Formal Presentation — Skinny¶

Standard: 9-10.C.1 — Give formal presentations that present ideas clearly, using appropriate language, eye contact, speaking rate, volume, and relevant multimedia support Applies across: All studios — any studio exhibition, research presentation, or public demonstration of learning Integrated with: C.6 (discussion skills), W.3 (explanatory), W.4 (argument), IR.1–5 (research) NDSBL Target: 3.0 score Estimated Time: 15–30 min prep + presentation time Subject: ELA — Communication

What You Need to Know (Score 2.0)¶

A formal presentation is not a casual conversation — it is a prepared communication designed to inform or persuade a specific audience in a structured format. At the 2.0 level, you can deliver a basic presentation that covers the content. At the 3.0 level, you can calibrate every element — language, delivery, visuals, structure — to the specific audience and purpose.

Formal Register: Language appropriate to an academic or professional context — complete sentences, standard grammar, vocabulary suited to the topic, no filler words ("um," "like," "you know"). Formal register is different from your conversational voice, but it should still be natural.
Informal Register: Conversational language — contractions, slang, incomplete sentences — appropriate among friends but not in formal academic presentations. Using informal register in a formal presentation signals to the audience that you haven't prepared.
Eye Contact: Looking at your audience rather than reading from notes or a screen. Eye contact signals confidence, invites engagement, and shows you know your material well enough to not need to read it.
Speaking Rate: How fast or slowly you speak. Too fast: the audience can't follow; too slow: they disengage. Pausing before major points emphasizes importance.
Volume: Projecting enough that everyone can hear, even at the back. Volume also conveys confidence. Dropping volume at the end of sentences is a common habit that signals uncertainty.
Multimedia Support: Visual aids (slides, images, video clips, artifacts) that enhance the presentation — illustrating a point that's hard to say verbally, or showing evidence that supports your claim. Multimedia should add to the presentation, not just repeat what you're saying.
Claim: What you're arguing or explaining — the central idea you want the audience to walk away with. In a formal presentation, the claim should be stated explicitly early.
Organization: A presentation should have a clear structure: opening (state your topic and claim), body (develop with evidence and examples), closing (summarize and land the main takeaway). The audience should always know where they are.

Basic Processes: - [ ] Prepare an opening that states your topic and central claim. - [ ] Prepare a closing that restates the main takeaway. - [ ] Use notes (not a full script) — bullet points only; you should know your material. - [ ] Practice at least once aloud before presenting. - [ ] Choose any multimedia for what it adds, not just because it looks good.

A student who can score a 2.0: A student who reads from their slides — covering the content but with their back to the audience, no eye contact, a flat delivery that doesn't make the audience feel the material matters.

The Standard (Score 3.0)¶

9-10.C.1 — Give formal presentations that present ideas clearly, using appropriate language, eye contact, speaking rate, volume, and relevant multimedia support

To meet this standard, your presentation must be clearly organized, audienced appropriately, delivered with confidence (no reading from a script), and supported by multimedia that enhances rather than replaces your words.

3.0 Example: A student presenting research on the Versailles Treaty's role in WWII opens by stating the central claim directly: "Today I'm arguing that the Versailles Treaty's terms did more to create World War II than Hitler's ideology — and I'll show you exactly how." The student speaks in full sentences without reading, makes eye contact with different parts of the room, and pauses after key statistics to let them land. The slides contain images (a political cartoon of Versailles from 1919, a graph of German unemployment 1930–1933), not text blocks — the student explains the visuals verbally. When reaching the counterclaim, the student explicitly signals: "Now, here's the strongest argument against what I'm saying — and why I don't think it holds." The presentation structure is clear: the audience always knows what claim is being developed and where in the argument they are.

The Difference: A 2.0 student covers the same information while reading from notes, with slides full of bullet points that duplicate what they're saying. A 3.0 student delivers with eye contact and pacing, uses multimedia that adds to rather than replaces the spoken content, and structures the presentation so the audience follows the argument.

Going Further (Score 4.0)¶

To reach a 4.0, your presentation must demonstrate real-time audience awareness — adapting to your audience's questions, confusion, or engagement rather than just delivering a prepared script.

