Comparing and contrasting are important skills to teach your students. When it comes to reading informational texts, they need to be able to identify the information that is the same in two texts and the information that is different. In upper elementary, they also learn to integrate the information from two or more nonfiction books or articles. Here are some tips for teaching your students how to compare and contrast informational texts.
Tips for Teaching Comparing and Contrasting Informational Texts
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The first thing we need to do is to break down the standard at the different grade levels. It is really helpful to know what your students are expected to do in the grade level before yours and the grade level after yours. This allows you to differentiate your lessons and meet the needs of all your students.
First Grade
Important Skills to Teach:
- How to find similarities and differences between two texts
- How to identify ways the illustrations, descriptions, and procedures are the same and different
- How to use a Venn diagram
I Can Statements:
- I can compare and contrast the illustrations in two texts on the same topic.
- I can compare and contrast the descriptions in two texts on the same topic.
- I can compare and contrast the procedures in two texts on the same topic.
Download a week of 1st grade lesson plans to teach this standard.
Download a digital slideshow to assign for distance learning or as a center activity.
Second Grade
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.9 – Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic.
Important Skills to Teach:
- What it means to compare and contrast
- How to identify the most important information in an informational text
I Can Statements:
- I can compare the most important information in two texts on the same topic.
- I can contrast the most important information in two texts on the same topic.
Download a week of 2nd grade lesson plans to teach this standard.
Download a digital slideshow to assign for distance learning or as a center activity.
Third Grade
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.9 – Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
Important Skills to Teach:
- What it means to compare and contrast
- How to identify the most important information and key details in an informational text
- How to use a Venn diagram
I Can Statements:
- I can compare the important information and key details in two texts on the same topic.
- I can contrast the important information and key details in two texts on the same topic.
Download a week of 3rd grade lesson plans to teach this standard.
Download a digital slideshow to assign for distance learning or as a center activity.
Fourth Grade
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.9 – Integrate information from two texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.
Important Skills to Teach:
- What it means to integrate information
- How to identify the most important information in informational texts
I Can Statements:
- I can identify the most important information in two texts on the same topic.
- I can put the information from the two texts together so I can write or speak about it knowledgeably.
Download a week of 4th grade lesson plans to teach this standard.
Download a digital slideshow to assign for distance learning or as a center activity.
Fifth Grade
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.9 – Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.
Important Skills to Teach
- What it means to integrate information
- How to identify the most important information in informational texts
I Can Statements:
- I can identify the most important information from several texts on the same topic.
- I can put the information from the texts together so I can write or speak about it knowledgeably.
Download a week of lesson plans to teach this standard.
Download a digital slideshow to assign for distance learning or as a center activity.
Suggested Books for Comparing and Contrasting Informational Texts
For this standard, first through fourth grade students will need two books on the same topic. Fifth grade will need three or more books on the same topic. You can allow your students to choose any nonfiction topic that interests them and have them check out two books about it at the library. Another option would be to choose a topic you’re learning about in another subject area, and gather a collection of books about it. Have the students read two of the books and compare and contrast the information in first through third grade and integrate the information in fourth and fifth grade.
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Tips for Teaching Comparing and Contrasting Informational Texts
- Teach note-taking. This is a great standard to use to teach your students to take notes about the important information in an informational text. As they read the first book, have them write down the facts that they think are the most important. Then, as they read the second book, they can highlight the ones that are repeated from the first text to compare the information. They can add new facts that weren’t in the first text to contrast them.
- Use a Venn diagram. Have your students use a Venn diagram to organize the information they found in the books. They should add the similarities to the center of the Venn diagram and the differences on the sides.
- Prepare a slideshow and speech. For fourth and fifth grade, students are expected to write and speak knowledgeably about a topic using information from two or more informational texts about the same topic. Have them create a slideshow by including information from multiple informational texts. Then, they can use the slideshow to present what they learned.
Other Helpful Resources
If you have students who are struggling with this standard, strategy groups and one-on-one conferences are a great way to differentiate and help all your students master it. These assessments will show you which students have mastered the standards and which students need extra practice.
1st Grade Common Core Literature Standard Assessments
1st Grade Common Core Informational Texts Standard Assessments
2nd Grade Common Core Literature Standard Assessments
2nd Grade Common Core Informational Texts Standard Assessments
3rd Grade Common Core Literature Standard Assessments
3rd Grade Common Core Informational Texts Standard Assessments
4th Grade Common Core Literature Standard Assessments
4th Grade Common Core Informational Texts Standard Assessments
5th Grade Common Core Literature Standard Assessments
5th Grade Common Core Informational Texts Standard Assessments
Get all the lesson plans you need to teach every Common Core Reading Standard for your grade level.
1st Grade Common Core Standards Bundle
2nd Grade Common Core Standards Bundle
3rd Grade Common Core Standards Bundle
4th Grade Common Core Standards Bundle
5th Grade Common Core Standards Bundle
For more tips on teaching the reading standards, join the Rock the Reading Workshop Facebook Group.
What Do You Think?
What are your best tips for teaching your students how to compare and contrast informational texts?
Let us know in the comments.
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