Preparing an Outline for an Oral Presentation

I) Introduction A) Outline is good idea for all language tasks 1) Listening – note what was said – remember later 2) Reading – note what you read – don’t have to read book again 3) Writing – organize ideas before writing – know where you’ll go 4) Speaking – organize ideas before speaking – know where you’ll go B) Thesis - How to make outline for speaking – not reading a speech II) Don’t write full sentences A) Use keywords – remember what you want to say B) 200 – 250 words should be good for 5 – 1- minute presentation III) Divide the outline into three to five sub-topics A) Too many subtopics = boring list B) Subdivisions within subtopics = connections between subtopics 1) Greater detail about each subtopic 2) Multiple levels – as far as needed (see below) IV) Give Rich Details A) The more details, the better B) Details must relate to the topic above V) Setup the outline in Word A) Choose Format / Bullets and Numbering B) Multlevel / Outline Numbered C) Customize D) Set each indent at 0.4 more than the previous level 1) The third level (a) The fourth level (i) The fifth level  The sixth level  The seventh level  The eighth level  The ninth level E) Rarely use more than three levels F) Change levels 1) [TAB] changes to the next lower level 2) [SHIFT] + [TAB] changes to the next higher level