential roles in how your audience will receive your presentation. Speak clearly and confidently, projecting your voice enough to ensure everyone can hear. Think before you speak, pausing when necessary and tailoring the way you talk to resonate with your particular audience.

Body language

Body language combines various critical elements, including posture, gestures, eye contact, expressions, and position in front of the audience. Body language is one of the elements that can instantly transform a presentation that would otherwise be dull into one that's dynamic and interesting.

Voice projection

The ability to project your voice improves your presentation by allowing your audience to hear what you're saying. It also increases your confidence to help settle any lingering nerves while also making your message more engaging. To project your voice, stand comfortably with your shoulders back. Take deep breaths to power your speaking voice and ensure you enunciate every syllable you speak.

How you present yourself plays a role in your body language and ability to project your voice. It also sets the tone for the presentation. Avoid slouching or looking overly tense. Instead, remain open, upright, and adaptable while taking the formality of the occasion into account.

Storytelling

Incorporating storytelling into a presentation is an effective strategy used by many powerful public speakers. It has the power to bring your subject to life and pique the audience’s curiosity. Don’t be afraid to tell a personal story, slowly building up suspense or adding a dramatic moment. And, of course, be sure to end with a positive takeaway to drive your point home.

Active listening

Active listening is a valuable skill all on its own. When you understand and thoughtfully respond to what you hear—whether it's in a conversation or during a presentation—you’ll likely deepen your personal relationships and actively engage audiences during a presentation. As part of your presentation skill set, it helps catch and maintain the audience’s attention, helping them remain focused while minimizing passive response, ensuring the message is delivered correctly, and encouraging a call to action.

Stage presence

During a presentation, projecting confidence can help keep your audience engaged. Stage presence can help you connect with your audience and encourage them to want to watch you. To improve your presence, try amping up your normal demeanor by infusing it with a bit of enthusiasm. Project confidence and keep your information interesting.

Watch your audience as you’re presenting. If you’re holding their attention, it likely means you’re connecting well with them.

Self-awareness

Monitoring your own emotions and reactions will allow you to react well in various situations. It helps you remain personable throughout your presentation and handle feedback well. Self-awareness can help soothe nervousness during presentations, allowing you to perform more effectively.

Writing skills

Writing is a form of presentation. Sharp writing skills can help you master your presentation’s outline to ensure you stay on message and remain clear about your objectives from the beginning until the end. It’s also helpful to have strong writing abilities for creating compelling slides and other visual aids.

Understanding an audience

When you understand your audience's needs and interests, you can design your presentation around them. In turn, you'll deliver maximum value to them and enhance your ability to make your message easy to understand.

Learn more about presentation skills from industry experts at SAP:

How to improve presentation skills

There’s an art to public speaking. Just like any other type of art, this is one that requires practice. Improving your presentation skills will help reduce miscommunications, enhance your time management capabilities, and boost your leadership skills. Here are some ways you can improve these skills:

Work on self-confidence.

When you’re confident, you naturally speak more clearly and with more authority. Taking the time to prepare your presentation with a strong opening and compelling visual aids can help you feel more confident. Other ways to improve your self-confidence include practicing positive self-talk, surrounding yourself with positive people, and avoiding comparing yourself (or your presentation) to others.

Develop strategies for overcoming fear.

Many people are nervous or fearful before giving a presentation. A bad memory of a past performance or insufficient self-confidence can contribute to fear and anxiety. Having a few go-to strategies like deep breathing, practicing your presentation, and grounding can help you transform that fear into extra energy to put into your stage presence.

Learn grounding techniques.

Grounding is any type of technique that helps you steer your focus away from distressing thoughts and keeps you connected with your present self. To ground yourself, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and imagine you’re a large, mature tree with roots extending deep into the earth—like the tree, you can become unshakable.

Learn how to use presentation tools.

Visual aids and other technical support can transform an otherwise good presentation into a wow-worthy one. A few popular presentation tools include:

Canva: Provides easy-to-design templates you can customize

Powtoon: Animation software that makes video creation fast and easy

PowerPoint: Microsoft's iconic program popular for dynamic marketing and sales presentations

Practice breathing techniques.

Breathing techniques can help quell anxiety, making it easier to shake off pre-presentation jitters and nerves. It also helps relax your muscles and get more oxygen to your brain.  For some pre-presentation calmness, you can take deep breaths, slowly inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth.

While presenting, breathe in through your mouth with the back of your tongue relaxed so your audience doesn't hear a gasping sound. Speak on your exhalation, maintaining a smooth voice.

Gain experience.

The more you practice, the better you’ll become. The more you doanything, the more comfortable you’ll feel engaging in that activity. Presentations are no different. Repeatedly practicing your own presentation also offers the opportunity to get feedback from other people and tweak your style and content as needed.

