Three Simple Rules

and then some . . . .

Three Simple Rules:

• 7 + 2• 2 – 3 – 1• 3 – 30 – 3

Seven Plus or Minus 2

Research, especially that conducted by George Miller in 1956 indicates that most people are able to assimilate or make sense of only 7, plus or minus 2, new ideas or concepts at one time.

So – in planning any interpretation it is good practice to include 5 or fewer new ideas.

Two – Three - One

Remember that it is often easier to write the body of your text, script, etc. first and then write conclusions and introductions:

Two: The Body

Three: The Conclusion

One: The Introduction

Three – Thirty - Three

This rule is strictly for signage text and is only a “rule of thumb” but is still a good guide.

You generally have:

3 seconds to get a visitor’s attention

30 seconds to convince them to read more

3 minutes to get your entire message across

Hence, 3-30-3

and then some . . . .

• Topics• Themes• Theme Development

Topics

Brief, big ideas:

•Birds

•Whales

•Endangered Species

•The American Civil War

•Illinois Settlers

•The Founding of DeKalb

•Saturday Night Live

Themes

The theme is what you want your audience to learn from your presentation, talk, signage.

THE ME of it.

Theme DevelopmentSelect a general topic.

My (talk, presentation, sign, exhibit) is about our soil .

Now, get a little more specific:

I want to tell my audience about the importance of conserving our soil .

Finally, complete this sentence to express your theme:

I want my audience to understand thatit is necessary to conserve our soil in order to produce our crops and protect the quality of our water.

Und so . . .

• 7 + 2• 2 – 3 – 1• 3 – 30 – 3• Topic• Theme• Next? What do you want to discuss first?

Signage, talks, exhibits?????