Presentations- Aims

Stating the aim of a presentation

Some of the lines on the next page are not an aim (i.e. not a goal/ a purpose/ an objective/ what you want to achieve), so cross them off. There is no need to think about which are good aims and which are bad aims yet, just cross off the ones which are not aims at all.   

What is the function of the lines which aren’t aims?

Which lines are just the topic/ subject/ theme/ title (not what you want to achieve)?

Look again at the ones which are aims (and so are not crossed off). Which are not suitable with the people here now as the audience? Why not?

Hint: Of the remaining 13 aims, there are three which probably aren’t achievable and one which is probably true before the presenter starts speaking.

Underline the generally useful language for talking about aims in the good phrases and use that to help with writing good aims, first for the ones which have unrealistic or already true aims, then for the ones which only have topics.

In pairs, write different possible aims for another possible presentation, e.g. your future presentation, then choose the best.

If you discussed your own future presentation, check that the content of your presentation matches your aim(s).

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Good and bad examples of presentation aims to check and improve

1. The aim of my presentation is to help you remember to switch things off instead of putting them on standby.
2. I’d like to let you know about the Africar, a wooden car for developing countries.
3. I want to tell you why Peter Rabbit is so popular in Japan.
4. By the end of this presentation I hope to have persuaded you to switch majors to maths.
5. I aim to convince you that chocolate is delicious.
6. I’ll explain the differences between a kangaroo and a wallaby.
7. I am presenting this information so that you will be more informed next time you choose where to go on holiday.
8. I hope that after this presentation you will take more interest in Africa next time you see it mentioned on the news.
9. I intend to stop you eating burgers.
10. I want to inform you about volunteering in the greater Tokyo area.
11. I will feel that this presentation has been successful if most of you cut down on the CO2 emissions that you are responsible for at least a little.
12. I will tell you about temple restoration in Kyoto.
13. I’ll discuss whether Japan should join free trade areas like the EU.
14. I’ll look at the next generation of mobile phone technology.
15. I’ll talk about the influence of Japanese anime on recent American animated films.
16. I’ve chosen to present three ways the Japanese economy should change in the future.
17. My goal is to make you think twice before buying a sugary drink.
18. My objective is for at least some of you to sign an online petition about article nine of the Japanese constitution.
19. My purpose in presenting this to you is for you to consider Jaguar whenever you might be able to next buy a car.
20. The purpose of my presentation is to change your mind about Oregon.
21. The subject of this presentation is using the New York subway system.
22. What I’d like to explain in my presentation is why the content of Japanese school history textbooks causes so much controversy abroad.
23. Although I’ll give you quite a lot of information about St Nevis, I’ll be satisfied if most of you just remember from now on that it exists and maybe more or less where it is.
24. I will present my ideas for improving this building.
25. After my presentation, I hope you will be able to make at least three origami shapes that will wow people at parties, and so help spread the message that it’s not just for kids.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hint: Twelve examples above aren’t aims.

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Good aims, bad aims and not aims suggested answers

