February 2025: Teaching Effective Presentation Delivery

I’m a confident speaker in pretty much every situation I’ve been put in, and it’s a skill that aided all my presentations in my Masters degree. But, I’m aware it doesn’t come naturally to everyone, so recently, my good friend and former classmate Harry Solomons and I worked with master's students, guiding them through the art of building and delivering engaging presentations. 

Harry, a lecturer and former stand-up comedian, is an experienced speaker. My background in lighting design has given me plenty of experience presenting in client boardrooms and debating on construction sites. Together, we devised a method to teach presentation skills in a fun, engaging way.

Getting the group going with an introduction and settling in

The course was split into two three-hour sessions. The first focused on structuring content, and the second on delivery. We started with the golden rule of presentation structure:

Tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you’ve told them.

This framework gives the audience a clear roadmap and reinforces key points. Next, we explored storytelling, helping students shift from linear information dumps to compelling narratives. One exercise involved seamlessly sneaking a given keyword into a conversation. The challenge of making “the shark from Jaws” fit into a discussion about the Great Fire of London led to plenty of laughter and reinforced how to make ideas flow naturally.

Enjoying the relief of finishing our strange storytelling narrative!

Many students will need to showcase physical prototypes and lead live demos in their careers, so we also covered strategies for incorporating interactive elements into presentations effectively. Through the first session, we also covered making content purposeful and intentional, so that every slide is utilised and necessary, including a discussion on example slides that need improvement.

Working through understanding the tasks.

The second session focused on delivery: voice modulation, body language, and strategic pauses. We kicked off with Word Bounce, where students repeated the same word with varying tone and gestures, responding to their partner’s cues. Inspired by the Meisner technique, this exercise highlighted the impact of non-verbal communication.

Reviewing poetry phrasing

Next, we practiced breathing, pacing, and pausing using poetry readings. Students first read a poem privately, noting punctuation and emphasis, then projected their voice across the room, ensuring clarity and engagement beyond the front row.

Getting ready for poetry presentation

We then discussed the importance of adapting to the presentation environment—considering standing position, audience arrangement, eye contact, and even external factors like lighting, background noise, or presenting right before lunch.

Since presentations rarely go perfectly, we tackled handling the unpredictable. What if the laptop won’t connect? What if someone throws a tough question? Our strategy:

Repeat the question, take a breath, and if unsure, gracefully deflect or reframe it.

We also emphasised the importance of acknowledging audience input: better to welcome curiosity than get caught off guard.

To wrap up, students applied everything they’d learned in group presentations on random topics. They built, refined, and rehearsed their presentations before facing a mock audience, which tested their ability to think on their feet.

Delivering the last task - produce and deliver a presentation!

Watching them put it all together—clear structures, engaging storytelling, confident delivery—was incredibly rewarding. Some were initially nervous, but by the end, everyone showed significant improvement. Later, we observed their final presentations to external project partners, tutors, and classmates. We saw polished structures, strong body language, and calm responses under pressure—exactly the progress we aimed for. We couldn’t be prouder!