5 Ways to Use Quality Literature to Teach Direct Speech

Direct speech, as with many writing concepts, is best taught through rich literature. Using quality texts to learn about speech mark punctuation is not only engaging, it also expands vocabulary and may even inspire your students to read new texts!

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By Jessica Stedman1 comment

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Direct speech, as with many writing concepts, is best taught through rich literature. Using quality texts to learn about speech mark punctuation is not only engaging, it also expands vocabulary and may even inspire your students to read new texts!

Next time you're in the library, flick through your favourite fairy tales and children's novels and you'll find fabulous examples of dialogue. Or, for those too time poor, I have done the hard work for you and sourced excerpts from 16 quality texts in my Direct Speech in Literature pack.

Now that you have great examples dialogue, how to use them? Keep reading for FIVE awesome and engaging lesson ideas!

1. Write and Wipe Sleeves

After you have typed up your excerpts with the speech marks removed, you can simply pop them into write and wipe or plastic sleeves and use them in your literacy rotations. Students can then work independently or in pairs to add in the speech mark punctuation with whiteboard marker. This reduces the amount of paper and prep you need to do, and gives you a life long resource!

2. Make It Fun with Macaroni

Grab a packet of macaroni pasta and make your speech mark lesson hands-on! Glue the macaroni on with PVA glue to make a fun classroom display!

3. To be Continued...

Print the task cards half size (A5) and have students glue this at the top of a page. Underneath, students will continue the conversation between the characters, using correct speech mark punctation.

4. Said is Dead

Brainstorm a list of words that students could use instead of ‘said’. Have the students then edit the excerpts and replace the word ‘said’ with a more vibrant verb!

5. Go Digital

Display a Google Slide version on the interactive whiteboard and complete the task as a whole class! This is a great way to foster discussion and correct misconceptions!

So there you have it! 5 ways to use quality literature to teach direct speech! If this is something you'd like to add to your literacy rotations or explicit writing lessons, you should check out my direct speech in literature pack!

This pack has excerpts from 16 quality texts including:

1. ‘Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone’ by J. K. Rowling

2. ‘Matilda’ by Roald Dahl

3. ‘Charlotte’s Web’ by E. B. White

4. ‘The Cat in the Hat’ by Dr. Seuss

5. ‘Peter Pan’ by James Matthew Barrie

6. ‘The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland’ by Lewis Carroll

7. 'Oliver Twist’ by Charles Dickens

8. ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ by L. Frank Baum

9. ‘A Bear Called Paddington’ by Michael Bond

10. ‘The Hobbit’ by J.R.R. Tolkien

11. ‘Pig the Pug’ by Aaron Blabey

12. ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’ by C. S. Lewis

13. ‘Room on the Broom’ by Julia Donaldson

14. ‘Bridge to Terabithia’ by Katherine Paterson

15. ‘Hansel and Gretel’ by The Grimm Brothers

16. ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’ by Beatrix Potter

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As always, if you have any questions about these or any other resources - leave a comment below, or send me a message!

Already using these resources? Tag me on instagram to receive a 10% off discount code!

Bye for now teacher bud!

Much love,

Jess

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1 comment

Jacker

December 16, 2022 at 11:02 am

Wow! “Make It Fun with Macaroni.” You have no idea how many times I´ve used that trick. Marvelous!

Together will all other fantastic contributions across your pages. Much obliged.

https://jacker.org/