Curated OER
Rock On! Featuring the Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic Trio!
Get your classroom rocking with this four-lesson earth science unit. Through a series of shared reading activities and hands-on investigations, young geologists learn about the three types of rocks and the unique properties of each.
Core Knowledge Foundation
A Time for All Seasons - Spring
Celebrate the arrival of spring with this fun primary grade science unit. Engaging young scientists with a variety of hands-on activities and inquiry-based investigations, these lessons are a great way to teach children about seasonal...
Scholastic
Ruby Bridges: A Simple Act of Courage, Grades K-2
A civil rights movement lesson designed specifically with the Common Core State Standards in mind, young learners are introduced to the story of Ruby Bridges as the first African American child to attend an all-white elementary school....
Florida Center for Reading Research
Comprehension: Text Analysis, Compare and Contrast
Grab any two topics, some index cards, and a couple of kids, and you're ready to compare and contrast! The resource provides instructions for this method and three graphic organizers in addition to or in place of the index cards.
PBS
Arthur’s World Neighborhood: Bibliography for Kids
Support young learners as they expand their cultural awareness with this list of children's literature on countries from around the globe. Including both fictional and non-fictional texts. This resource will help students across the...
K-5 Math Teaching Resources
Venn Diagram Template Lined
Compare and contrast two subjects with this Venn diagram template. The printable graphic organizer has made writing in each part easy with printed lines and it can be implemented in a variety ways.
Have Fun Teaching
Compare and Contrast (3)
Sometimes the way a topic is presented in fiction can be very different from how it is in reality. Compare and contrast a topic from both a fiction and nonfiction source with a graphic organizer that prepares kids to write about what...
Curated OER
Agriculture in Motion
Youngsters learn about simple machines that could be used on a farm. They learn about agricluture, listen to a farmer speak, compare and contrast different farm machines, and then design their own. Note that although the publisher...
US Department of Education
U.s. Dept. Of Education: Compact for Reading: First Grade Activities (Spanish)
Links to 100 first grade activities arranged by skill set and designed to improve reading and writing. All activities are in PDF format and are ready to print and use. They can be downloaded individually, according to skill set, or as...
US Department of Education
U.s. Dept. Of Education: Compact for Reading: Third Grade Activities (Spanish)
Links to 100 third grade activities arranged by skill set and designed to improve reading and writing. All activities are in PDF format and are ready to print and use. They can be downloaded individually, according to skill set, or as...
Read Works
Read Works: Passages: Making a Storyboard
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read a nonfiction text about a girl whose aunt is a children's book author and answer questions about comprehension, sequencing, supporting details, main idea, vocabulary, and more. Links to a...
Read Works
Read Works: Passages: A Playground Problem
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read a nonfiction text about building a model for a new playground and answer questions about comprehension, supporting details, main ideas, vocabulary, and more. Links to a paired text and...
Read Works
Read Works: Passages: Grade 2: When Television Became Colorful
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read a non-fiction article about colored television and answer questions in comprehension, sequencing, inferences, main idea, transitions, and more.
Read Works
Read Works: Passages: Grade 2: A Brush With History
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students read a non-fiction article about the history of a toothbrush and answer questions in comprehension, sequencing, inferences, main idea, transitions, and more. A link to paired text questions is...
Cengage Learning
National Geographic: Informational Text and Young Children [Pdf]
Research-based informative article on when, why and how to introduce and teach reading skills with informational texts to early-elementary students beginning as early as kindergarten.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Comparing and Contrasting With "Then and Now"
This instructional activity is a great small group reading instructional activity that has a social studies connection. In this instructional activity, learners will be comparing and contrasting schools from long ago and schools of today...
EL Education
El Education: Learning to Read Informational Texts: Building Background
In this comprehensive unit, students launch their learning about birds by using informational texts. As students read these texts, they build background knowledge and develop their skills as readers of informational texts. Included are...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Similarities and Differences Between Two Text
For this lesson, through guided practice, the students use two texts about Martin Luther King to compare the similarities and differences between those texts. Includes videos of the lesson in action, printable charts, and a graphic...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Writing Our Sloppy Copies and Peer Editing
Students will write a sloppy copy and help a peer to edit their writing. They will use a kid-friendly checklist (included)to help each other find their mistakes. Videos of the lesson in action are provided, along with a teacher's grading...
Utah Education Network
Uen: One True Story, Told Two Ways
Analyze the different perspectives presented by two authors telling the same story.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Text Feature Diagrams
At the end of this instructional activity, students will be able to identify and create diagrams associated with informational text. Included is a link to an eSpark video on diagrams, rules for group work, multiple examples of diagrams,...
Other
Penn. Department of Education:comparing and Contrasting Different Versions
Comparing and contrasting is a higher-level thinking skill promoted in the Common Core Standards leading to the ability to comprehend and analyze texts through various topics and genres. This lesson on Comparing and Contrasting Stories...
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Comparing & Contrasting Inventors
What do inventors have that are alike? How are they different? Why do they invent? Learning about them may inspire you to invent new technology! In this instructional activity, students will compare and contrast key details in two texts...
CPALMS
Cpalms: Compare/contrast Life Cycle Texts
[Free Registration/Login Required] Students will learn to compare and contrast texts about life cycles using a Venn diagram. Then, using the Venn diagram, students will write an expository paragraph including an introductory sentence,...