{"id":6124,"date":"2017-09-21T08:37:26","date_gmt":"2017-09-21T12:37:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/characterinkblog.com\/?p=6124"},"modified":"2017-09-21T08:37:26","modified_gmt":"2017-09-21T12:37:26","slug":"teaching-beginning-quotation-use-download-included","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/characterinkblog.com\/teaching-beginning-quotation-use-download-included\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching Beginning Quotation Use (Tricky Trick Download Included!)"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201c[A]lways get to the dialogue as soon as possible. I always feel the thing to go for is speed. Nothing puts the reader off more than a big slab of prose at the start,\u201d nineteenth-century writer P.G. Wodehouse commented. He is not alone among authors in emphasizing dialogue in writing, but teaching students how to use quotations can be so difficult.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n So, I\u2019d like to give you some tips on teaching basic quotation use and punctuation to your students. Also, check out the Tricky Tricks Sheet at the end of this post. It gives a concise summary of basic quotation rules. Additionally, Character Ink Press\u2019s Meaningful Composition 5 I<\/em><\/a> includes more info on using quotes, along with a number of other writing lessons.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Oftentimes, the easiest way to teach quotations is in conjunction with essay and report writing. Most students do not learn quotation rules well unless they have a chance to use them. So, they benefit immensely when they can apply a quotation rule to the assignment they are working on.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This also ensures that your students will know the skills they need for their assignments. Obviously, it\u2019s easier for them to use a skill correctly when they have just learned it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Everyone learns better when they have an example that clearly demonstrates what they have just learned. For example, let\u2019s say you have just taught your students about quotes with speech tags at the beginning. After going through the rules, you would want to use an example like this:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Charlie Brown sighed and said, \u201cOh brother, this always happens to me.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This sentence shows the two rules for punctuating this type of quote: comma in between the speech tag and quote and<\/strong> if there is a period, a period inside the quotation marks. This is a fantastic beginning; however, to help your students analyze the example, it is extremely helpful to let them interact with it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n What do I mean by interacting with the examples? Highlighting, underlining, boxing, circling.<\/strong> Whenever possible, you want your students to mark the example\u2019s important aspects\u2014capital letters, punctuation, quotation marks.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Quotations are some of the trickiest elements in writing. Students will not catch all the rules unless you take the time to carefully work through the examples with them. Highlighting, underlining, etc. is part of this. The other part is mentioning how each part of the example matches the rules you just taught. For example,<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cIt was a dark and stormy night,\u201d Snoopy wrote.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Start with the first letter and explain how a quote starts with a capital letter. Then move on to the comma and mention how it comes before the quotation marks and between the quote and speech tag. End with discussing how a speech tag ends in a period when it follows the quote. This, of course, can be done in conjunction with marking:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\nTip #1 \u2013 Teach quotes as they are needed for assignments<\/h3>\n
Tip #2 \u2013 Use good examples and have students interact with examples<\/h3>\n
Tip #3 \u2013 Go SLOWLY through examples<\/h3>\n
Download Beginning Quotes Tricky Tricks Sheet by clicking or tapping below, or clicking here<\/a>:<\/strong><\/h4>\n