Tips to help you ace your presentation

Your presentation isn’t about you; it’s about the material you’re presenting. Sometimes, reminding yourself of this ahead of taking center stage can help take you out of your head, allowing you to connect effectively with your audience. The following are some of the many actions you can take on the day of your presentation.

Arrive early.

Since you may have a bit of presentation-related anxiety, it’s important to avoid adding travel stress. Give yourself an abundance of time to arrive at your destination, and take into account heavy traffic and other unforeseen events. By arriving early, you also give yourself time to meet with any on-site technicians, test your equipment, and connect with people ahead of the presentation.

Become familiar with the layout of the room.

Arriving early also gives you time to assess the room and figure out where you want to stand. Experiment with the acoustics to determine how loudly you need to project your voice, and test your equipment to make sure everything connects and appears properly with the available setup. This is an excellent opportunity to work out any last-minute concerns and move around to familiarize yourself with the setting for improved stage presence.

Listen to presenters ahead of you.

When you watch others present, you'll get a feel for the room's acoustics and lighting. You can also listen for any data that’s relevant to your presentation and revisit it during your presentation—this can make the presentation more interactive and engaging.

Use note cards.

Writing yourself a script could provide you with more comfort. To prevent sounding too robotic or disengaged, only include talking points in your note cards in case you get off track. Using note cards can help keep your presentation organized while sounding more authentic to your audience.

Learn to deliver clear and confident presentations with Dynamic Public Speaking from the University of Washington. Build confidence, develop new delivery techniques, and practice strategies for crafting compelling presentations for different purposes, occasions, and audiences.

Article sources

Forbes. “ New Survey: 70% Say Presentation Skills are Critical for Career Success , https://www.forbes.com/sites/carminegallo/2014/09/25/new-survey-70-percent-say-presentation-skills-critical-for-career-success/?sh=619f3ff78890.” Accessed December 7, 2022.

Beautiful.ai. “ 15 Presentation and Public Speaking Stats You Need to Know , https://www.beautiful.ai/blog/15-presentation-and-public-speaking-stats-you-need-to-know. Accessed December 7, 2022.

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  • Inspiration

23 presentation examples that really work (plus templates!)

Three professionals engaged in a collaborative meeting with a Biteable video maker, a laptop, and documents on the table.

  • 30 Mar 2023

To help you in your quest for presentation greatness, we’ve gathered 23 of the best business presentation examples out there. These hand-picked ideas range from business PowerPoint presentations, to recruitment presentations, and everything in between.

As a bonus, several of our examples include editable video presentation templates from  Biteable .

Biteable allows anyone to create great video presentations — no previous video-making skills required. The easy-to-use platform has hundreds of brandable templates and video scenes designed with a business audience in mind. A video made with Biteable is just what you need to add that wow factor and make an impact on your audience.

Create videos that drive action

Activate your audience with impactful, on-brand videos. Create them simply and collaboratively with Biteable.

Video presentation examples

Video presentations are our specialty at Biteable. We love them because they’re the most visually appealing and memorable way to communicate.

1. Animated characters

Our first presentation example is a business explainer from Biteable that uses animated characters. The friendly and modern style makes this the perfect presentation for engaging your audience.

Bonus template:  Need a business video presentation that reflects the beautiful diversity of your customers or team? Use  Biteable’s workplace scenes . You can change the skin tone and hair color for any of the animated characters.

2. Conference video

Videos are also ideal solutions for events (e.g. trade shows) where they can be looped to play constantly while you attend to more important things like talking to people and handing out free cheese samples.

For this event presentation sample below, we used bright colours, stock footage, and messaging that reflects the brand and values of the company. All these elements work together to draw the attention of passers-by.

For a huge selection of video presentation templates, take a look at our  template gallery .

Business PowerPoint presentation examples

Striking fear into the hearts of the workplace since 1987, PowerPoint is synonymous with bland, boring presentations that feel more like an endurance test than a learning opportunity. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Check out these anything-but-boring business PowerPoint presentation examples.

3. Design pointers

This PowerPoint presentation takes a tongue-in-cheek look at how the speakers and users of PowerPoint are the problem, not the software itself.

Even at a hefty 61 slides, the vintage theme, appealing colors, and engaging content keep the viewer interested. It delivers useful and actionable tips on creating a better experience for your audience.

Pixar, as you’d expect, redefines the meaning of PowerPoint in their “22 Rules for Phenomenal Storytelling”. The character silhouettes are instantly recognizable and tie firmly to the Pixar brand. The bright colour palettes are carefully chosen to highlight the content of each slide.

This presentation is a good length, delivering one message per slide, making it easy for an audience to take notes and retain the information.

