"We're learning about dialogue!" third grade exclaimed!

Writing is such a large part of our third grade curriculum, and I noticed that students often include speaking parts in their writing. We went right to work after Christmas break and learned exactly how to write using dialogue!

A lot of the activities and writing notebook entries came from this unit on TPT from The Little Ladybug Shop, I highly recommend it!

Day 1: We began with a writing talk (where we all circle up and discuss writing topics) on how to use dialogue. Students added rules from the TPT unit to their writing notebooks. I then created different slides with animal faces and speech bubbles. Their job was to write a sentence about what each animal would be saying. I have to tell you, some of their answers were hilarious! It was real hit when my own dog made an appearance. 

Day 2: Included in this unit are 18 task cards, which are great to use for centers, but we used them for daily review and practice. Students then used the texting template from the unit to create a conversation using dialogue. 

Day 3: For review, we continued to use the task cards. Then we added "Said is Dead" to our writing notebooks. The idea is for students to stop the repetition of the word "said." To practice, I simply made slides with sentences that students had to correct in their notebooks. 

Day 4: This day ended up being one of my favorites! Students rotated through three different centers. Center 1 & 3 can be found in the unit.

Center 1: Students roll a dice and use given words to create a sentence using dialogue. 

Center 2: I'm sure your students relate to mine, as they love to draw! I had students create a comic strip using dialogue! When doing this, I also had some comic books available to help them get started. 

Center 3: In this center students search different texts to see where they can find dialogue. This was a fantastic activity for application.

Day 5: On this day students wrote a story about Larry the Llama throwing a party (included in the unit.) It was great to see them referring back to their writing notebooks to find synonyms for "said."

Day 6: To finish up our unit on dialogue I had students attend Café Conversations! Students were first divided into pairs and moved to sit across from each other. On the board I displayed a picture of an elegant cafe, and had instrumental music playing to set the scene. Every few minutes I would introduce a new topic of conversation such as books, hobbies, and even turtles. Students each said one sentence about the topic. Then, they had to write what their partner's response using dialogue. The students had a blast, and it was great to have them interacting during conversations. 

I ended the unit with a quiz that can be found on my TPT. I love how this unit stuck with my students, as I still get asked, "Is said still dead?" I have kiddos coming up to show me where they find dialogue in the library books they are reading. We also applied what we learned to our unit on Colonial America, where students wrote a conversation between the Native Americans and the Colonists. "I like knowing how to write dialogue," one third grader replies, and I will say I have to agree!