Dialogue 1
Grandchild:
Ugh. I practiced my science fair pitch on Mom and Dad, and it didn’t go so well. They
both looked bored by the end!
Grandparent:
That’s frustrating. How did you put the pitch together?
Grandchild:
I just explained every step of my experiment in the order I did it. I know it was long, but
there were a lot of steps, and I didn’t want to leave anything out. It all felt important!
Grandparent:
That’s a really common way to think about pitches. The problem is that a pitch isn’t
actually meant to include every single detail.
Grandchild:
Then what is it supposed to do?
Grandparent:
It’s supposed to quickly explain what your project is about, why it matters, and make
the listener interested enough to hear more.
Grandchild:
Okay… that explains a lot.
Grandparent:
When you go step-by-step like that, people get overwhelmed. Instead of focusing on
your main idea, they’re just trying to keep up with all the details.
Grandchild:
Yeah, my parents looked confused first, and then just bored.
Grandparent:
Exactly. A strong pitch highlights the most important parts and saves the details for
later.
Grandchild:
I honestly thought more information would make it stronger.
Grandparent:
In a pitch, less is usually more.
Grandchild:
Alright, thanks Grandpa! Back to editing.
Dialogue 2
Grandchild:
So I tried again, but this time my parents kept interrupting me!
Grandparent:
What were they interrupting you about?
Grandchild:
They kept asking what certain words meant. I was trying to sound really scientific and
professional.
Grandparent:
That’s another common misconception about pitching.
Grandchild:
Which is?
Grandparent:
That using complicated language automatically makes your pitch better and more
credible.
Grandchild:
Okay, but isn’t that how they know I actually understand my project?
Grandparent:
Not necessarily. If the audience doesn’t understand you, they can’t follow your idea, no
matter how good it is.
Grandchild:
Yeah, once Mom and Dad got confused, they kind of stopped listening.
Grandparent:
Exactly. Clear explanations show understanding better than technical jargon.
Grandchild:
So I should focus more on being clear than sounding impressive.
Grandparent:
That’s the goal!
Grandchild:
Got it. I’ll save the big words for the written report!