Show and Tell

Purpose

Show and Tell brings the kindergarten classic into the workplace. Team members take turns presenting work-in-progress, prototypes, designs, or completed deliverables to their peers. The format builds shared awareness, surfaces early feedback, and celebrates effort — making invisible work visible across the team.

At a glance

• Group size: 4–20
• Duration: 25 minutes
• Difficulty: Beginner
• Facilitation style: Structured sharing round
• Setting: In-person or virtual

How to run

1. Set the rules (2 min). Each presenter gets 3–5 minutes. Feedback is constructive and brief. No interruptions during presentations.
2. Presenter lineup (1 min). Determine the order — volunteer-based or pre-assigned.
3. Presentations (3–5 min each). Each person shows their work and explains: What is it? Why does it matter? What feedback do I need?
4. Feedback round (1–2 min per presenter). Peers offer observations, questions, or suggestions. Keep it appreciative and forward-looking.
5. Wrap-up (2 min). Facilitator summarizes themes and highlights cross-team connections.

Materials needed

• Projector or screen share for demos
• Timer
• Optional: feedback cards or a shared doc for written comments

Pitfalls & common mistakes

• Going over time. Enforce the time box strictly — fairness depends on it.
• Turning feedback into critique sessions. Focus on ‘what’s working’ and ‘what’s next’, not ‘what’s wrong’.
• Only showing finished work. The greatest value comes from sharing work-in-progress where feedback can still influence direction.

Inclusion & accessibility

• Allow presenters to share asynchronously (recorded video) if they cannot attend live.
• Provide screen-reader-friendly materials for virtual presentations.
• Encourage diverse presentation styles — not everyone needs slides.

Variations

• Demo Day: Longer format (full hour) with polished presentations and stakeholder audience.
• Learning Show and Tell: Share something you learned recently, not something you built.
• Silent gallery: Post work on walls; participants browse and leave written feedback.

When NOT to use this

• When work is too early to show anything meaningful and presenters would feel exposed.
• When the group is too large (20+) and individual time would shrink below 2 minutes.

Source & further reading

• Agile Alliance. Show and Tell / Sprint Review.
• Derby, E. & Larsen, D. (2006). *Agile Retrospectives.* Pragmatic Bookshelf.