presentation.md 7.9 KB
Presentation / Briefing Template
Back to Markdown Style Guide — Read the style guide first for formatting, citation, and emoji rules.
Use this template for: Slide-deck-style documents, research presentations, briefings, lectures, walkthroughs, or any content that would traditionally be a PowerPoint. Designed to read well as a standalone document AND to serve as speaker-ready presentation notes.
Key features: Collapsible speaker notes under every section, structured flow from context through content to action items, figure captions, and footnote citations.
How to Use
- Copy this file to your project
- Replace all
[bracketed placeholders]with your content - Delete sections that don't apply (but keep the core flow)
- Add/remove content topics (H3s under 📚 Content) as needed
- Follow the Markdown Style Guide for all formatting
- Add Mermaid diagrams wherever a concept benefits from a visual
Template Structure
The presentation follows a 6-section flow. Each section has an H2 with one emoji, content, and optional collapsible speaker notes.
1. 🏠 Housekeeping — Logistics, context, announcements
2. 📍 Agenda — What we'll cover, with time estimates
3. 🎯 Objectives — What the audience will walk away with
4. 📚 Content — The main body (multiple H3 topics)
5. ✍️ Action Items — What happens next, who owns what
6. 🔗 References — Citations, resources, further reading
The Template
Everything below the line is the template. Copy from here:
[Presentation Title]
[Context line — project, team, date, or purpose]
🏠 Housekeeping
- [Logistics item or announcement]
- [Important deadline or reminder]
- [Any prerequisite context the audience needs]
💬 Speaker Notes
- **Timing:** 2–3 minutes for this section - **Tone:** Conversational, get the room settled - [Specific note about announcement context] - [Transition line:] "With that covered, here's our plan for today..."📍 Agenda
- Housekeeping (3 min)
- Topic 1 name
- Topic 2 name
- Topic 3 name
- Action items and Q&A (10 min)
Total: [estimated time]
💬 Speaker Notes
- Reference this agenda when transitioning between topics - If running long on a topic, note what you'll compress - "We have a natural break around the halfway point" - Adjust timing based on audience engagement — questions are good🎯 Objectives
After this presentation, you'll be able to:
- [Action verb] [specific, measurable outcome]
- [Action verb] [specific, measurable outcome]
- [Action verb] [specific, measurable outcome]
💬 Speaker Notes
- Reference these objectives throughout the presentation - "This connects back to our first objective..." - At the end, revisit: "Let's check — did we hit all three?" - **Strong action verbs:** Identify, Analyze, Compare, Evaluate, Design, Implement, Explain, Distinguish, Create, Apply📚 Content
[Topic 1 title]
[Opening context — why this matters, what problem it solves]
Key points:
- [Point 1 with brief explanation]
- [Point 2 with brief explanation]
- [Point 3 with brief explanation]
Image placeholder: images/slide-[filename].png
Figure 1: [What this image demonstrates]
💡 Key insight: [The one-liner the audience should remember from this topic]
💬 Speaker Notes
### Teaching strategy - **Open with a question:** "[Engaging question for the audience]?" - Take 2–3 responses - "Good thinking. Here's how this actually works..." ### Core explanation (3–5 min) - Start with the definition/concept - Walk through step by step - Use a real-world example: "[Specific scenario]" ### Common misconceptions - **What people think:** [Misconception] - **What's actually true:** [Reality] - **How to address it:** [Reframe] ### Transition - "Now that we understand [concept], let's look at how it applies to..."[Topic 2 title]
[Context and explanation]
Comparison of approaches:
| Approach | Best for | Tradeoffs |
|---|---|---|
| [Option A] | [Scenario] | [Pro/con] |
| [Option B] | [Scenario] | [Pro/con] |
| [Option C] | [Scenario] | [Pro/con] |
flowchart LR
accTitle: [Short title for this diagram]
accDescr: [One sentence describing what the diagram shows]
step1[⚙️ Step one] --> step2[🔍 Step two] --> step3[✅ Step three]
[Explanation of what the diagram shows and why it matters]
💬 Speaker Notes
### Walk through each option (5–6 min) **Option A:** - "Used when [scenario]" - "Advantage: [benefit]" - "Disadvantage: [drawback]" **Option B:** - "Used when [scenario]" - "Advantage: [benefit]" - "Disadvantage: [drawback]" ### Decision-making exercise - Ask: "Given [scenario], which would you choose?" - Take responses, discuss reasoning - "In practice, professionals choose based on [criteria]" ### Real-world example - "[Company/project] chose Option B because [reasoning]" - "The result was [outcome]" - "This matters because [relevance to audience]"[^1][Topic 3 title]
[Context and explanation]
Process:
- [First step with explanation]
- [Second step with explanation]
- [Third step with explanation]
⚠️ Common pitfall: [What goes wrong and how to avoid it]
[Deeper explanation, examples, or data supporting the topic]
💬 Speaker Notes
### Interactive element - Pause at step 2: "What happens next?" - Take guesses before revealing step 3 - "Why does this matter? Because [stakes]" ### If audience is advanced - Skip the basics, jump to: "[Advanced angle]" - Challenge question: "What if [scenario changed]?" ### If audience is struggling - Slow down, repeat the analogy - "Think of it like [simple comparison]" - Offer to cover more in Q&A ### Timing - This should take about [N] minutes - If running long, compress the [specific part]✍️ Action items
Next steps
| Action | Owner | Due |
|---|---|---|
| [Specific action item] | [Person/team] | [Date] |
| [Specific action item] | [Person/team] | [Date] |
| [Specific action item] | [Person/team] | [Date] |
Key takeaways
- [Takeaway 1] — [one sentence summary]
- [Takeaway 2] — [one sentence summary]
- [Takeaway 3] — [one sentence summary]
💬 Speaker Notes
- Walk through each action item explicitly - "Who owns this? When is it due?" - "Questions about any of these?" - Revisit the objectives: "Did we hit all three?" - "Thank you for your time. I'm available for follow-up at [contact]."🔗 References
Sources cited
All footnote references from the presentation are collected here:
[^1]: [Author/Org]. ([Year]). "[Title]." [Publication]. https://example.com
Further reading
- Resource title — Why this is useful
- Resource title — What it provides
Tools mentioned
- Tool name — Purpose and how to access
💬 Speaker Notes
- "These resources are available in the shared document" - "Start with [specific resource] — it's the most practical" - "If you want to go deeper, [specific resource] covers the advanced topics"Last updated: [Date]