How to Print Notes in PowerPoint for Presentations

Printing notes in PowerPoint is an essential skill for anyone giving presentations. Well-prepared speaker notes help you deliver smooth, professional talks.

In this comprehensive guide, I’ll explain the basics of PowerPoint notes and walk you through the steps to print notes pages properly.

By the end, you’ll have the knowledge to:

• Add effective speaker notes to your slides
• Print notes pages with or without slide thumbnails
• Troubleshoot any printing issues

Let’s get started!

What Are Speaker Notes in PowerPoint?

Speaker notes are helpful reminders you add to your slides during the creation process. They can include:

• Full sentences to guide your talking points
• Bullet lists of key ideas and facts
• Credits for sources and images
• Links, file paths, or other references

Notes keep you on track when presenting and make sure you cover all the important details. The audience won’t see these notes – they’re just for your eyes.

PowerPoint gives you a dedicated space under each slide to add notes. You can even print these notes pages to have a physical reference during your talks.

Why Print Speaker Notes for Presentations?

Here are some key reasons to print your speaker notes:

• No distractions: Focus on your audience instead of the on-screen notes.

• Contingency plan: Printed notes work if there’s a technology glitch.

• Portability: Walk around freely with printed notes in hand.

• Accessibility: Use printed notes if you have vision difficulties.

• Shareability: Print extra copies for other presenters or organizers.

• Professionalism: It’s good practice to be fully prepared on paper.

• Consistency: Printed notes help you deliver the talk consistently each time.

So let’s look at the exact steps for getting those speaker notes printed!

How to Print Speaker Notes in PowerPoint

The process differs slightly depending on whether you want to print notes only or notes with slide thumbnails.

Print Speaker Notes Pages Only

1. Open your presentation and select View > Notes Page.

2. Delete the on-screen slide thumbnail on each notes page. Just click the image and press Delete.

3. Click File > Print and select your printer.

4. Under Settings, choose Notes Pages to print notes only.

5. Adjust any other settings like slides, copies, page range, etc.

6. Click Print.

This approach prints one slide’s notes per page without any visuals.

Print Notes Pages With Slide Thumbnails

1. Open your presentation and click File > Print.

2. Select your printer under Settings.

3. Choose Notes Pages to print one slide thumbnail per notes page.

4. Customize other print settings as needed.

5. Click Print.

The notes will print below each slide thumbnail for quick visual reference.

Tips for Preparing PowerPoint Notes

Follow these tips when adding speaker notes to your slides:

• Don’t overload notes with long paragraphs – use concise bullet points.

• Add source credits and citations so you can verbally reference them.

• Use large font sizes like 16-20 pt for easy reading.

• Notes are hidden from the audience – use them to outline key talking points.

• Print notes in a large enough font and with page numbers for quick access.

• Highlight or underline important notes for easy skimming.

• Review and practice notes thoroughly before your presentation.

Exporting Notes Pages to Microsoft Word

An alternative is to export your presentation notes to Word for more editing and printing flexibility. Here’s how:

1. In PowerPoint, select File > Export > Create Handouts.

2. Choose Notes next to slides or Notes below slides.

3. Click Create Handouts. In Word, select Paste under Send to Microsoft Word.

4. Make any desired formatting changes to notes in Word.

5. Print normally from Word when ready.

With this method, you can customize fonts, spacing, page layout, and other settings before printing your notes.

Troubleshooting PowerPoint Notes Printing Issues

Here are some common PowerPoint notes printing problems and fixes:

• No notes visible on print preview: Select Notes Pages under Print Layout to enable notes.

• Slide prints instead of notes: Make sure Notes Pages or Handouts is chosen in the print settings, not Full Page Slides.

• Tiny unreadable notes: Increase font size on the notes master to at least 16 pt.

• Notes split across pages: Reduce notes text length or decrease font size to fit more on each page.

• Blank notes pages: Select View > Notes Page and add notes to any empty slides.

• Styling not applying: Check that styling on notes master matches your theme.

Present with Confidence Using Printed Notes

Being able to print clean, readable speaker notes is vital for any presenter. Keep this guide handy as a PowerPoint notes printing reference.

Well-prepared notes demonstrate professionalism, help you master delivery, and make complex presentations far easier to manage.

So focus on your content and let printed notes guide you through flawless presentations every time! Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions on mastering PowerPoint speaker notes.