Study by subject
Speeches and presentations
For a speech or a presentation you learn the outline, the hook, the transitions, the key words of each part and the ending. Lumi asks them back until you speak without reading.
How to turn this subject into cards
Do not memorise the speech word for word, memorise its skeleton. Make one card per part with the idea, two or three key words and the transition sentence into the next part. Learn the hook and the ending by heart, because they are the most exposed moments. The trap is rereading your text until you recognise it, then losing the thread in front of the audience. With Lumi you recall the outline and the key words from memory, then expand them aloud in your own words. Rehearse over several spaced sessions rather than the night before (Cepeda et al., 2006). Time yourself aloud to see which part drags.
What you need to know by heart
- The outline, the parts in order.
- The hook at the start and the closing line.
- The key words of each part.
- The transitions between parts.
- The figures and examples you quote.
How Lumi helps you remember it
You teach your outline to Lumi, part by part, with the key words and the transitions. It forgets over time, like you do, then quizzes you right before you would forget. As the day of the presentation approaches, the Mist settles over the parts you know less well and Lumi asks those first. You arrive speaking in your own words, without losing the thread.
Example cards
Three cards the way you would write them, with the answer Lumi expects.
What goes on a card for one part?
The idea, two or three key words and the transition sentence.
What must you know by heart in a speech?
The hook and the ending, the rest comes with the key words.
How do you find your thread if you lose it?
You go back to the last key word and the transition into the next part.
Example card
Try it, Lumi turns it into fill in the blank questions in your browser.
Speeches and presentations · teach this card to Lumi
A speech has three parts, the introduction, the body and the conclusion. The hook opens the speech and catches the audience’s attention. A transition links two parts and guides the audience. Anaphora repeats the same word at the start of successive sentences.
Lumi’s question
A speech has three parts, the _____, the body and the conclusion.
Pick the missing word
Answer right to light Lumi up
Its lamp fades when a fact slips away.
Frequently asked questions
- Should I learn a speech word for word?
- Learn the outline, the key words and the key sentences, and say the rest in your own words. You stay natural and you adapt to the room.
- How do I avoid losing my thread?
- Learn the transitions, because they are what links the parts. Lumi asks them back at intervals that grow longer (Cepeda et al., 2006).
- How do I practise before the day?
- Say your speech aloud over several sessions. Lumi asks the outline and the transitions back so the thread stays sharp, and you can record yourself to listen again.
Read next
Sources
- Cepeda, Pashler, Vul, Wixted, Rohrer (2006). Distributed practice in verbal recall tasks. A review and quantitative synthesis. Psychological Bulletin, 132(3). doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.3.354
Teach this to Lumi
Give Lumi your speeches and presentations notes, it gives them back as questions at the right moment.