Google slides examples

If you’re in business, chances are you’ll have come across  slide decks . Much like a deck of cards, each slide plays a key part in the overall ‘deck’, creating a well-rounded presentation.

If you need to inform your team, present findings, or outline a new strategy, slides are one of the most effective ways to do this.

Google Slides is one of the best ways to create a slide deck right now. It’s easy to use and has built-in design tools that integrate with Adobe, Lucidchart, and more. The best part — it’s free!

5. Teacher education

Here’s a slide deck that was created to educate teachers on how to use Google Slides effectively in a classroom. At first glance it seems stuffy and businessy, but if you look closer it’s apparent the creator knows his audience well, throwing in some teacher-friendly content that’s bound to get a smile.

The slides give walkthrough screenshots and practical advice on the different ways teachers can use the software to make their lives that little bit easier and educate their students at the same time.

6. Charity awareness raiser

This next Google slide deck is designed to raise awareness for an animal shelter. It has simple, clear messaging, and makes use of the furry friends it rescues to tug on heartstrings and encourage donations and adoptions from its audience.

Pro tip: Creating a presentation is exciting but also a little daunting. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed — especially if the success of your business or nonprofit depends on it.

Prezi presentation examples

If you haven’t come across  Prezi , it’s a great alternative to using static slides. Sitting somewhere between slides and a video presentation, it allows you to import other content and add motion to create a more engaging viewer experience.

7. Red Bull event recap

This Prezi was created to document the Red Bull stratosphere freefall stunt a few years ago. It neatly captures all the things that Prezi is capable of, including video inserts and the zoom effect, which gives an animated, almost 3D effect to what would otherwise be still images.  

Prezi has annual awards for the best examples of presentations over the year. This next example is one of the 2018 winners. It was made to highlight a new Logitech tool.

8. Logitech Spotlight launch

What stands out here are the juicy colors, bold imagery, and the way the designer has used Prezi to its full extent, including rotations, panning, fades, and a full zoom out to finish the presentation.

short presentation for students

Sales presentation examples

If you’re stuck for ideas for your sales presentation, step right this way and check out this video template we made for you.

9. Sales enablement video presentation

In today’s fast-paced sales environment, you need a way to make your sales enablement presentations memorable and engaging for busy reps.  Sales enablement videos  are just the ticket. Use this video presentation template the next time you need to present on your metrics.

10. Zuroa sales deck

If you’re after a sales deck, you can’t go past this example from Zuora. What makes it great? It begins by introducing the worldwide shift in the way consumers are shopping. It’s a global phenomenon, and something we can all relate to.

It then weaves a compelling story about how the subscription model is changing the face of daily life for everyone. Metrics and testimonials from well-known CEOs and executives are included for some slamming social proof to boost the sales message.

Pitch presentation examples

Pitch decks are used to give an overview of business plans, and are usually presented during meetings with customers, investors, or potential partners.

11. Uber pitch deck

This is Uber’s original pitch deck, which (apart from looking a teensy bit dated) gives an excellent overview of their business model and clearly shows how they intended to disrupt a traditional industry and provide a better service to people. Right now, you’re probably very grateful that this pitch presentation was a winner.

You can make your own pitch deck with Biteable, or start with one of our  video templates  to make something a little more memorable.

12. Video pitch template

This video pitch presentation clearly speaks to the pains of everyone who needs to commute and find parking. It then provides the solution with its app that makes parking a breeze.

The video also introduces the key team members, their business strategy, and what they’re hoping to raise in funding. It’s a simple, clear pitch that positions the company as a key solution to a growing, worldwide problem. It’s compelling and convincing, as a good presentation should be.

13. Fyre Festival pitch deck

The most epic example of a recent pitch deck is this one for Fyre Festival – the greatest event that never happened. Marvel at its persuasion, gasp at the opportunity of being part of the cultural experience of the decade, cringe as everything goes from bad to worse.

Despite the very public outcome, this is a masterclass in how to create hype and get funding with your pitch deck using beautiful imagery, beautiful people, and beautiful promises of riches and fame.

Business presentation examples

Need to get the right message out to the right people? Business presentations can do a lot of the heavy lifting for you.

Simply press play and let your video do the talking. No fumbling your words and sweating buckets in front of those potential clients, just you being cool as a cucumber while your presentation does the talking.

Check out two of our popular templates that you can use as a starting point for your own presentations. While they’re business-minded, they’re definitely not boring.

14. Business intro template

Modern graphics, animations, and upbeat soundtracks keep your prospects engaged as they learn about your business, your team, your values, and how you can help them.

15. Business explainer template

Research presentation examples.

When you’re giving a more technical presentation such as research findings, you need to strike the perfect balance between informing your audience and making sure they stay awake.

