Sentence Structure in PowerPoint

[Guest]

I have a team member in my class that insists that all sentences in
PowerPoint must be full sentences. I stated that with bullets, it is a
highlight of the information that is being presented. (i.e. "The earnings
for the company and it's subsidiaries was a dividend claim of + $0.225 per
share)
On the PowerPoint it would be noted as follows: Companiy earnings increase
of $0.225 per share.

Or am I wrong in this thought....

 

[Guest]

I would tend to agree with you if it is for a presentation. If you are
giving this out for people to read on their own (in place of a report), the
sentences might be better. Generally, the more verbose you are, the less
likely anyone is to get anything from your slides.
--David

David M. Marcovitz
Author of _Powerful PowerPoint for Educators_
http://www.loyola.edu/education/PowerfulPowerPoint/

 

[Sonia]

Nope, you're not wrong. It's a matter of choice and style, but I prefer yours.
The slides should *support* the information that the presenter is communicating.
Too many words and you'll lose your audience while they read the slide and tune
you out.

 

[Guest]

Thank you so much David,

I have read your book, it is a honor to have your response. I truly
appreciate the quick response.

Megan Diliberto

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

I have a team member in my class that insists that all sentences in
PowerPoint must be full sentences. I stated that with bullets, it is a
highlight of the information that is being presented. (i.e. "The earnings
for the company and it's subsidiaries was a dividend claim of + $0.225 per
share)
On the PowerPoint it would be noted as follows: Companiy earnings increase
of $0.225 per share.

Or am I wrong in this thought....

It's more a matter of style and preference than of right and wrong.

I'm with you, fwiw: If the bullet points are complete sentences, they should
be punctuated accordingly, with a period at the end. That's "full stop" for
you folks who spell the opposite of b/w so colourfully.

If the bullet points are just phrases, I don't think periods are necessary (and
in fact I find them distracting; it makes me think that the previous words were
supposed to hold together as a sentence, and they don't.)

The spelling of "it's" in your original sentence *is* incorrect, though. ;-)
A matter of right and wrong, not of preference and style, that one.

 

[Bill Dilworth]

Hi Megan,

Be careful that you do not convey a wrong misleading meaning. Perhaps
"Dividend $0.225/share" would be both shorter and more accurate. (Not all
earnings are passed along as dividends)

The goal of PowerPoint*, when used in support of a live presenter, is to
highlight and reinforce key points and ideas*. So, think of it as 'what
would I highlight if this were a book I needed to study?' We've all seen
the people who highlight every single word in the whole book. In college, I
knew one girl with a 4 highlighter a week habit. We called her 'Old
Yellow', but what was interesting about her was that when it came time to
study, she had no idea what was the important core ideas*. The basic key
points were hidden in a sea of emphasis. Sometimes the presenter will help
you understand what they want to emphasize*, sometimes you will be left to
your own accord. Your job, as a PowerPoint presentation builder, is to
decide what are the core thoughts and display those as clearly* as is
possible to the audience.

PowerPoint
Key Points & Ideas
What's Core?
Emphasis
Thoughts displayed clearly


However, as Sonia and David both said, PowerPoint can be used for a number
of situations where there is not a presenter present. In those cases,
PowerPoint must carry the full load. The displayed thoughts can not be
fragments, but will need to be supported by full sentence structure.

The distinction is very important. A presenter that reads the slides to me
is redundant and insulting. Slides that repeat back most of what the
presenter says, are mostly redundant and insulting. Slides that give me
brief phrases or ideas assist in filing the information learned.
--

Bill Dilworth
Microsoft PPT MVP Team
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