Transfer Tasks: 1. Q&A handling: A presentation that falls apart in the Q&A isn't fully mastered. Prepare to field at least three likely questions — and during the presentation, invite the hardest question you can anticipate: "The strongest counterargument here is probably X — let me address that directly." 2. Audience calibration: Present the same information to two different audiences (peers vs. teachers vs. younger students). Identify specifically what you changed for each — vocabulary, assumed knowledge, examples used, how much you explained vs. how much you asserted. 3. Use of evidence in real-time: Rather than just presenting your argument, demonstrate your research live — pull up a primary source and walk the audience through your reading of it. Show the process, not just the conclusion.

4.0 Example: A student presenting research on the Haitian Revolution ends their presentation by inviting the class to challenge the most contested claim — "Was the Haitian Revolution a universal model for liberation, or is it inseparable from its specific historical conditions?" The student is genuinely uncertain about one aspect and says so: "I haven't fully resolved whether the Haitian case proves Enlightenment ideals work for everyone or whether it's actually a refutation of them — and I'd like to hear what you think." This is not confusion — it is the mark of a student who has thought deeply enough about the topic to understand where the genuine uncertainty lies, and who is using the presentation as a real intellectual exchange, not just a performance.

Multimedia That Adds Value¶

Multimedia should do something your words alone can't — or can't do as well: - Primary source images (political cartoons, photos, maps) — the audience can see the source you're analyzing rather than just hearing your description of it - Data visualizations (graphs, timelines) — showing a trend is clearer than describing it - Audio/video clips (30–60 seconds max) — hearing MLK's cadence rather than just reading his words - Artifacts or handouts — primary sources the audience can examine during discussion

Multimedia that does NOT add value: - Slides that repeat your words — you are the presentation, the slide is the support - Decorative images with no connection to the content - Long video clips that do the presenting for you - Slides with 10+ bullet points (the audience reads instead of listens)

Demonstration of Learning — Choose One¶

How will you show you know this standard? Pick one mode.

#	Mode	What You Do for This Specific Standard
1	Written Assessment	Not the primary demonstration mode for C.1 — but you can write a detailed preparation document: outline, slides plan, anticipated questions and responses. Submit alongside a brief reflection on how you would deliver the presentation.
2	Extended Writing	Write a "Presentation Transcript + Commentary": the script of a presentation you would give (using formal register throughout), with marginal annotations explaining your delivery choices — where you'd pause, what multimedia you'd use, how you'd handle the Q&A.
3	Verbal Conversation	Deliver a 3–5 minute formal presentation on a topic from your current studio. Must include: stated claim, organized argument with evidence, at least one multimedia element, and a Q&A portion (at least 2 questions).
4	Visual/Creative	Create a complete presentation deck (8–12 slides) for a topic from your current studio. Slides should contain only visuals and key data — no text blocks. Write a one-sentence "speaker note" for each slide explaining what you would say.
5	Multimedia/Performance	Record a 3–5 minute formal presentation to camera. Must use: formal register, no script-reading, at least one piece of multimedia support (shown on camera), and a clear organization (opening claim, body, closing takeaway).
6	Portfolio Annotation	Select a previous presentation or speech you delivered. Write a 200-word reflection using C.1 criteria: Was the claim clear? Was the language appropriately formal? Was there eye contact / no script-reading? Did multimedia add value? What specifically would you change?

Scale Tasks¶

[ ] 2.0 task: Write an opening for a presentation (3–4 sentences). State: (1) your topic, (2) your central claim, (3) your structure ("I'll show X in three parts: ..."). Read it aloud twice — check for formal register.
[ ] 3.0 task: Record a 2-minute practice run of one section of your presentation. Watch it back. Note: How many times did you look at your notes instead of the camera/audience? Were there filler words? Did you explain your multimedia or just point at it?
[ ] 4.0 task: Invite a peer to ask you the hardest question they can think of about your presentation topic. Give an answer on the spot — without notes. Then reflect: What did you know well enough to answer? Where did you realize you have a gap?