As a rule, slides are more effective for research presentations, as they are used to support the speaker’s knowledge rather can capture every small detail on screen.

With often dry, complex, and technical subject matter, there can be a temptation for presentations to follow suit. Use images instead of walls of text, and keep things as easy to follow as possible.

16. TrackMaven research deck

TrackMaven uses their endearing mascot to lighten up this data-heavy slide deck. The graphs help to bring life to their findings, and they ensure to only have one bite-size takeaway per slide so that viewers can easily take notes.

17. Wearable tech research report

Obviously, research can get very researchy and there’s not a lot to be done about it. This slide deck below lays out a ton of in-depth information but breaks it up well with quotes, diagrams, and interesting facts to keep viewers engaged while it delivers its findings on wearable technology.

Team presentation examples

Motivating your team can be a challenge at the best of times, especially when you need to gather them together for….another presentation!

18. Team update template

We created this presentation template as an example of how to engage your team. In this case, it’s for an internal product launch. Using colorful animation and engaging pacing, this video presentation is much better than a static PowerPoint, right?

19. Officevibe collaboration explainer

This short slide deck is a presentation designed to increase awareness of the problems of a disengaged team. Bright colors and relevant images combine with facts and figures that compel viewers to click through to a download to learn more about helping their teams succeed.

Recruitment presentation examples

Recruiting the right people can be a challenge. Presentations can help display your team and your business by painting a dynamic picture of what it’s like to work with you.

Videos and animated slides let you capture the essence of your brand and workplace so the right employees can find you.

20. Company culture explainer

If you’re a recruitment agency, your challenge is to stand out from the hundreds of other agencies in the marketplace.

21. Kaizen culture

Showcasing your agency using a slide deck can give employers and employees a feel for doing business with you. Kaizen clearly displays its credentials and highlights its brand values and personality here (and also its appreciation of the coffee bean).

Explainer presentation examples

Got some explaining to do? Using an explainer video is the ideal way to showcase products that are technical, digital, or otherwise too difficult to explain with still images and text.

Explainer videos help you present the features and values of your product in an engaging way that speaks to your ideal audience and promotes your brand at the same time.

22. Product explainer template

23. lucidchart explainer.

Lucidchart does a stellar job of using explainer videos for their software. Their series of explainers-within-explainers entertains the viewer with cute imagery and an endearing brand voice. At the same time, the video is educating its audience on how to use the actual product. We (almost) guarantee you’ll have more love for spiders after watching this one.

Make a winning video presentation with Biteable

Creating a winning presentation doesn’t need to be difficult or expensive. Modern slide decks and video software make it easy for you to give compelling presentations that sell, explain, and educate without sending your audience to snooze town.

For the best online video presentation software around, check out Biteable. The intuitive platform does all the heavy lifting for you, so making a video presentation is as easy as making a PowerPoint.

Use Biteable’s brand builder to automatically fetch your company colors and logo from your website and apply them to your entire video with the click of a button. Even add a  clickable call-to-action  button to your video.

Share your business presentation anywhere with a single, trackable URL and watch your message turn into gold.

Make stunning videos with ease.

Take the struggle out of team communication.

Try Biteable now.

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14 Fun & Interactive Presentation Games for Teams and Students

14 Fun & Interactive Presentation Games for Teams and Students

So you've got an audience to energize, students to engage, or a team that needs a little extra fun — playing an interactive presentation game is an easy way to do just that.

We've done the research and found the best of these games for you: we looked specifically for games that are simple to set up, fun to play, and flexible enough to be used with a variety of presentations and audiences. Most of these activities work virtually with Zoom/PowerPoint and can also be used in person.

Which of these 14 presentation games do you like best? Take a look and let us know your favorites:

1. Live Trivia Competition

A great way to ramp up the excitement and engagement is to enable a little bit of friendly competition. Trivia is an easy way to do this—plus, it can be whole-group inclusive and large-audience friendly (if you use the right tools).

Here's a great trivia game you can run with your team, students, or any large audience. It's already created for you with questions and scoring built in to make it even easier:

Here's how to play:

  • Make a free account here: https://slideswith.com/  
  • Click the slide deck and copy it. 
  • Launch the trivia game by clicking "Start Event."
  • Invite your group to join in and submit answers using their mobile devices (show the winners automatically).
  • Interact and play during your presentation!

This trivia game has questions on many topics to keep your audience's attention and appeal to everyone. It only takes 10-15 minutes to play, so it's a great game for long discussions! Also, this interactive activity is free for up to ten participants and is totally customizable.

2. Sing and Swing 

To really liven up your group, encourage your listeners to play Sing and Swing. This activity is best for long presentations because it boosts energy, creates a fun, light-hearted environment, and makes people laugh a lot. 

