Deciding What to Reveal and When
Not everything on the aid should be visible for all ten minutes; strategic reveals keep the aid tied to the specific moment it supports. You'll learn techniques for staged reveals.
Why Timing Matters
If the entire aid is visible from the start, the audience may look ahead and stop listening to the current point, or feel confused seeing content the speech hasn't explained yet. Revealing parts of the aid only when they become relevant keeps audience attention synced with the spoken content.
Reveal Techniques
Common techniques include flip panels that open to reveal a new image, overlays or flaps that cover content until pulled back, and multi-panel boards where a new panel is turned to face the audience for each area. Whatever the mechanism, it should be smooth and pre-practiced so it doesn't create an awkward pause.
A speaker's tri-fold board has three flaps, one over each content area's key diagram.
During area one, she lifts flap one to reveal the bridge-types diagram exactly as she begins explaining bridge types. Flaps two and three stay closed, so the audience isn't distracted by content she hasn't reached yet. She has practiced lifting each flap without looking down, so the motion is smooth and doesn't break eye contact with the audience.
1. Why might revealing the entire aid at the start of the speech be a poor choice?
Answer all 1 to check.
Stage your reveals so each part of the aid appears exactly when it becomes relevant to the spoken content.