Presents conversations from three seven-year olds talking with their teacher, drawn from a longitudinal study of primary school students. Examines the conversations as a piece of scripted drama to highlight the implications of classroom dialogue for teaching and learning. (HTH)

Examines the potential of small-group interaction to provide significant linguistic opportunities that whole-class teaching is less well placed to deliver. Compares data from two groups of children from the same classroom engaged in the same group activity. Draws on the work of Bakhtin to identify monologic and dialogic features in the children's…