Here's how to play: 

  • Before your presentation, pick a well-known song and rewrite the chorus (replace parts of it with words and phrases from your presentation) 
  • When you're ready to play, show the song on your screen. 
  • Invite your audience to sing it with you!

If you have a fun group or a class of energetic students, consider adding choreography to engage your audience even more. 

short presentation for students

3. 20 Questions

If you want a presentation game that requires your listeners to talk more than you, 20 Questions is the one to play! A classic and simple activity, this game immediately boosts engagement and gets people laughing. 

Here's how to play: Have someone put an appropriate image or word on the screen behind you (this can be an audience member you trust or a colleague or co-presenter). To make things more fun, put on a blindfold so that everyone knows you can't cheat. From there, ask 20 "yes or no" questions to guess what's displayed on the screen. Your group should respond "yes" or "no" to guide you to the correct answer. 

4. Scavenger Hunt Challenge

To get your audience out of their seats, a scavenger hunt challenge is one of the best interactive games for presentations. It'll immediately energize your audience , team, or students while giving them a fun way to learn.  

There are tons of in-person and virtual scavenger hunt ideas you can use to dive deeper into your topic or help everyone learn about one another. But if you want a ready-to-play game that you can instantly launch without having any tech skills, here's a fun one to play: 

  • Use an email address and password to create a free account here: https://slideswith.com/ (a free account guarantees up to ten people can play at no charge). 
  • Click the game and press "Copy and use this slide deck." 
  • In the top right corner, click "Start Event."
  • Ask listeners to join the game by using their mobile devices to scan the QR code. Players should continue using their mobile devices to submit answers to questions.
  • Have everyone start hunting for items! 

This activity is a particularly fun game because it's a photo-hunt, show-and-tell challenge! That means your audience will not only get out of their seats to find items, but they'll also get to take pictures and share and discuss photos of what they find. This conversational element will help engage your group! 

5. Group Word Clouds

Whether you're speaking to team members, students, or conference-goers, this activity lets you ask questions and get your listeners' thoughts on specific topics. 

This game is the perfect way to start your presentation, especially if you're discussing something with a wide range of opinions or are unsure how much your listeners know about a certain subject. Group Word Clouds is also beneficial if you want to do a quick meeting pulse or know how your listeners feel going into your presentation—understanding their energy levels and mood can help you adjust (if necessary) to get maximum engagement and excitement.

To enjoy this activity, keep things simple by using a tool that already offers a ready-to-play Group Word Clouds game. Here's a popular one you can launch immediately: 

  • Create a free account by entering an email and password here: https://slideswith.com/  
  • Click the game and then copy it (the button to do so is right underneath the slide deck).
  • Press "Start Event" in the top right corner. 
  • Tell participants to play by scanning the QR code. 
  • Create word clouds and have fun!

This interactive game only takes 5-10 minutes to play, so it's a fast, fun way to engage your audience and feel out the room. Players can use their mobile devices to answer questions. This activity is also free for up to 10 people and is easy to personalize.

6. The Get to Know You Game

This activity is one of the best presentation games if you have a small group that doesn't really know each other. The Get to Know You Game is a creative way to do introductions, and it's really simple.

Here's how to play the game: Before the event, ask group members to bring a favorite song or item to the presentation (you can do this by emailing them). When you're ready to play, ask each person to introduce themself, present their song or item, and explain why they picked it. For those sharing a song, have them play it on their phones before they explain why it's their favorite. 

7. Live Poll Questions 

When you have a large group, it's not easy to find ways to boost engagement—but poll questions are the solutions, especially when they're live and interactive. With this unique setup, large groups engage by answering questions and seeing their answers displayed in a fun way. 

Your job is to make sure you actually find a game that showcases responses uniquely to captivate your group. For a quick and great option, here's a popular icebreaker activity that promises to display responses using fun formats like word clouds, donut charts, live graphs, and per-player: 

  • Create an account for free to access the game:  https://slideswith.com/  
  • Click the slide deck and press the button to copy it. 
  • Look in the top right corner of the deck and press "Start Event."
  • Invite your group to play the game. They only need to use their mobile devices to scan the QR code. 
  • Start polling your audience!

This activity is one of those fun presentation games everyone will want to enjoy, so invite all of your team members and students to participate. This game can accommodate up to 250 players and takes 5-10 minutes to complete. Tell your group to use their mobile devices to submit their responses. 

8. Assumptions 

This interactive game is a great way to break up your presentation to see who's paying attention and who can answer questions pertaining to your topic. 

