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Handouts are important tools for effective public speaking. They serve as guides for your audience. Handouts will allow the listeners to follow what you are discussing. Handouts are important and should be well prepared.

When giving out the handouts to your listeners, remember to choose the right time. It is not recommended to give them out right away at the beginning of your speech. This will only make the listeners tend to lose focus. It is important in public speaking to catch the attention of your audience at the start of the speech.

Also inform them that you will be giving out handouts so that the listeners will need not to take down notes while you are talking. Making handouts available will make your audience focus and absorb everything that you say. That is because writing while listening to your speech will only divide their attention.

You may want to use colorful papers if your audience is also kids. Adding drawings can also make it interesting but do not use too much or else they will only concentrate on the drawings that they see.

On the handouts, you can include the objectives of your speech and the things that you expect from your listeners. Do not put the entire speech on the handout. If you put everything that you have to say on the handouts, the listeners will no longer listen to you.

You may also place in it the outline of your speech, a brief introduction and the things that you will discuss. You may also want to include the start time and the end time of your speech and allocate the time when they would like to ask questions. This will allow you to follow your outline and they may reserve their questions for the time you listed on the handouts.

You can also incorporate some activities at the end of the handout. Put a space where they can write and jot down the answers on the activity that you will put at the end of the handout. Adding a space where they can write is also effective so that they may be able to jot down some important points that you have mentioned and are not listed on the handouts.

At the end of the handout, you may also include some information about yourself. You may put your name, nickname or even hobbies to add some spice. This is one way that your listeners will be able remember you by.

Handouts are very beneficial to making you an effective public speaker. Make them ready all the time and make sure that they will last. Handouts are ways that your listeners can remember you; that is why it is important that you make them unique and valuable.