Lesson video

Hello and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Watson, and I'm delighted that you have decided to join me today.

We are going to be having a lesson on how to write effective dialogue.

Now, you will be using the prologue to a book called "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind." It's by William Kamkwamba, and it's published by HarperCollins and you will need to find your own copy of the prologue.

So when you're ready, we'll get started.

And the outcome of today's lesson is that you will be able to identify how dialogue is used and then go on to apply that knowledge to your own writing.

As ever, we are going to begin with the keywords.

You can see that there are four keywords today, all really useful for unlocking your learning.

The first one is command, and that is an order to do something.

If you look at something with awe, you look at it with a feeling of great respect or admiration.

A theme, that is the main subject or idea of a text.

And personality refers to the type of person you are.

If you would like a little bit of time to familiarise yourself with the keywords, please feel free to pause the video now and then rejoin the lesson when you're ready.

So there are two learning cycles in today's lesson.

We're gonna start by looking at the purpose of dialogue, why writers use it, and then you are going to take that knowledge and practise writing your own dialogue.

So we're going to start the lesson with some reading.

You are going to read independently.

So you need the prologue to "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" by William Kamkwamba.

It is published by HarperCollins and you will need to find your own copy.

And I would like you to read from the start of the prologue where the narrator mentions preparation to the end where someone says that he has achieved it.

And as you read, I would like you to identify the dialogue.

These are the two specific things I want you to identify in the dialogue, who is speaking and what do they say.

So when you're ready, pause the video and read the prologue.

Happy reading.

So welcome back.

I hope you enjoyed reading that.

Now, you might have said about the dialogue that the speakers in the crowd, they're not named, two are referred to as someone and one as another.

And then there is also the internal dialogue of the narrator and all the dialogue is about what the boy has been making and whether or not it will work.

So now what I would like you to do is to use these questions here to explore the purpose and effect of the dialogue in a little bit more detail.

So let's work through it.

So the first piece of dialogue is that someone tells the people to be quiet and he wants to see how crazy the narrator is.

And I want you to use this question, what does this command tell you about the behaviour of the crowd? And then the next piece of dialogue is the narrator speaking to himself, begging the machine not to fail him.

And I would like you to think about what does this internal dialogue reveal about the narrator? And then someone says that the machine is true, they mean that it works.

But I want you to think about what does the use of the word true suggest about the speaker's feelings? And then finally, we have another person saying that the boy has done what he has set out to do.

And I want you to think about what tone of voice do you think that piece of dialogue might be said.

Now, you're going to need to pause the video while you have that discussion.

Or if you are working by yourself, just pause the video and make a few notes.

Off you go.

Welcome back.

Really interesting discussion there.

Let me share with you some ideas that you might have said that in response to the question about what the command of someone telling the people to be quiet, well, that suggests that the place is quite noisy.

There are a lot of people because it's noisy and the speaker starts by wanting to mock the boy.

He's here to see how crazy he is.

And when the narrator speaks to himself begging the machine not to fail him, this internal dialogue shows how important the machine is to him.

It's almost as if it is human.

He's talking to the machine.

And then someone saying that the machine is true, meaning that it works.

Well, I think that suggests how little they expected and also suggests that the machine is significant.

It's true, it's real.

It's come into existence.

And then finally, that the another person says that the boy has done what he set out to do.

And I think you might say that this is likely to be said in a tone of awe.

We end with this sense of admiring what the narrator has achieved.

So let's have a check for understanding.

Is it true or false to say that the prologue to "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" uses dialogue for a range of purposes? Absolutely, it's true.

You saw the range of purposes in the answers to the questions, different ways of furthering the narrative or adding to the narrative.

So why, what might you say in response to why can it use a range of purposes? You might have said something like, "Dialogue can be used to reveal how characters relate to each other and it can also highlight the significance of an event.

An internal dialogue can also show characters' feelings.

And all of those we saw in "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind." Very well done.