  • Ask your audience to stand up (for virtual presentations, make sure everyone's video is on). 
  • Show true or false statements on the screen one by one. 
  • Tell people to raise a hand if they think the statement is correct and sit down if they think it's incorrect.
  • Continue until one person is left standing.
  • Award the winner. 

This activity can be as short and challenging as you want. Also, if your presentation is long, you can play multiple rounds to break up your speaking time and test your audience throughout your discussion.  

short presentation for students

9. Controversial Questions 

Want to see where your audience, students, or team lands on controversial topics? Then, energize your presentation with a fun, creative game called Controversial Questions. This activity has prompts that inspire lively debates, so it's a great way to get your group excited and chatty. 

However, to maintain a positive environment, make sure to find a tool that offers an office-friendly, classroom-friendly, and conference-friendly game. You don't want to sour the mood by creating uncomfortable division during your presentation. To make sure this game is fun and light-hearted, here's a popular one that's suitable for all audiences and ages: 

  • Sign up for a free account by inputting an email address and password here:  https://slideswith.com/pricing  
  • Click the game and press the button that says, "Copy and use this deck." 
  • Press "Start Event" (the button is in the top right corner). 
  • Have participants join the fun by asking them to scan the QR code with their mobile devices. 
  • Get controversial and play! 

This interactive game for presentations asks fun (but appropriate) questions like:

  • Does pineapple belong on pizza?
  • Does the person flying in the middle seat get both armrests?
  • Should the toilet roll go over or under? 

Players should use their mobile devices to submit answers. Up to ten people can play for free, and you can customize the game by updating the questions!

10. Word of the Day 

With this activity, you can keep your audience, team, or students engaged throughout your entire presentation. This  game requires listeners to be alert and recognize whenever you say the word of the day. 

Here's how to play: At the beginning of your presentation, tell your group the word of the day (it can also be a phrase if you'd prefer). Say that you'll weave the word into your presentation and that your audience must shout it out whenever you mention it. 

11. Mini Activity: Group Icebreaker

Whether you're doing an in-person or virtual presentation, you need to warm up your audience to get things started on a positive note. The best way to do that is with a quick icebreaker game. 

However, make sure your questions are fun, positive, and engaging. You can easily do this by finding a game that already has the best icebreaker questions included. Here's one that's ready to play (and requiring no tech skills to launch): 

  • Input an email address and password to make a free account here: https://slideswith.com/  
  • Click the deck and copy it (press "Copy and use this deck). 
  • Click the button in the top right corner that says "Start Event."
  • Invite participants to play by asking them to scan the QR code. 
  • Break the ice to warm up your audience!

Your group should use their mobile devices to submit responses to poll questions. Also, this game accommodates up to 250 players, but only ten people can join for free.

12. Process of Elimination 

This activity is one of the best games for presentations because it's simple yet fun and great at helping listeners get to know each other. You can play it at the beginning of your presentation or in the middle to give your group a chance to stretch their legs. 

  • Before your event, create a list of "yes or no" questions. 
  • Once you're ready to play, tell your group to stand up (if you're doing a virtual presentation, make sure everyone's video is on). 
  • Ask each question one by one. 
  • Tell attendees to stand if their answer is "yes" and sit if their answer is "no." 

The questions can relate to your topic or be totally random. Also, if you'd prefer to thin out the number of people standing, you can take a creative twist and ask your questions by saying something like this: "Stay standing if (insert scenario)." When phrasing each question this way, the game will end with one person standing. To acknowledge the winner, you can give them a round of applause or award them a prize. 

13. Conference Opener Icebreaker 

If you're speaking at a big conference, you need an interactive game for presentations that can get everyone involved and ensure every voice is heard. To achieve these goals, you should create an icebreaker game that works for large groups . 

Using an easy, intuitive template is the best step to take. That way, you don't have to start from scratch or spend hours making your game. For a template that requires no code or tech-savviness to build on, here's the best option: 

  • Sign up by making a free account here: https://slideswith.com/  
  • Click on the game. On the next page, click the button to copy and use the deck. 
  • Customize the template using the instructions HERE . 
  • During your presentation, press "Start Event" in the top right corner. 
  • Ask the group to use their mobile devices to scan the QR code and join the fun. (Also, make sure participants use their mobile devices to submit answers.) 
  • Play and engage your audience!  

This template has fun, interactive features built in to keep your large audience engaged. Those features include polls, word clouds, and ratings. Just make sure you sign up for a paid plan to accommodate the large number of people in your group—the free account only works for up to ten players. 

14. Two Truths and a Lie 

This classic game is a fun, energizing way to help your listeners get to know one another. It's perfect for small in-person or virtual groups and is an ideal activity for the beginning of your presentation. 

