Many students aren’t sure how to properly format dialogue. They know how to punctuate generally and where to put the quotation marks, but they haven’t practiced indenting and often have questions about when to use commas and when to capitalize. One teaching technique that works well to help students strengthen this skill is I Do, We Do, You Do.

I Do: The teacher shows students how to format. Even though I am giving direct instruction, I typically ask a lot of questions. Even better is to solicit questions. The type of questions students ask will show if they were absorbing the information and where they might need clarification.

We Do: Students try formatting pre-selected passages with teacher and/or peer support.

You Do: Students work individually on their own writing.