Let's move on.

Now, I would like you to show your understanding of the purpose of dialogue in a little bit more detail.

This is your writing task.

It's to answer this question, how does the writer use dialogue to create and build excitement about the windmill in "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind"? And I've given you some sentence starters to help you explain your ideas.

Here they are.

The first piece of dialogue shows.

We then move into the narrator's internal dialogue and.

And finally, we hear.

So pause the video, remember all the things that you discussed, and off you go and answer that question.

Welcome back.

I'd just like to say how impressed I was with your focus as you answered those questions.

So you might have said something like this, that the first piece of dialogue shows how the crowd thinks that the narrator's efforts are probably futile.

That means they're not gonna work, they're gonna come to nothing.

They call him crazy, indicating their doubts about his ability to succeed.

And we then move into the narrator's internal dialogue and learn that he is anxious but hopeful.

And this reveals his deep emotional investment in the success of the machine as he silently pleads for it to work for him.

There's a real sense that he is connected to this machine 'cause he wants it to work, not just work generally, but to work for him.

And then finally, we hear the crowd's reactions as they move from disbelief to astonishment and admiration as one exclaims that the machine is true and another affirms the boy's success.

Now, I'm not saying that your sentences were exactly like that, I just think it's really useful to compare what you have written with other answers.

So if you would like a little bit of time to take anything from these answers and add them to yours, please do that now.

Just pause the video and then rejoin me for the second half of the lesson.

So we're making really good progress today.

You've looked in detail at the purpose of dialogue, and now we are going to take what you've learned and you're going to write your own dialogue.

Now, what I would like to do is share with you some reasons why a writer might use dialogue.

You might use them to reveal characters' personalities, emotions, and motivations.

For example, the way the narrator of "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" really feels about his machine and about the effort he's put into it and to prompt characters into action.

For example, when someone tells the crowd to be quiet.

It can also be used to build tension.

It adds conflict or different views or doubts.

For example, the crowd not believing and verbalising that they don't believe that the boy will be successful, that he's crazy, really builds the kind of conflict between the crowd doubting him and the boy's hope.

It can also be used to illustrate themes.

The boy's internal dialogue really shows his resilience and determination, and it can also show change.

For example, in the text, the dialogue shows how the villagers moved from doubt to admiration.

So there are just some reasons why you might use dialogue.

Now it is time for you to do some ideas generation.

And I would like you to do that in discussion form.

And I would like you to use this photo and I have given you some prompt questions to help guide your thinking and come up with a situation.

So you just need to start by looking at the picture.

Who is in the picture? Who are these people? Who are these men? And what or who are they looking at? You can see they're all looking at something in the air and it's for you to decide what that something is.

And then I want you to think about what noise are they making.

And then we're gonna really zoom in on specific people, specific characters in the photo.

So I want you to look at the man on the far left and he's holding his hat up, maybe he's waving his hat in the air.

And I want you to think about and discuss what might he be saying.

And then I would like you to pick another man in this picture, your choice this time, and decide and discuss what he is saying.

And throughout your discussion, I want you to think about this, is that how will your dialogue really support the narrative? How will it reveal personality? How will it prompt action? How will it build tension? How will it illustrate themes? And how will it show change? So when you're ready, pause the video and have that discussion.

Or if you are working by yourself, pause the video and make a few notes.

Off you go.

Well done.

Welcome back.

That was a really interesting discussion and I hope you feel confident that you have a scenario and that you have characters speaking credible dialogue and interacting with each other.

Now let's have a check for understanding about the reasons why you might use dialogue.

So below is a list of reasons for using dialogue.

We have build tension, show change, reveal personality, and prompt action.

So there's one missing.

Which one is missing? Have a think.

Did you say illustrate themes? If you did, very well done because that's the right answer.

Now, I'm confident that you have some interesting dialogue to write, but what I'd like to do before you start writing them is to recap the rules for laying out dialogue.

