Teaching Skills: the introduction

Tools for Teaching Navigation

Tools for Teaching: Introduction

Facilitation Skills: The art of group facilitation

Teaching and Presentation Skills: Keep these techniques in mind

Tips for Programs: Practical examples and resources

2. Building a Strong Opening

Tips for Creating a Great Introduction

  1. Write it out – to edit it into its best form and to help you memorize it
  2. Write it last – after you really know what you are going to say
  3. Make it strong by using one or two of the following techniques:
    • Personal or otherwise interesting anecdotes
    • Strong or startling quotes
    • Vivid example
    • Critical statistic
    • Rhetorical question
    • Joke or funny story
    • Powerful analogy
    • Interesting or startling fact
    • Definition
    • Reference to an historic event
    • Prop or audio-visual aid
    • Magic trick
    • Audience involvement

Adapted with permission from Soil and Water Conservation District Outreach: A Handbook for Program Development, Implementation and Evaluation. Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Soil and Water Conservation, 2003.