Here's how to play: Pick any topic (for the purposes of this article, the topic will be "movies"). In no particular order, say two movies you've really watched and one you haven't watched. Ask your audience to guess which statement is the lie. The winner picks the next topic and says two truths and a lie. 

Be Memorable With Presentation Games

Oftentimes, people forget presentations within a week or even days, and that's because the discussions are boring. But you don't work hard preparing a presentation for it to be forgotten. If you want your message to stick, all you have to do is make it enjoyable without being corny.  

If you want to be remembered and actually get people engaged, you need to make your presentation fun and enjoyable, without coming off as corny or desperate to please. Ivan Dimitrijevic, 10 Secrets of Making Every Presentation Fun, Engaging, and Enjoyable

Luckily, the interactive presentation games in this article are unique and exciting—they're far from corny. So, use them for your upcoming presentations to make your messages compelling and memorable. 

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Education  |  Sep 21 2019

5 Interactive Presentations Ideas that will Engage Students

Interactive presentations should always be an educator’s goal. Dry, teacher-centered lectures lose students’ interest, while interactive presentations grab and hold attention. Getting students involved improves retention, understanding, and enjoyment. And it’s remarkably easy to involve the audience with just a few easy principles (especially with the right technology at your disposal).

Start creating interactive presentations with the tips and tricks below or get more insights on modern education technology.

Students today expect the classroom to be both educational and enjoyable at the same time. Interactive presentations help engage students by having them participate in the lessons instead of passively listening to lectures. This reduces boredom and gives students a sense of responsibility to be attentive.

A Gallup Poll  of about 3,000 schools shows that around the 5 th  grade 74% of students feel they are engaged in school, but by the 10 th , 11 th , and 12 th grade those numbers fall to the 30% range. It is important for educators from K-12 and on to higher education to recognize that keeping students engaged in the classroom is important and the adoption of interactive learning environments can be a key driver.

Millennials and Generation Y students are especially accustomed to being a part of the lessons and not just a spectator. Students are encouraged to talk and offer their ideas to create a collaborative atmosphere where both teachers and students are sources of knowledge and insight. The teacher plays more of a facilitator role in moving the lesson along and encouraging students to participate in their own learning outcomes. Students offer their own input, additional information, and give examples of how they would apply the key concepts.

The learning task is the central aspect of the interactive presentations (instead of the teacher’s energy level and hold on the students’ attention spans) and the lessons evolve around it. Even though the teacher is normally, the ‘presenter’ in most cases the ‘interaction’ part comes in a variety of ways to get students participating in the lesson. Many activities, games, role-plays, quizzes, and discussions  can be integrated into the presentation flow and the lessons will take different directions from there. We will discuss later many examples of tools and techniques to encourage collaborations.

5 Interactive Presentations Ideas that will Engage Students

Technological Aid in Interactive Presentations

Although interactive presentations can be done without technology, it is greatly aided with the adoption of tools designed to facilitate the learning process. For example, a quiz is given in the middle of the presentation. On one side, traditionally a teacher can write the quiz before the lesson starts, print out copies for all students, pass out the quiz, and collect answers. To provide feedback for the exercise the teacher will also need to grade and start a discussion on the results before moving on to the next topic. This process is time-consuming and restrictive.

With technological aid such as an interactive digital whiteboard or a classroom quizzing application on individual devices, the students and teacher can come up with the quiz questions on the spot. This digital quiz can be administrated wirelessly to all students and within seconds, the results can be shared with all participants to discuss. This greatly increases spontaneity, variability, and class involvement.       

5 Interactive Presentations Ideas and Corresponding Technology Aids

5 Interactive Presentations Ideas that will Engage Students

1. Storytelling

The teacher does not have to be the only star. The glory of the presentation can go to all participants who have a story to tell. The main concepts can be discussed and students should be given time to come up with a personal example. This exercise helps students relate to the subject matter and getting to listen to other students’ examples will drive home the concepts further. The need for the teacher to plan extensive examples and be the only one talking during the presentation is reduced. Teachers can also judge by the stories shared how much the students are understanding.

Storytelling with technology: Many digital whiteboards have Cast and Throw functions that will allow students to work on their own examples on their devices and send this to the whiteboard when sharing. This allows students to quickly go up and share their stories without sending files by email, wires, or USBs.

non-liner_presentation

2. Non-linear presentation

Presentations that do not follow a strict order but organically flow from topic to topic based on the audience’s feedback are a great way to engage participants. Once prepared, the presenter can flow from one topic to the next by asking questions, polling, or receiving requests at the end of each key point. This allows the audience to ‘build’ their own presentation on what they want to hear not in a rigid manner as with traditional slide-based presentations.