So you need to use speech marks, those like that, to indicate when someone starts and stops speaking.

For example, "Is it your turn now?" Alice asked impatiently.

You can see the speech marks go round what she says, which is the words, "Is it your turn now?" And you also need to put the punctuation marks that are related to the speech inside the speech marks and finish the whole sentence with a full stop.

So Tom glanced up from the game board.

"I think so," there's the speech marks, he replied.

And if it was a question mark or an exclamation mark, it would go inside the speech marks too.

You need to start a new line for each speaker so it's really clear who is talking.

For example, "Let's get moving then!" Alice urged, her voice growing more insistent.

And Tom sighed and rolled the dice.

"Fine, fine," he said, trying to sound nonchalant.

Nonchalant means he doesn't really care.

So there's a few more things that I want to remind you of.

You need to use the reporting clauses to show the reader who is talking and how they are speaking.

They can come before, after, or split the direct speech.

For example, watching the dice tumble, Alice leaned in eagerly, "Come on, big number!" She muttered under her breath.

So she muttered under her breath is the reporting clause there.

And Tom, he shrugged, remember he's nonchalant, as the dice stopped rolling.

"Looks like I'm out of luck," he said with a slight grin.

So there you have, he said with a slight grin is the reporting clause there.

"Maybe next time," Alice grinned back, "You'll get it." So you can see the reporting clause there has gone in between the two pieces of dialogue, whereas in the first two examples, it came afterwards.

And Tom chuckled, "We'll see." And there, it goes before the dialogue.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which of the following is punctuated correctly? Is it A, "Can you help me with this?" Asked Sarah.

B, "I don't know if I can make it," John admitted.

C, "Where are we going" asked Mark? D, "Please pass the salt" Emily said.

Have a think.

Make your choice.

That's right.

It's B.

Speech marks around what John says and the punctuation inside the speech mark.

Really good.

Remember that as we go forward.

So now it's time for you to start writing.

Remember, you're using this picture prompt and you're going to write a section of dialogue for the men in this picture.

And a reminder of that I want you to think about how you will reveal personality, prompt action, build tension, illustrate themes, and show change.

So when you're ready, gather up all your notes and your ideas, and off you go.

Welcome back.

Well done, really excellent focus.

Now, what I would like to do is share with you what Laura wrote, and we're then going to use that to really refine our feedback.

So she wrote this.

"Did you see that?" gasped the soldier.

"Unbelievable." Another, his voice filled with awe, yelled, "They did it!" The crowd shouted, "Hooray!" And the second man whispered to himself, "It's over! It's finally over!" So I would like you to give Laura's writing a what went well and an EBI.

Have a think about what feedback you would give to Laura.

Okay, well, you might say something like this, that she shows the excitement of the soldiers and she also uses some internal dialogue.

However, there is no change.

It is all positive.

It would be better if the first piece of dialogue showed the soldiers feeling anxious and the last piece showed their relief and that would link to the theme of hope.

So really, really good advice there for how Laura could improve that dialogue.

Now before the end of the lesson, I would like you to look at your own writing and make sure that it does all these things, that it does reveal personality and prompt action and build tension and illustrate themes and show change.

And pause the video while you do that.

And then when you're ready, rejoin me for the end of the lesson.

So that brings us to the end of the lesson.

But before we say goodbye, I would like to summarise what you have been learning today.

You have been learning that writers use dialogue for a number of purposes.

And dialogue can reveal the motivations, feelings, and the relationship between characters.

That's example of the purposes that dialogue can be used for.

And dialogue can also move the plot forward, build tension, and illustrate the theme.

And you've also been learning that using questions as prompts can help generate ideas for your writing.

So once again, I would like to thank you for coming to the lesson and to express my appreciation for your hard work and your focus and your excellent discussions.

I really look forward to seeing you in another lesson about nonfiction "Teenage Kicks".

So have a great rest of the day and bye for now.