Presentations and Flip Charts using Microsoft Power Point

If you are familiar with Microsoft PowerPoint then you are going to love this! It is the fastest and simplest way to illustrate a story using your computer or to make a really professional-looking flip chart.

If you are not familiar with PowerPoint then the following will make no sense at all. It may be helpful for you to make friends with someone in your congregation who can teach you how to use it. Many people in business and lots of younger people know their way around this program.

Instructions:

Outline the Story:
- First, write a basic outline of the Bible story you are teaching and decide on the main points or “scenes” you would like to illustrate. This tells you how many slides you will need and what words to put on each one.
Words:
- Write the words directly on the slide, or write them in the notes section at the bottom of the slide.
- If the Bible passage is straightforward and easy to understand for the age group, you can transcribe the words directly from the Bible. If you prefer to “cut and paste” then find the Scripture in http://www.biblegateway.com. Once on the Bible Gateway website simply type the Scripture reference in the search box. Select an easy-to-understand version like the Contemporary English Version or the International Children’s Bible. “Cut” the words from the screen and then “paste” them into the slide.
Images:
- Google Images (www.google.com) is good place to find appropriate pictures for slides. It usually takes a number of searches to find the “perfect” pictures. After choosing a photo, cut and paste it into the PowerPoint presentation. If you want to save it for later, download it to a folder on your computer.
- Hint: If a picture file is small, it will probably be fine for a PowerPoint presentation. If you plan to print the slide show and make a printed flip chart, you will need at least medium-resolution pictures.
- Another idea: If you are industrious (and this is really fun to do as a family or class project), have some volunteers pose for the various “scenes” and take your own pictures.
Tell the Story using PowerPoint:
- Finally, show the presentation on a laptop or a bigger screen if available.
Make a Flip Chart:
- You can print out the flip chart using the various print features for slides, handouts and notes pages. Using heavier paper is helpful. You can also save the presentation to pdf if you want.