Creating an Effective Board Presentation

1
Creating an Effective Board Presentation

• Mercer Science and Engineering Club
• 3 Creek Rim Drive
• Titusville , NJ 08560

2
Overview

• The starting point good research
• Why is the presentation important
• What needs to be included
• Laying out the board
• Choosing fonts and figures
• Simplify, simplify, simplify
• Construction Tips

KISS (Keep it simple, stupid)
3
Good Research Its a start

• You cant hide bad research with a fancy
  presentation
• Good research does not sell itself
• Not all details are equally important
• You will know what should be presented. It is
  simply a matter of how.
• A research paper and research documents
  complement a presentation

4
Why The Presentation Is Important

• It helps sell your project and results
• Elementary and Junior Division
• Entries are judged exclusively on the
  presentation
• Senior Division
• Judging includes both the presentation and an
  oral defense
• The presentation is the backdrop for the oral
  defense

5
Presentation Components I

• Required
• Board
• Abstract (can be on its own stand)
• Recommended
• Research paper
• Research documents
• Detailed results
• Abstract handouts

6
Presentation Components II

• Optional
• Audio/video presentation if it augments the
  static, board presentation
• Project artifacts if useful for oral presentation
  (senior division)
• Artifacts built by student (photos recommended)
• Not Recommended
• Project artifacts not used for oral presentation
• Tools used for experimentation

7
What The Presentation Does

• Attracts attention to the project
• Provides the initial introduction to viewers of
  the project (i.e. judges)
• Provides organized overview of the project
• Visual aid when describing a project
• Helps students organize their thoughts when
  describing their project to judges
• A picture is worth a thousand words

8
Target Your Audience

• Decide who is the target audience
• Judges, teachers, parents, students
• Design presentation to use terms familiar to the
  target audience
• Explain unfamiliar terms or procedures
• Use drawings and explanations that target the
  audiences level of understanding

9
Presentation Tells A Story

• The board should speak for itself
• Photos and drawings should enhance the story, not
  the way the presentation looks
• The sequence of the story should be obvious

10
What needs to be included on the board

• Title
• Problem
• Hypothesis
• Materials
• Methods
• Data
• Analysis
• Conclusion
• Abstract (may be free standing)

• Recommended items
• Benefits
• Optional items
• Future plans
• Photograph acknowledgements

Photograph taken by
11
What NOT to include on the board

• Your name
• Name or logo of school or affiliation
• Sponsors
• Photos of identifiable people
• Remember, it is the experiment that is important
• Caveat photos relevant to the experiment can be
  included

12
More on Photos

• Photos of researcher can be included only if they
  are showing something relevant to the research
  that could not be shown otherwise
• No photos showing identifiable people
• Any photographs showing identifiable people,
  other than the student investigator(s), must have
  a signed release form
• No photographs of body parts or tissue, except
  those allowed by ISEF rules

13
Laying out the board

• Model it first. Its easier

Project Title
Problem
Data
Photos
Analysis
Hypothesis
Methods
Materials
Conclusion
14
Where The Eye Goes

• Decide what, when and where a viewer should look

Project Title
Title 1st
Problem 2nd
Data 3rd
Analysis 4th
Problem
Data
Photo
Analysis
Hypothesis
Methods
Materials
Conclusion
15
Choosing fonts and figures

• Donts
• MiXiNg Ffhts IS nft a gsod Idea
• Too many colors are bad
• Dos
• Fonts tips
• Figures and Photos
• Constructing a complex page

16
Font Tips I

• Use as few fonts as necessary
• San serif fonts like Arial work best on
  presentations
• Use serif fonts in research paper
• Use fonts like Cooper for titles
• Look for free fonts on Internet
  (www.1001freefonts.com)
• NEVER USE ALL CAPS
• It is hard to read
• Use Bold, Italic or Color instead

17
Font Tips II

• Use same font and color for similar uses such as
  explanations of the Problem or Conclusion
• Choosing font size
• Must be readable from at least 3 feet away
• Size should be related to surrounding text
• Size should indicate the texts importance
• Titles should not giant while explanations are
  microscopic

18
Figures and Photos

• Should be viewable from at least 3 feet away
• Figures should be as simple as possible
• Use thick, not thin lines
• Use colors judiciously
• Use legends when necessary
• Scan and print photos
• Allows captions and acknowledgements to be
  included on same piece of paper
• Annotations like arrows can be added

19
Taking Photos

• Take lots of photos of the same thing
• Choose the best
• Different angles can eliminate glare and
  highlight aspects of the project
• Try close ups, multiple items in photo
• Where does the photo fit in the story
• Scan and edit photos
• Crop allows larger images, eliminates extraneous
  details
• Print and try adjustments a printed image looks
  different from it viewed on a display
• Digital cameras Always use highest resolution

20
Constructing A Page

• KISS use a single page of paper for each item
  if possible
• Generate pages using a word processor,
  presentation or drawing program
• Use color printer to add borders and background
• Dont forget to try landscape page orientation

21
Simplify, simplify, simplify

• KISS Less is better. Clutter is bad.
• Eliminate redundant or unimportant information
• Keep titles and sentences short and concise
• Only show figures or photos that help explain key
  points
• Leaves more space for other information

22
Construction Tips I

• KISS
• Double sided tape for mounting paper/photos
• Always use a paper cutter
• Borders
• Print borders on paper
• Use a matte or colored paper to back paper
• Colored board background
• Highlights items placed on board
• Buy colored background
• Spray paint

23
Construction Tips II

• Maximize white background on paper
• Minimizes print time and cost
• Simplifies combining multiple pages
• Use photo matte or glossy paper
• Thicker paper, nothing shows through
• Works well with double sided tape
• Best for photos and figures
• Use same type of paper throughout presentation.
  Differences stand out.

24
Gotch yas

• Always use a spell checker
• Use a grammar checker
• Read the rules !!!
• Catch errors early get multiple critiques from
  the initial layout design to the final product
• Remember the ISEF abstract

25
Video Presentations

• The board should not require the video
  presentation
• Do not duplicate board contents in presentation
• Video presentation should show something that is
  more easily explained using a movie or animation
  versus a figure or photo
• Do not include video presentation if it is
  unnecessary
• Keep video presentation simple and short
• Video presentation should run automatically

26
More Suggestions

• Peer review
• Have students critique boards for extra credit
• Rate boards on how well they explain a project
• Use simplified judging forms
• Involve other teachers
• Make them aware of the projects and goals for
  improving the students presentation skills
• English effective text descriptions
• Math and science methods of presenting data
• Computer use of tools to create complex pages

27
Summary

• Good research means good artifacts (results)
• Presentation is important because it is selling
  your project and its results
• Include all relevant information
• Board layout catches the eye and explains the
  details
• Text and figures must be readable from a distance
  
• Remember KISS but complexity is relative