🟦 Introduction
Hi brilliant learner! 👋🧠
Have you ever listened to two people talking and easily understood what was happening — even without knowing all the words?
When reading a dialogue (a conversation between two or more people) in your BECE exam, you must use those same skills.
Today’s lesson will show you how to:
Understand conversations clearly 🗣️
Identify who is speaking and what they mean 🗨️
Read between the lines (inference skills) 🔍
Choose correct answers quickly in BECE comprehension sections 🎯
Let’s practise together! 🚀
🟩 Key concepts and explanations
⭐ What is a dialogue?
A dialogue is a conversation between two or more characters.
It shows how people talk, share ideas, express emotions, and solve problems.
In your BECE, dialogue passages can appear like:
Conversations between friends 👬
Interviews 🎤
Phone calls 📞
Debates 🗣️🗣️
Market scenes, family talks, classroom discussions 🎒
⭐ Important features of dialogue
| 🎯 Feature | 🛠️ What to Look For | 🧠 Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Speakers | Who is talking? | Always check the name before the statement. |
| Tone | How are they feeling? | Look for words that show mood (angry, happy, worried). |
| Purpose | Why are they talking? | Are they giving advice, asking questions, making requests? |
| Context | What is the situation? | Notice where and when the conversation happens. |
| Hidden meaning | What is not said directly? | Pay attention to what is suggested but not stated. |
⭐ Strategies for answering BECE dialogue questions
🧠 When reading a conversation:
Identify the speakers clearly. (Who says what?)
Understand the situation. (Where are they? Why are they talking?)
Think about feelings and attitudes.
Pay attention to important words (like “sorry”, “thank you”, “could you”, “must”, “won’t”, etc.).
Predict the next part of the conversation.
Answer carefully: base your answer on the passage, not your own opinion!
⭐ Common question types from dialogue passages
| 📝 Question Type | 📖 Example |
|---|---|
| Who said it? | “Who advised Kwame to apologize?” |
| Why did a speaker say something? | “Why did Adwoa shout at her brother?” |
| What does this statement mean? | “What does ‘I’ll think about it’ suggest?” |
| Inference | “What can you tell about Kofi’s feelings?” |
🟨 Step-by-step walkthroughs
🔎 Example 1: Simple dialogue
Passage:
Efua: Are you coming to the party tonight?
Nana: I wish I could, but I have homework.
Efua: Oh, that’s unfortunate! Maybe next time.
✅ Step 1: Who are the speakers?
Efua and Nana.
✅ Step 2: What’s happening?
Efua invites Nana, but Nana declines because of homework.
✅ Step 3: What is the tone?
Friendly but a little sad.
✅ Sample question:
Q: Why did Nana say, “I wish I could”?
A: Because she wanted to come but could not due to homework.
🔎 Example 2: Longer dialogue with hidden meaning
Passage:
Seller: This cloth is from Italy! Only GHS 500!
Buyer: Hmm… it’s beautiful, but I can only pay GHS 350.
Seller: For you, sister, GHS 450. Final price.
Buyer: I will check another shop. Thanks!
✅ Step 1: What is happening?
Buyer and seller are bargaining in the market.
✅ Step 2: Hidden meaning?
The buyer doesn’t agree with the price and plans to walk away.
✅ Sample question:
Q: What does the buyer mean by “I will check another shop”?
A: She is politely rejecting the seller’s final price.
🟨 Practice exercises
📝 Part 1: Multiple-choice questions (MCQ)
Read the dialogue and choose the best answer:
Dialogue:
Kojo: Can I borrow your pen? Mine just broke.
Esi: Sure! Here you go.
Kojo: Thanks! I’ll return it after class.
Question 1: Why does Kojo want the pen?
A. He lost his pen.
B. His pen broke.
C. He forgot his homework.
D. He wanted to draw pictures.
Question 2: What does Esi’s response show?
A. She is rude.
B. She is helpful.
C. She is angry.
D. She is confused.
📝 Part 2: Fill in the blanks
Based on the passage below, complete the answers:
Dialogue:
Father: Have you finished your chores?
Daughter: I am almost done. Just cleaning the kitchen left.
Father: Good. Finish quickly; dinner is almost ready.
Who is speaking? ___________________ and ___________________
What are they talking about? ___________________________________
What advice does the father give? _______________________________
📝 Part 3: Inference questions
Read and think carefully:
Dialogue:
Student 1: I don’t understand today’s maths topic.
Student 2: Let’s meet after school and go through it together.
Question:
What does this tell you about Student 2’s attitude?
✅ Answers and explanations
| 🧩 Part 1 Answers | Explanation |
|---|---|
| 1. B (His pen broke) | Kojo said “Mine just broke.” |
| 2. B (She is helpful) | Esi said “Sure! Here you go.” |
| 🧩 Part 2 Answers | |
|---|---|
| 1. Father and daughter | |
| 2. Finishing household chores | |
| 3. Finish chores quickly because dinner is almost ready |
| 🧩 Part 3 Answer | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Student 2 is supportive and willing to help. | He offers to study together. |
🔁 Recap
Today you learned:
What a dialogue is and how it looks in comprehension passages 🗨️
How to understand speakers, tone, and hidden meanings 🕵️♀️
Strategies to find correct answers fast 🧠
How to infer feelings and predict actions!
🎯 Dialogue comprehension is fun once you know how to break it down.
🪞 Reflection prompt
Reflect and write:
Think about a conversation you had today.
What were the feelings behind the words?
Did you need to “read between the lines” to understand someone?
Write a few sentences about it in your notebook. 📓✨
