PowerPoint Project

Before constructing the PowerPoint Presentation, spend some time reflecting on your website goals and objectives and your target audience. This would be a very good time to decide whether you are interested in building a WebQuest - as was suggested in Part 3 of the Technology Forum.  If you wish to follow that recommendation, then consider how your PowerPoint presentation can serve the goals and objectives of your WebQuest. You could create a link to the PowerPoint presentation in the WebQuest to serve some facet of the WebQuest.  Later, in Module 8, when you are required to build an Interactive Project, you will be well on your way to completing the requirements of Part III of that module.  All that you might need to do at that point is to make sure that you have created the necessary instructions for students - an appropriate rubric for evaluating student work/performance -- and perhaps the construction of a simple online quiz into which they can submit information as a way to check student understanding of critical knowledge. 

To learn a little bit about PowerPoint, its history, and both support for and criticism against the software, you might begin by reading information at http://www.answers.com/topic/microsoft-powerpoint  

When you are ready to begin the PowerPoint Project, ask yourself the following questions:

• What is the function of the PowerPoint in the website/WebQuest?  How can I tie it to objectives that I hope my target audience will achieve?
• How can I increase the interaction between the presenter and the audience during the presentation?
• Why is it important to include only brief text points on any given PowerPoint slide?
• Why is it essential to have more information to present than just the information available on a given slide?
• Why should a presenter be prepared to NOT read the slides in the presentation?

Your PowerPoint project must contain/include the following features.  It must contain

1. SUBSTANCE.  The key to a good PowerPoint is SUBSTANCE, good solid information with "conceptual" depth, based on information gathered from sites selected during the Excel project and connected conceptually to the goals and objectives developed for your course webfolio.  In addition, you may wish to include additional information from other websites, from books, teachers' guides, textbooks, etc.
2. a detailed script of all information that you will present -- written into the notes view of the appropriate PowerPoint slide...
3. a detailed script in Microsoft Word that contains the script, divided according to slide, that you can use when presenting the PowerPoint (Learn about the "Send to" function under the File menu on PowerPoint -- After writing your script in the notes section of PowerPoint, you can "Send to" Microsoft Word and automatically create a Word document that shows the slides and notes already divided for you -- very nice feature!)
4. at least 10 slides
5. A slide that offers a list of objectives that a target audience will achieve by the end of the PowerPoint Presentation. It can be a hidden slide in your PowerPoint.
6. A slide that contains a concept map of your PowerPoint Presentation built using Inspiration software.  For each slide in the PowerPoint, there will be one icon on the concept map.  It can be a hidden slide in your PowerPoint.  
7. At least two graphics (one must be "borrowed" from the Internet)
8. Text of two different colors
9. At least two elements included on the Master Slide.  In other words, there must be two common elements on all slides...that connect your presentation in some way.  Think about navigation buttons and a copyright notice if nothing else.
10. Automatic animated WordArt
11. Autoshape "filled" with a color to which you have added "fill effects"
12. "Transitions" between some of the slides
13. At least one "hidden" slide [see # 3]
14. Animated text [WordArt] on at least two slides
15. At least one "original" drawing [using PowerPoint's draw/paint tools]
16. A set of navigational buttons that are hyperlinked to key slides [see #6]. You can use Action Settings to set action of the navigation buttons
17. A portion of text or picture hyperlinked to a key location on the internet

BE PREPARED to present your PowerPoint presentation in its entirety when you present your completed webfolio to the course instructor!!

For those of you you who like to go the extra mile:

18. Create a handout and/or worksheet for your audience to use during presentation
19. Create a slide that says STOP -- on which you ask review questions (or whatever) to increase audience participation
20. Insert your Microsoft Excel Project into your PowerPoint (HINT: Use the Insert menu and insert it as an "object
21. Insert sound clip(s)
22. Insert video clip(s)

When preparing to present your webfolio, your PowerPoint presentation is limited to FIFTEEN minutes....NO MORE!! So practice...practice....PRACTICE before presenting...and consider hiding a few slides if necessary!!  When you are using the PowerPoint with your students or parents, you can present the full-blown version.

If you need help, here are links to wonderful PowerPoint tutorials!

• Don't forget to start by using the Help Menu at the top of the screen, on the menu bar
• PowerPoint in the Classroom - Excellent tutorial provided by Microsoft
• Brief tutorials from Microsoft on various features of PowerPoint -- with audio!!
• Excellent PowerPoint tutorial - in depth
• http://www.wcu.edu/ccenter_inf/CatOnline/MSPP/
• Microsoft Tutorials on Various Versions of PowerPoint

Click here to see how you will be graded on this project!

Good Luck