Student Created Anchor Charts: Compare and Contrast

Again this week, we worked on "Student Created Anchor Charts" during our "intervention time". This is when about 8 of the kids are out of the room getting reading and math intervention and I'm looking to challenge the kids that are left with projects and extra review of skills. This week I used my Reading Wonders leveled readers for the week and the skill for the week: Compare and Contrast.

Last week, we did a similar activity to practice Main Idea and Details.

First, students read the book with others in their reading group. The books are leveled, so this was a nice way to differentiate it very quickly.

Each group or set of partners then worked on creating a rough draft compare/contrast anchor chart on regular paper by using my anchor chart from a lesson earlier in the week as an example and reminder of how to compare and contrast.

    

We finished the reading and rough drafts on the first day of the project. Day two (which ended up being a few days later due to snow days!) was actually using those rough drafts to create the full size anchor chart with markers. The kids love this!

   

    

 

Throwback Thursday: Compare and Contrast

It's no secret, I love looking back at some of my first blog posts. This one is again from 2010. I haven't done this station in a long time and I don't know why! I want to get it back out! This is getting me motivated!!!

Check it out and this was before TPT...so the Scholastic book that I used as a resource for this is shown at the bottom!

October 30, 2010:



After struggling with finding different activities for literacy workstations, I have found this compare and contrast workstation to be a good one for my 2nd graders. They are engaged in the workstation and it is easily reused and changed out weekly for students.

I use short compare and contrast passages that are at a 2nd grade level. This is the book that I use:

I find this book to be useful because all of the passages are short and the same length. They are very concrete items and animals that are compared. Students seem to have an easy time filling in a Venn Diagram from the information given in the passage. However, they aren't too easy. Each passage contains similarities and differences. I always have students fill in a Venn Diagram before they answer the questions included with the passage. Also, students may highlight different parts of the passage to help them easily locate parts that they want to remember.

The workstation is kept a small basket with the passages in a clear sheet protector and Venn Diagrams are in clear sheet protectors as well. There are also dry erase markers and some paper toweling that is included in the basket for students. I find it important for all of the materials to be right there for students, so they don't have to go anywhere else to complete it.

1. Students are to choose a passage to work on and read it twice.

2. Then students may fill in the Venn Diagram, labeling it correctly.

3. Once the diagram is finished, they are then able to answer the questions by using the Venn Diagram to find the answers.

4. After checking their work, students are then able to have an adult (my assistant) check their work before they can erase it with a tissue and return it to the basket for another student to use.

                                                 

This workstation can be easily changed each week by just taking out the passages that are included and putting in new ones. Also, I take the ones that are in the compare and contrast station and move them onto the "Main Idea Workstation" the following week (which I will post more about later!) That way, when students work on the passage in the Main Idea Workstation, it is a familiar read because they should have already read it in the Compare and Contrast Workstation. 

My students are able to explain what they are comparing and contrasting and how the things are alike and different easily because they are using his graphic organizer in a hands-on workstation situation.








Additional Resources:
FCRR Narrative Text Structure Activities Scroll through these great activities for some more compare and contrast ideas. There are some great graphic organizers and activities that include comparing and contrasting two narrative texts.

    

       

Whole Group Compare & Contrast

Before actually starting compare and contrast activities in any kind of independent workstations, I teach compare and contrast in a whole group setting. Together, we make some of the following anchor charts.

The first big one that we make is comparing fiction and non-fiction. It kind of hits two standards at once.

 

After this initial compare and contrast introduction during our fiction and non-fiction lessons, we read books that we can compare and contrast different characters and animals. Also, we compare and contrast books that have a lot of similarities, yet many differences. Once you start looking for books to compare and contrast, the possibilities are endless. One of my favorite types of books to do are some of the classic folk tale type books---i.e. Three Billy Goats Gruff, The Three Little Pigs, The Three Bears--because there are MANY versions of each. Later this year, we will do a Cinderella unit and compare and contrast the versions from different cultures.

Here are some examples that we created together.