Non-linear presentation with technology : There are non-linear presentation applications like  Prezi which helps presenters build presentations on easy-to-customize templates. They offer a zoomable canvas (not slides) to help people share knowledge, stories and inspire audiences to act. The canvas shows relationships between points and offers a recommended flow but not a set path to follow.

polls,surveys&quizzes

3. Polls, surveys, and quizzes

One of the most recognizable and used tools in the classroom to get a fast reaction from students are polls, surveys & quizzes. For polls, simple questions that have limited answers are used to gather a consensus. This could be in the form of a raise of hands, ballots, or having students form groups. Surveys would require printed paper sheets with multiple choices, scales, or short answers to gather opinions. Quizzes are used to quickly test a student’s knowledge on what was just covered, so the class can identify weak areas and crystalize main concepts.

Polls, surveys, and quizzes can be anonymous or not. Openly requiring students to share their ideas on results such as a debate or open discussion would increase the interactives of the activity. Students can also be tasked to create questions and grade their own surveys and quizzes for an added layer of participation within the presentation.

Polls, surveys, and quizzes with technology : Many classroom management software such as  Google Classroom has built-in tools to create polls, surveys, and quizzes along with assignments, communication, and other educational features. Once submitted, the collection and grading are instantaneous. The results can be shared easily with students both individually or as a group. 

games

Is there a student – of any age – who does not like a good game, contest, or competition? Adding a small game into a presentation breaks up the normal lecture format and gets the audience to think critically to help their team win. There are many versions and adaptions of basic educational games . Teachers can take games such as Pictionary, Jeopardy, Casino, and Bingo then adapt them to their needs. 

ViewSonic Originals

Free interactive teaching materials

Gamifying your interactive presentation : By integrating into the presentation links to applications like  ClassCraft  or  Kahoot a teacher can quickly launch an interactive digital game. These applications help teachers tailor their own games by adding their questions, facts, and materials for individuals, small teams, or the whole class to participate.

discussion&group breakout sessions

5. Discussions and groups breakout sessions

Having the class only listen to a lecture marks the end of any interactive presentation. Adding sections where students can have an open discussion or breakout sessions can help students learn from each other, share insights, and have an opportunity to ask questions to their peers. It is also an opportunity for the teacher to take a break from talking and help small groups or students individually as the rest of the class converse.

Taking the discussion online for interactive presentations : Live discussion applications like  NowComment  allow students to markup and discuss a text in real-time which is great for peer-review activities and gather student input into one place quickly. Alternatively, Yo Tech is great for teachers to create and moderate real-time chat rooms. Students can send text-like messages, reply to other messages, and share pictures and drawings. Online chat groups are a great way for large groups of students to collaborate and interact in one place while keeping the noise level down in a classroom.

Tips for Creating Interactive Presentations

Here are some tips when creating a presentation that has interactive components:

Add in places within your lecture notes or presentation slides reminders for you to engage the audience. This could be a small image or phrase. When using digital whiteboards or other display technology you could also use a sound, empty slide, or pop-up link to prompt you to start.

Time Limits

It is great to keep going a good game or discussion in the class where everyone is really engaged. However, keep the maximum amount of time you can dedicate to these activities in mind. Have a watch or a timer on hand and keep things moving. Give enough time for students to get engaged without overdoing it. Spread out chances for students to talk and share. When it is time to move on to the next topic prepare a transition to the next part of the presentation.

Think of ways to let all students have a chance to share. You can select students randomly or have them take turns in some kind of order. Remind students that this is a learning activity and not everyone will get it right the first time. The interactive activity should be open and inclusive. Students who are introverted may be given activities that can be done without going to the front of the class or public speaking.

Benefits of Having Interactive Components in Your Presentation

  • Retention:  Actively having students engage with the concepts of the presentation in different ways and hearing it from different people (besides the teacher) helps with long-term retention.
  • Personalization:  Students are given the choice of where the presentation is heading and participate in their own learning outcomes.
  • Fun:  Having a break from the routine, getting a chance to move around, developing teams, and sharing are all much better than sitting silently and taking notes. 
  • Feedback:  Adding interactive activities into a presentation gives you instant feedback about students’ comprehension.
  • Vocalization: Having students actually vocalize their ideas helps them internalize the concepts.
  • Summarization: Students review and summarize their own main points while doing the activities so there is less need for repetition.

short presentation for students

ViewSonic Education

Learning Solutions For the Future

Build Your Own Version of Interactive Presentations for Your Next Lesson

Bringing in the interactive components and increasing the engagement of your presentations will both help you – a teacher – and your students. Make presentations both educational and entertaining with Edutainment! With or without technology, consider incorporating some new ideas into your next interactive presentation.

If you liked reading this article, you might also want to explore our complete guide to technology in the classroom or gain more insights on engaging lessons with ViewSonic’s education solutions.  

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