1. The aim of my presentation is to help you remember to switch things off instead of putting them on standby. – A good aim
2. I’d like to let you know about the Africar, a wooden car for developing countries. – Not an aim
3. I want to tell you why Peter Rabbit is so popular in Japan. – Not an aim
4. By the end of this presentation I hope to have persuaded you to switch majors to maths. – An aim, but not realistic
5. I aim to convince you that chocolate is delicious. – An aim, but probably true before the presentation starts
6. I’ll explain the differences between a kangaroo and a wallaby. – Not an aim
7. I am presenting this information so that you will be more informed next time you choose where to go on holiday. – A good aim
8. I hope that after this presentation you will take more interest in Africa next time you see it mentioned on the news. – A good aim
9. I intend to stop you eating burgers. – An aim, but unrealistic
10. I want to inform you about volunteering in the greater Tokyo area. – Not an aim
11. I will feel that this presentation has been successful if most of you cut down on the CO2 emissions that you are responsible for at least a little. – A good aim
12. I will tell you about temple restoration in Kyoto. – Not an aim
13. I’ll discuss whether Japan should join free trade areas like the EU. – Not an aim
14. I’ll look at the next generation of mobile phone technology. – Not an aim
15. I’ll talk about the influence of Japanese anime on recent American animated films. – Not an aim
16. I’ve chosen to present three ways the Japanese economy should change in the future. – Not an aim
17. My goal is to make you think twice before buying a sugary drink. – A good aim
18. My objective is for at least some of you to sign an online petition about article nine of the Japanese constitution. – A good aim
19. My purpose in presenting this to you is for you to consider Jaguar whenever you might be able to next buy a car. – A good aim
20. The purpose of my presentation is to change your mind about – An aim, but not realistic for most audiences
21. The subject of this presentation is using the New York subway system. – Not an aim
22. What I’d like to explain in my presentation is why the content of Japanese school history textbooks causes so much controversy abroad. – Not an aim
23. Although I’ll give you quite a lot of information about St Nevis, I’ll be satisfied if most of you just remember from now on that it exists and maybe more or less where it is. – A good aim
24. I will present my ideas for improving this building. – Not an aim
25. After my presentation, I hope you will be able to make at least three origami shapes that will wow people at parties, and so help spread the message that it’s not just for kids. – A good aim

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Suggested answers with improved versions

1. The aim of my presentation is to help you remember to switch things off instead of putting them on standby.
2. I’d like to change your mind about the future of cars by looking at the story of the Africar, a wooden car for developing countries.
3. I want to convince you that children’s book characters are historically significant by telling the story of Peter Rabbit in Japan.
4. By the end of this presentation I hope to have persuaded you to be less scared of even scary-looking maths.
5. I aim to convince you that chocolate is not just delicious, but also a vital part of most healthy diets.
6. I’ll try to persuade you that classifying animals can be interesting with the example of the kangaroo and the wallaby.
7. I am presenting this information so that you will be more informed next time you choose where to go on holiday.
8. I hope that after this presentation you will take more interest in Africa next time you see it mentioned on the news.
9. I intend to make you think twice before you next eat a burger.
10. I hope at least one or two of you will volunteer after I show you how easy it is to do in…
11. I will feel that this presentation has been successful if most of you cut down on the CO2 emissions that you are responsible for at least a little.
12. I expect most of you will find your next temple visit more interesting, aided by what you learn about how they are constructed, illustrated with a tale of temple restoration in Kyoto.
13. I want to shake up your certainties about free trade with a discussion on whether Japan should join free trade areas like the EU.
14. I predict that many of you will wait to update your smartphones after my look at the next generation of mobile phone technology.
15. You’ll almost certainly look at Pixar films differently after I talk about the influence of Japanese anime on recent American animated films.
16. I’ve chosen to present three ways the Japanese economy should change in the future, something that I hope you will keep in mind the next time you vote or look for a job
17. My goal is to make you think twice before buying a sugary drink.
18. My objective is for at least some of you to sign an online petition about article 9 of...
19. My purpose in presenting this to you is for you to consider Jaguar whenever you might be able to next buy a car.
20. The purpose of my presentation is to put Oregon in your top 5 places to visit in the US.
21. I hope you will appreciate public transport here more after hearing about using the New York subway system.
22. What I’d like to explain is why the content of Japanese school history textbooks causes so much controversy abroad, making you fully understand both sides of the argument.
23. Although I’ll give you quite a lot of information about St Nevis, I’ll be satisfied if most of you just remember from now on that it exists and maybe more or less where it is.
24. I will present my ideas for improving this building as hopefully the first step in organising a campaign to make some improvements happen in the near future.
25. After my presentation, I hope you will be able to make at least 3 origami shapes that will wow people at parties, and so help spread the message that it’s not just for kids.