[Blindtlk] giving a speech

Fri Sep 5 13:06:01 UTC 2014

I don't use power point when doing presentations, but I have tried lots of 
different approaches and perhaps something in here will be useful to you.

I tried putting my notes in my Braille Note and reading them with either the 
audio or the Braille.  Neither worked very well for me.  the ear piece is 
distracting because I couldn't listen to my notes and what the students 
would ask.  Because every time I paused to check my notes the silence seemed 
to invite discussion.  My presentations have discussion as a key element, so 
I didn't want to discourage it in any way.

The Braille worked better.  It did seem to distract the students a bit 
though.  The Braille Note was something that no one had seen before and 
there'd be questions.  That's okay, to a point.  I would also loose my place 
a lot or I'd have to switch between files, which took longer than I really 
liked.

Then I tried using my iPad.  this didn't distract the students because it is 
a familiar device.  I tried several aps, but found that I lost my place way 
too frequently for this to be practical.  Of course I had the problem of not 
being able to really listen to the students that I had with the Braille Note 
audio.

Currently I am using hard copy Braille.  Yes, the most basic approach is 
working the best for me.  I keep everything in a big 3 ring binder.  I have 
my notes on one page, then a page with pockets with the hand outs for that 
particular topic.  Everything is together and organized.  If I decide we are 
running short on time, it is way easier to flip forward, skipping a section 
in the middle, getting to the part I want much faster.  After each 
presentation I review what worked and what didn't.  It's easy for me to pull 
out parts that I want to replace with new ideas or activities.  It's also 
easy to swap around the order if I need to do that to accommodate different 
lengths of presentation time, group size or whatever.  The students don't 
seem distracted by the paper Braille.  After all reading from paper in a 3 
ring binder is a pretty common event.

HTH
Julie

-----Original Message----- 
From: Gary Wunder via blindtlk
Sent: Friday, September 05, 2014 7:16 AM
To: 'justin williams' ; 'Blind Talk Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] giving a speech

Hello, Justin. I hope my responses not so late that it is irrelevant.

I have done very little with PowerPoint presentations, but Humanware says
that it can read PowerPoint presentation so that you can narrate them. Were
you to do this, you might not need to use an ear piece.

What was presented at the convention encourages using textual recordings
played through an Victor Stream or some other reading device that you then
repeat out loud. I think this technique has great potential, but I don't
think it is something that you try on Thursday and present with on Friday. I
think it is definitely possible to listen to the spoken word from
synthesized speech and then to present it in a spoken form that has feeling
and emphasis. Before I did that, however, I would want to try it several
times, using a tape recorder so that I could listen to my own work and see
whether it sounded natural. I think you will have to work on such things as
pacing the presentation, figuring out how to pause it if you get applause or
questions, and figuring out a way to smoothly go back and listen to
something that you didn't quite understand, while not allowing for an
uncomfortable pause in your presentation. My take then is that I think this
technique, promoted most strongly by Bruce Gardner, is a very good one to
consider and to learn. I don't think it is one that you can implement at the
last minute.

Warmly,

Gary

-----Original Message-----
From: blindtlk [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of justin
williams via blindtlk
Sent: Wednesday, September 03, 2014 8:42 AM
To: 'Blind Talk Mailing List'
Subject: [Blindtlk] giving a speech

I have a PowerPoint presentation to give. at my disposal is a laptop, and a
braille display.  I use jaws.  The hang up is trying to distinguish when a
slide has notes or not.  I could use an ear piece, but a visual ear piece
may take away from the presentation.  Is there a wireless earbud I can buy
which is invisible once it is placed in the ear?  Also, There was a method
discussed for giving presentations at the convention, but I have not been
able to catch the workshop. I want the speech to be a fluid and as seamless
as possible.  Any ideas will be well received.  Elsewise, I will have to
wing it.

Thanks,

Justin.

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