Working with text

Typing and formatting font

The only way to get text on a PowerPoint slide is to type in a text box.  You may already have an empty text box (technically called a “Placeholder” if you didn’t draw it yourself) on your slide.  It should look something like this:

Simply click somewhere inside the box and type whatever you want.  You can change the font, size, style, colour, alignment, etc. just as you would in Word:  select the text, and then use either the font drop-down boxes at the top of the screen, or the >Format - Font menu.  (Your font size may automatically shrink to fit in the box.  It is possible to change this setting if you find it too annoying.  See Troubleshoot Adding Text in the PowerPoint Help file).

Moving an existing text box

If you want to move a text box, just click anywhere on its edge (except the white circles) and drag it to where you want it on the slide.

Resizing an existing text box

Click on any of those circles around the edge and drag the text box into the size that you want.  Holding down the Shift key while dragging one of the corner circles will lock the aspect ratio on your text box.  Resizing a text box may cause the text inside to shrink or realign itself. 

Creating a new text box

Regardless of what your slide template looks like, you can always add a new text box.  Go to >Insert - Text Box - Horizontal, or click on  in the drawing toolbar.  You will then be given a special cursor.  Click with it anywhere on the slide and you will get a small text box.  Drag the corners of this box to the width that you want and start typing.  You must type something in the box before clicking anywhere else on the slide -- otherwise the text box will vanish, never to return.  (You may notice a small green circle above the top of the box.  This allows you to rotate the text box, should you ever want your words on a slant).

Deleting a text box

To get rid of any text box (empty or not), just click and release anywhere on its edge, then hit the Delete key. 

Adding a border or fill to a text box (and other advanced options)

The default text box outlines will be invisible in a slideshow, so don’t worry if a text box overhangs the edge of the slide or overlaps with something else.  However, should you want a visible border on a text box, double-click the text box on its edge.  A window should pop up.  Choose a size and colour of outline under the Colours and Lines tab.  You can also fill your text boxes with a solid colour from this menu (very useful over noisy backgrounds like pictures).  There are plenty of other advanced options available in this window, such as controlling the margins inside and outside the text box.  (There are also shortcuts to several of the above options in the Drawing toolbar).

Bullets and numbering

Bulleted lists are useful for the body of a lecture.  As a general rule, you shouldn’t have more than 5 bullet points on a single slide, and you should keep your text relatively large (usually at least 20 pt., but it depends on the font and the size of the classroom).  To create a bulleted list, select the line(s) you want and go to >Format - Bullets and Numbering, then click on the set-up you prefer.  This also works for getting rid of an unwanted bulleted list.  (PowerPoint has the annoying Microsoft habit of autoformatting the heck out of everything whether you like it or not).

As in Word, Enter + Tab will give your bulleted list a hierarchy, like the one pictured here. Enter + Shift-Tab will back you up one indentation, so you can add your next main point. . 

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