Recently, after speaking at a student conference in which I delivered a couple different communications without notes, a friend asked me about my preparation process for teaching without notes. This post is a summary of my answer…
First, teaching without notes might not be the best practice for you. As a communicator, the goal is to deliver a great communication. For some, that means notes and others none. With that said, I think everyone should attempt to go noteless for a season (don’t give up after 1 or 2 tries!) to see if it works because speaking without using notes will help you communicate in a more conversational and authentic voice. For student ministry, this is paramount.
Also, this is my 13th year of full-time student ministry. I have been a primary teacher for 8 of those years. I just started teaching without notes two years ago.
Anyway, here’s my preparation process for speaking without notes:
WORK WAY AHEAD
Step one in teaching without notes is to work way ahead. I’m at my best when I…
- Map my teaching content for the entire year during the summer
- Write outlines a month out
- Work through edits three weeks out
- Write full scripts two weeks out
Working way ahead creates mental space for creativity and memorization. For me, cramming will always yield an inferior teaching.
WRITE HOW YOU SPEAK
When it comes to preparing notes, I…
- Write in my speaking voice. This helps with internalizing the material.
- Write a full script. This script is word for word, exactly what I want to say, but never exactly what I will say when I teach.
- Translate the full script into practice notes, which is an outline of keywords and phrases.
The process of writing an outline, then a script and then practice notes helps me memorize the content, and even more importantly, the flow of the content. Specifically, this is what I memorize:
- Intro
- Transitions
- Bottom Lines
- Conclusion
If these elements are memorized, the rest will fall into place.
PRACTICE LIKE YOU PLAY
During the week I will be communicating, I…
- Practice three or four days out using my practice notes
- Practice repeatedly while driving around in my car (this makes me look like a crazy person at stop lights)
- Do a full dress rehearsal three hours before teaching (on the stage with lights, mics, slides and everything)
In order to teach without notes, I simply have to practice a lot! The key here is that I’m gradually moving away from my notes and adjusting as I go.
For me, learning to teach without notes has dramatically improved my delivery. It isn’t terribly complicated or difficult, it just takes a whole lot of discipline. Give it a shot and let me know how it goes.
image credited to Matt Roberts via Flickr
