Giving a 4-H Presentation and Demonstration

Giving a 4-H Presentation

Planning

The first step is to decide the topic for your presentation.

Parts

The three parts of the demonstration or speech:

1. Introduction:

  • Grab the audience’s attention with a quick story, question, quote, joke or another method.
  • Tell the audience your personal information (name, age, 4-H club, years in 4-H).
  • Tell the audience the theme or topic of your talk — this is when you tell the audience, in a short sentence, what you are going to tell them in the next part of your presentation.

2. Body: Tell the audience the information.

The body of the presentation is the longest part of your presentation and should take up most of your time. The body should include the main points (or steps) of the presentation in an organized order. For example, when making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, the steps you give the audience might be to:

  1. gather ingredients/supplies,
  2. put peanut butter on bread,
  3. put jelly on bread, and
  4. put the pieces together to form a sandwich.  Your presentation will probably be much more detailed than this!

3. Conclusion: Tell the audience the information that you just told them.

The presenter should use one or two paragraphs to summarize their presentation by restating the main points of your talk. During your conclusion, you should always:

  • Ask if there are any questions from the audience. Make sure to repeat any questions asked so everyone in the audience can hear what is asked.
  • After questions are done, end with “thank you.” You can also say, “thank you, that concludes my presentation.” This lets the audience know you are finished and they can applaud!

Performing

There are a lot of things to remember when you are “performing” your speech or demonstration. For right now, we are going to focus on four important steps that will help your audience follow your presentation. We will use the acronym “P.A.V.E.” to remember these steps:

P:  Pace
The easiest mistake to make as a speaker is to talk too fast! Practice your presentation in front of an adult or your siblings and ask them to tell you if you talk too fast. It is a good idea to talk especially slow while you share very important points in your presentation.

A: Audience
Remember your audience by making eye contact and smiling.

V: Volume
Make sure your audience can hear you. Don’t be afraid of a microphone — it is there to help you!

E: Energy
Be excited about your topic! Tell the audience what you like about your topic and what it means to you. And smile! If it seems like you don’t care about the topic then the audience won’t care either.

Four things to avoid when giving a presentation!

For more resources about choosing, writing, and giving a 4-H presentation, visit Public Presentations from University of Illinois Extension page.

Let’s try a speech

  • Write a 30-second speech that has an introduction, body, and conclusion.
  • Make it a persuasive speech. It should encourage youth to do one of the following things:
    • Join your 4-H club
    • Attend 4-H Mini-Forum
    • Give a demonstration at the Public Presentation Festival
    • Volunteer to help collect food for the Food Bank
    • Raise an animal/pet such as a cow, horse or dog (or any animal you want!)

Demonstration Guidelines

What is a Demonstration?
Demonstration is an opportunity for any 4-H participant to prepare, organize and present an idea by using visual aids and teaching skills. Such things as showing a friend how to tie a knot, take a picture or play cribbage are all examples of giving a demonstration.

Why should I do a Demonstration?
Giving a demonstration in front of an audience will help you to think on your feet and to speak in front of a group of peers and families.  This is a great and fun way to begin to prepare you for more challenging events that may involve public speaking.

What will I get out of doing a Demonstration?
Once you’re done you will feel proud of yourself for taking part in a County event and talking to an audience.  You will boost your confidence to try other events.  You just might meet some new people and make a new friend.

Each participant is encouraged to demonstrate a topic or activity that interests you.  Anything goes and the sky’s the limit!! Remember to be a successful 4-H Demonstrator, you must understand what you are demonstrating, keep it simple and comfortable to do, and most of all have fun doing it!