Let's Compare and Contrast

The rationale for this lesson is to help students understand comparison and contrast by encouraging them to read stories that have characters with similar and different adventures and experiences. During this lesson, students are asked to point out the similarities and differences of the characters. I will engage students with fun activities, games and graphic organizers. Aftercompleting the Web Quest, my students will understand that they use synonyms and antonyms every day in conversations and writing and do not realizeit. Students will learn new words, be able to ask and answer questions about key details in a text, retell stories, describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, identify similarities and differences in a text, and use relationships between words such as synonyms and antonyms to better understand each of the words. The use of technology will enhance their application skills of these commonly used words and help them get excited in learning this concept by playing fun games throughout the lesson.

• Students will be able to recognize plot, setting, and character within texts, and compare and contrast these elements among text.

• Students will be able to use a variety of strategies to understand and gain meaning from grade-level text.

• Students will be able to explain how adventures and experiences of characters stories are alike and how they are different.

• Students will be able to use graphic organizers to compare and contrast characters and their adventures in stories.

•  Students will use the relationship between particular words (e.g., synonyms, antonyms, homographs) to better understand each of the words.

1. Compare & Contrast Chart.

• Click on the link below to open up the document. 

• It will help your understanding withcomparing and contrasting.

2. Read/listen to the following books: "If you give a Mouse a Cookie" and "If you give a Pig a Pancake"

• Click on the link below, one at a time, to open up the book(s).

• To begin listening, click the Control button, and then place your mouse over the link at the same time. When the hand appears, click the link.
• "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" [video:http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DGyk55GYnGl0 align:left autoplay:1]
• "If You Give a Pig a Pancake" [video:http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DIRCfQCUefLg align:left autoplay:1]

3. After reading/listening to the short stories, click on the link below to open up the bubble maps.

• The bubble maps will help you enhance your understanding of comparison and contrasting.

4. Guidance

• How do you compare two things?
• What does it mean when things are contrasts?
• What are some words that signal comparisons?

5. On your pencil and paper, draw your own bubble map. Think about the main characters in the stories and complete your bubble map by using descriptive words regarding each character.

6. Cover Story

• Complete the chart by comparing and contrasting the cover of the books, "If You Give a Pig a Pancake" & "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" by using signal words. 
• To complete this exercise, place your pointer in each box, then type in your response. When you are done, click the Tab button on the left of your keyboard to move to the next box.

7. Guidance

• What are some words that signal contrast?
• What is a synonym?

8. Synonym Sam's Lab Interactive Game

• Assist Sam and her dog, Rufus, find synonyms. Look at Rufus as he does something cool. Afterwards, three, green boxes will slide down for you to view. The first one will have  word written in green, then the last two boxes have a question mark on them with two, red arrows beside them.  
• Click on the red arrow until you find the correct synonym, then click on the orange circle with the check mark to see if you chose the correct word. Enjoy playing with Sam and Rufus!
• To begin playing, click on the Control button, then place your mouse over the link at the same time. When the hand appears, click on the link.
• http://pbskids.org/lions/games/synsam.html

9. Synonyms Video Clip

• Have fun listening to this silly video on My Favorite Word.
• To listen, click on the circle with the white arrow.
• Make sure you have on your earbuds.
• Have fun learning new words that have the same meaning.
• You will be able to use these words as you compare things that are the same.
• To begin listening, click the Control button, and then place your mouse over the link at the same time. When the hand appears, click the link.
• http://pbskids.org/lions/videos/favword.html

10. Guidance

• How can synonyms enhance your writing skills?

As you continue to grow as a student, being able to compare and contrast things/people/places will help you recognize plot, setting, and character within texts, and compare and contrast these elements among text. You will also be able to understand and gain meaning from the stories that you read. Also, you will be able to explain how adventures and experiences of characters and stories are alike and how they are different. As you continue to use graphic organizers, they will increase your learning in comparing and contrasting characters. You will understand the relationship between words like synonyms and antonyms to help you better understand them. When it concerns reading, it's about understanding the author’s purpose and reasoning. These concepts will help you comprehend your reading passages, too.

Allington, R. (2005). The other five pillars of reading instruction. Reading Today, 22(6), 3.

Edhelper.com. (n.d.). General graphic organizers. Retrieved March 11, 2014, from http://www.edhelper.com/teachers/General_graphic_organizers.htm

McLaughlin, M. (2012). Reading comprehension: What every teacher needs to know. Reading Teacher, 65(7), 432–440.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

Reutzel, D. R., & Cooter, R, D. (2015). Teaching children to read: The teacher makes the difference (7th ed.). Boston: MA. Pearson Education Inc. Chapter 1, “Effective Reading Instruction” (pp. 3–23).

Steig, W. (2009). Amos and Boris. New York: Square Fish.

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Welcome:

Let's Compare and Contrast

Description:

The rationale for this WebQuest is to help students understand comparison and contrast by encouraging them to read stories that have characters with similar and different adventures and experiences.

Grade Level:

K-2

Curriculum:

English / Language Arts

Keywords:

Compare, contrast, graphic organizers, activities, games, synonyms, antonyms, alike, different

Author(s):

Dimitra Collier