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Multimedia in a Presentation

A 40-minute Grade 5 lesson on including multimedia components and visual displays to enhance the development of main ideas.

Multimedia in a Presentation is a free 40-minute Grade 5 English lesson plan for Common Core standard SL.5.5 — use graphics and sound in a presentation where they strengthen the idea. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the meaning, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Grade 5
Length:
40 minutes
Standard:
SL.5.5

Grade 5 · Speaking & Listening

SL.5.5

Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.

Objective

Students will be able to choose a medium that suits the idea rather than the one most available.

Students are successful when they can

  • Writes their main idea in one sentence before choosing any component.
  • Matches the medium to the idea and names what that medium shows best (change, appearance, sound or how parts connect).
  • Says in one sentence why another medium would be worse for this idea.
  • Keeps the component on screen or in play for less time than they spend talking about it.

What you need

  • Four idea cards and four media cards (graph, photograph, audio clip, labeled diagram) per group
  • Card, pens, and devices where available
  • Each student's draft presentation from the current unit
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — four ideas, four media

5 min
  1. Give each group four idea cards: (1) "Our town's population has grown every year since 2000." (2) "The new playground has a rope bridge and a tall slide." (3) "A humpback whale's song can last twenty minutes." (4) "Water moves from the sea to the clouds to the rain and back."
  2. Groups match each idea to one medium card: graph, photograph, audio clip, labeled diagram.
  3. Take answers. Expected: 1-graph, 2-photograph, 3-audio, 4-diagram. Ask for each: "What does that medium do that the others cannot?"

Teach — the idea chooses the medium

13 min
  1. Write the four jobs on the board: a GRAPH shows change or comparison in numbers; a PHOTOGRAPH shows what something looks like; AUDIO shows what something sounds like; a DIAGRAM shows how parts connect or a process moves.
  2. Take idea 1 (population growth). Show a photograph of a busy street. Ask: "Does this show the town grew?" Expect: "No, it just shows it is busy now." Then sketch a line graph rising from 2000 to today. Ask the same question. Expect: "Yes, you can see it go up."
  3. Reverse with idea 2 (the playground). Show a bar graph of how many pieces of equipment it has. Ask: "Could you picture the rope bridge from this?" Expect: no. A photograph wins.
  4. Show a component that upstages the talk: describe a presenter who plays a four-minute whale video and then says one sentence. Ask: "Who gave the presentation — the student or the video?"
  5. Set the rule and write it up: "Idea first. Medium second. The talk stays in charge: the component lasts less time than the talking about it."
  6. Model your own planning line on the board: "My idea: the lighthouse had to be moved because the cliff was wearing away. Medium: a before-and-after diagram showing the distance to the edge. Not a photo, because a photo cannot show the measurement."
“Do not start with what you can make. Start with the one sentence your audience must remember, and then ask which medium shows that sentence best.”

Guided practice — one component

12 min
  1. Students write their presentation's main idea in one sentence at the top of a card.
  2. Underneath they write: "Medium: ___ because it shows ___. Not ___, because ___."
  3. They make a rough version on card or a device: a hand-drawn graph, a sketch, a labeled diagram, or a 15-second audio plan.
  4. They test it on a partner: show the component for ten seconds with no talk, then ask, "What do you think my main idea is?" If the partner's answer matches the card, keep it. If not, change the medium or the labels.
“Your partner's guess is the test. If they can say your main idea after ten seconds of looking, the component is doing its job.”

Independent practice

8 min
  1. Students complete the multimedia page: each item gives an idea and asks for the best medium and a reason another would be worse.
  2. It plans the component rather than replacing the making of it.

Close

2 min
  1. Take one medium choice and its "Not ___, because ___" sentence. Ask the class whether the reason is about the idea or about what was easy to make.

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Picks a medium because it is easy: "I used a photo because I found one quickly."

Why: Capability drives the choice. What they can make or find fastest feels like the sensible option, and the idea is never consulted.

Fix: Enforce the order on the planning card: idea sentence first, then medium. A rough hand-drawn graph of the right thing beats a polished photo of the wrong thing.

Plays a three-minute video and talks for thirty seconds.

Why: The component took longest to make, so it feels like the main event and they want to show all of it.

Fix: Time both. If the component runs longer than the talk about it, cut it to the part that shows the main idea.

Uses a photo, a video and a chart that all show the same playground.

Why: More components look like more effort, and they assume extra media adds extra meaning.

Fix: One idea, one component. Ask what the second component shows that the first does not; if nothing, remove it.

If they are not there yet

  • Offer two media to choose between for each idea rather than four.
  • Give the main idea sentence ready-written, so the choice of medium is the only decision.
  • Provide the four-jobs chart (graph = change, photo = looks, audio = sounds, diagram = connects) on their desk.

If they finish early

  • Choose audio where a visual is the obvious choice, and justify how sound shows the idea better.
  • Make a component that would still communicate the main idea with no talk at all, and test it on someone outside the group.
  • Write one sentence saying what your chosen component cannot show, and how the talk covers it.

Exit ticket

Your main idea: "Our school recycled twice as much paper this year as last year." Which medium would you use — graph, photograph, audio or diagram? Why would one other medium be worse?

What to look for: A graph, because it shows a change in amount; a photo would show paper but not "twice as much." "Photo, because it's easier" means the idea-first order needs enforcing.

Printable practice for SL.5.5

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about Multimedia in a Presentation

How long does the Multimedia in a Presentation lesson take?

40 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 13 min, guided practice 12 min, independent practice 8 min, close 2 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does Multimedia in a Presentation teach?

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.5 — SL.5.5, Speaking & Listening for Grade 5: “Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes.” In plain terms, use graphics and sound in a presentation where they strengthen the idea.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

Four idea cards and four media cards (graph, photograph, audio clip, labeled diagram) per group, card, pens, and devices where available, each student's draft presentation from the current unit and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: picks a medium because it is easy: "I used a photo because I found one quickly."; plays a three-minute video and talks for thirty seconds and uses a photo, a video and a chart that all show the same playground. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “Your main idea: "Our school recycled twice as much paper this year as last year." Which medium would you use — graph, photograph, audio or diagram? Why would one other medium be worse?.” A graph, because it shows a change in amount; a photo would show paper but not "twice as much." "Photo, because it's easier" means the idea-first order needs enforcing. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with Multimedia in a Presentation?

Yes — 1 printable SL.5.5 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is Multimedia in a Presentation free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on October 8, 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-10-08. Aligned to SL.5.5 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.