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ELA 5: Punctuating Dialogue 651 Views
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Description:
Using punctuation is key to let the readers know who is talking and when they're done. But come to think of it...we don't ever use those sorts of marks in our descriptions. How do we know when we're done talking? Who's voice are we even?
Transcript
- 00:05
[Dino and Coop singing]
- 00:14
We already know that proper punctuation is super important.
- 00:17
We can't just throw commas, periods, and question marks into our writing willy-nilly. [Bucket full of punctuation is poured all over a book]
- 00:21
Seriously, how weird does this sentence look? [Sentence full of random punctuation]
- 00:24
So it probably won't come as a surprise that proper punctuation is pretty important when
Full Transcript
- 00:28
we're dealing with dialogue. [Grammar police car pulls up]
- 00:29
There are three main rules we have to follow when punctuating dialogue: [Coop pointing at a blackboard]
- 00:33
Rule number one: always put quotation marks around the words people say.
- 00:36
That one’s pretty simple, 'cause hey, that’s what quotation marks are there for.
- 00:41
Quotation – quotes…easy-peasy..
- 00:44
Rule number two: at the end of any sentence of dialogue, put the punctuation mark inside [Dino pointing at a blackboard]
- 00:49
the second set of quotation marks.
- 00:51
If the quoted sentence would have ended with a period, but the entire sentence isn't finished,
- 00:55
use a comma instead.
- 00:57
Finally, rule number three: if a new person is speaking, start a new paragraph, and be
- 01:01
sure to add a new line and indentation.
- 01:03
That might be a lot to take in all at once, but trust us, it's a lot easier in the real [Big bowl of punctuation cereal]
- 01:08
world.
- 01:09
Don't believe us?
- 01:09
Fine.
- 01:10
We love a good challenge.
- 01:12
Consider the following unpunctuated sentences: "Get out of the way Mom screamed as the grocery
- 01:17
cart came careening towards me, but it was too late.
- 01:20
Ow I gasped as the cart ran over my left foot.
- 01:23
Are you okay Mom asked.
- 01:24
Yes, but I think I’ll be missing dance class I said, holding my throbbing foot."
- 01:29
That right there is what we call a hot mess. [Hot mess stamp]
- 01:31
But let's just apply our rules, one by one, and see what we get.
- 01:35
Let's start with rule number one and toss some quotation marks around words people say.
- 01:39
From the looks of it, there are four bits of dialogue: what Mom screamed, what "I" gasped,
- 01:44
what Mom asked, and what "I" said. [Arrows pointing to the different dialogues]
- 01:46
So let's throw in four pairs of quotation marks.
- 01:49
Now, we throw in some punctuation marks.
- 01:52
For the first one, since Mom's screaming, we'll use an exclamation mark.
- 01:56
The second is an exclamation of pain, so we'll use another exclamation mark, and the third [Girl on the floor]
- 02:00
one's a question, which means we'll use… you guessed it!
- 02:04
A monkey!
- 02:05
…Wait, no. [Monkey appears]
- 02:06
That was a terrible guess.
- 02:07
We're actually gonna go with question mark.
- 02:09
The last bit of dialogue is a bit trickier.
- 02:11
It's something a character said, so usually it would end with a period. [Girl with a throbbing foot]
- 02:15
However, since one sentence isn't over yet, we use a comma instead.
- 02:19
That means it'll look a little something like this…
- 02:22
And last but not least, we need to start a new paragraph and add some indentations.
- 02:26
When all's said and done we end up with this: [Correct punctuation being added to the text]
- 02:29
Look how nice and pretty, and easy to understand that is. [Thumbs up]
- 02:32
Once you get these three rules down, you'll be able to punctuate dialogue like a pro. [Boy has eaten the big bowl of cereal]
- 02:38
Just remember: when in doubt, always add a–– everyone, say it together–– [Monkey appears again]
- 02:42
No!
- 02:42
Not a monkey.
- 02:43
Why do we even try…? [Grammar police arrive again]
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