College · College Success · Presentations

Ten minutes,
planned to
the second.

Most class talks run long because nobody did the arithmetic. Give the planner your limit and your sections; it gives the words, the slides and the clock time to hit at every turn.

Plan the talkWhat you get
$5one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $5

Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the College application season kit, $29 for 16 items.

The presentation planner

The worked example is a ten-minute group talk with two minutes for questions. Nothing you type leaves this browser.

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What you get

College · College Success$5

What you finish with
A word budget and, for each section, minutes, words, slides and clock marks to rehearse against. It prints as a plan and downloads as a spreadsheet.
Who it is for
College and dual-enrollment students with a timed class presentation, and groups dividing one talk between speakers.
Format
Browser planner for a phone, tablet or computer, by touch or keyboard. Prints the plan; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); export and import a file.
Access
$5 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the College application season kit ($29) and the Caveat Suite pass ($299). Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The College Success space in Caveat College.
Support
Questions, a correction or a request: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Type the time limit and any time kept for questions.
  2. List the sections in order and give each a share of the time.
  3. Choose a speaking rate; read a paragraph aloud for a minute to check yours.
  4. Write each section to its word count.
  5. Rehearse with a timer and check the clock marks.

Plan the talk

How the timing is worked out

Minutes, words and slides from one time limit.

The worked example: a ten-minute group findings talkTime limit10 minon the assignment− Questions2 minkept at the end× 140 words1,120 wordsthe script÷ 1 min a slide9 slidesone per ideaThe worked example: a ten-minute group findings talkTime limit10 minon the assignment− Questions2 minkept at the end× 140 words1,120 wordsthe script÷ 1 min a slide9 slidesone per idea
The time limit sets the words and slides; the shares set when each part should end.

Words a minute

Conversation runs at about 150 words a minute, and lectures somewhat slower. A clear class talk with pauses is near 140; nerves usually push it faster. The word budget is speaking minutes times that rate, so a script longer than the budget will run over no matter how fast you talk.

Clock marks

Each section gets its share of the speaking time, and its start and end are running totals. Knowing that the findings should end by 6:00 lets you check a timer once mid-talk and cut on the spot, instead of finding out at the close.

Sources

  1. Tauroza, S., and Allison, D. (1990). Speech rates in British English. Applied Linguistics, 11(1), 90–105.
  2. National Center for Voice and Speech. Voice qualities and speaking rate (ncvs.org).
  3. Lucas, S. E. The Art of Public Speaking. McGraw-Hill. Organizing and timing the speech.
  4. Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia Learning (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. Coherence and segmenting principles for slides.

The worked example’s course, sections and chart are an example. Your entries stay in this browser. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.