Table of contents
Practising
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Rehearse your presentation in front of your friends, a camera, or a mirror. Pay particular attention to your body language and your voice.
- Be aware of your posture.
- Use appropriate hand and body gestures.
- Make eye contact with your audience.
- Use pauses, intonation, and emphasis.
- Speak loudly and clearly and not too quickly.
Practise better speaking strategies and speaking from notes.
Speaking from notes
Practise turning the key words in your notes into sentences that are connected to each other. This is quite difficult at first, and you may find that there are many pauses, stumbles, and 'ums'. The more you practise, however, the more fluent you will become.
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Better speaking strategies
Check pronunciation of key vocabulary using a good dictionary or with an informed native speaker. This is essential.
Record your presentation or practise with a classmate. In this way, you will know if your voice is too soft, too loud, too boring, or too jerky. Do this several times if necessary and aim for as smooth and clear a delivery as possible.
Get your intonation right when emphasising major points, making asides, asking questions, and making statements. If you need to improve in terms of pronunciation and intonation, feel free to come in and seek advice at Language and Learning.
Remember to use silence. Pause before important points; pause when you are about to move to another section of your presentation.
Do not just read from your notes! Practise speaking naturally, glancing at your notes ocassionally to confirm where you are in your presentation.