These show and tell lesson bundles start with two examples of a written presentation at good and exceptional level. I use this lesson with first year senior high school students (CEFR A2 level). It can also be used in a junior high school setting.
Students will write their own presentation. The worksheets include useful phrases and a guide of what to include in each section. This activity could be assigned as holiday homework. It is inevitable that if writing is completed at home a translation took is likely to be used. I share my thoughts about what I see as the benefits of translation tools in written work in this post about being a good audience member.
Why Should My Class Make Presentations?
The main purpose of these show and tell presentations is to be able to present smoothly and coherently in English. When starting out, all scaffolding is useful it doesn't matter if that support is gathering ideas in Japanese first, using preset phrases, following a template or even using a machine translation. The end goal is the presentation and the included assesment rubric addresses whether students understand what they are presenting. A problem that can arise if machine translation is used.
Do Students Need To Memorise Their Presentation?
Should students use a script? This comes down to the individual teacher to decide. You know your class best. In an ideal world I would say no scripts. Minimal note cards only. If you are using accompanying PowerPoint presentations I would also limit the English on them to key words only. In practice, I have found it difficult in class to steer my students away from holding the full script. Sadly, the time we have to prepare for presentation day is usually limited.
I place more value on projection, posture, gestures and breathwork than if the script has been memorised. I am still looking for natural flow and rhythm but I don't ban scripts from the presentation podium. When reading from a script students sound like robots and don't score highly on the natural flow section of assesment rubric. Likewise students that are just reeling off their script like a memorised shopping list also don't score well in this section.
Exploring Different Styles of Spoken English
I think more natural off the cuff presentation styles arise during debates and natural adlib language useage comes out during converstions.
Presentations are a style of their own, keeping the audience engaged is a large factor in what makes a presentation successful. A well researched presentation such as innovations in technology and how it links to sustainable development goals SDGs should be persuasive. Show and Tells should be engaging, making the listener intrigued to find out more about the item which is being described.
I have a range of presentation lesson bundles available, you may like:
Show & Tell: This item is precious because...
Show & Tell: My Favorite Room
Show & Tell: My Summer Vacation
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