Remember, once we create these anchor charts together, students are then able to create some with a partner. One activity that we did was to compare themselves with their partners. Also, they could compare themselves to a character in a book that you read. Everyone's diagrams will be unique. Eventually, I use some of the short passages from the Compare and Contrast book that I mentioned using in the Compare and Contrast Workstations to use as an assessment to determine whether students are understanding the concept of comparing and contrasting or not.

Eventually, the Compare and Contrast Workstations are added to the literacy workstations in my classroom and students are able to work on this skill on their own. I will keep this activity throughout the school year to continue to challenge students.

Fiction vs. Non-Fiction

One of the first standards of the year that I teach in 2nd grade is distinguishing between fiction and non-fiction (fantasy and reality). We work for a few weeks on different activities including:

• Sorting a variety of books between fiction and non-fiction
• Exploring various books to determine what features each genre has
• Creating a Venn Diagram including the characteristics of each genre
• Completing an assessment where each student is given a book at random and asked to determine whether it is fiction or non-fiction, then list the reasons for their choice (from the class Venn Diagram)

After students are assessed, I find it important to continue to explore and assess this concept. So, I add an activity to explore the differences between fiction and non-fiction text to a workstation titled "Fiction/Non-Fiction Sort":

In this workstation, I change out the selection of books weekly. (I try to choose a fairly equal amount of fiction and non-fiction books for the station.) I put the selection of 10-12 books in the workstation basket and two "header" cards labeled FICTION and NON-FICTION.

Students are to:

• Sort all of the books under each header by looking through each book and using it's characteristics at a glance to determine if the book is fiction or non-fiction. Students shouldn't have to actually read the book in its entirety to determine this.
• Choose one book from each genre (one from fiction, one from non-fiction) that they'd like to investigate further.
• Complete the form below that includes listing the title of the book, genre, and characteristics that make that book fiction or non-fiction.  (Students are encouraged to use the class-created Venn Diagram that hangs up all year long.)

Additional Resources:
Fiction/Non-Fiction Bookmarks
FCRR Comprehension Expository Text Structure Activities
FCRR Comprehension Fiction and Nonfiction Review and other activities

Update: December 1, 2015 I have added a freebie in my store to go along with this post! I'm so sorry that I didn't add it here sooner!! Click the picture below! Head over to my store to download this freebie and I'd LOVE some feedback on it after you use it! THANK YOU! :)

                                         

Compare and Contrast Workstations

After struggling with finding different activities for literacy workstations, I have found this compare and contrast workstation to be a good one for my 2nd graders. They are engaged in the workstation and it is easily reused and changed out weekly for students.

I use short compare and contrast passages that are at a 2nd grade level. This is the book that I use:

I find this book to be useful because all of the passages are short and the same length. They are very concrete items and animals that are compared. Students seem to have an easy time filling in a Venn Diagram from the information given in the passage. However, they aren't too easy. Each passage contains similarities and differences. I always have students fill in a Venn Diagram before they answer the questions included with the passage. Also, students may highlight different parts of the passage to help them easily locate parts that they want to remember.

The workstation is kept a small basket with the passages in a clear sheet protector and Venn Diagrams are in clear sheet protectors as well. There are also dry erase markers and some paper toweling that is included in the basket for students. I find it important for all of the materials to be right there for students, so they don't have to go anywhere else to complete it.

1. Students are to choose a passage to work on and read it twice.

2. Then students may fill in the Venn Diagram, labeling it correctly.

3. Once the diagram is finished, they are then able to answer the questions by using the Venn Diagram to find the answers.

4. After checking their work, students are then able to have an adult (my assistant) check their work before they can erase it with a tissue and return it to the basket for another student to use.

This workstation can be easily changed each week by just taking out the passages that are included and putting in new ones. Also, I take the ones that are in the compare and contrast station and move them onto the "Main Idea Workstation" the following week (which I will post more about later!) That way, when students work on the passage in the Main Idea Workstation, it is a familiar read because they should have already read it in the Compare and Contrast Workstation. 

My students are able to explain what they are comparing and contrasting and how the things are alike and different easily because they are using his graphic organizer in a hands-on workstation situation.








Additional Resources:
FCRR Narrative Text Structure Activities Scroll through these great activities for some more compare and contrast ideas. There are some great graphic organizers and activities that include comparing and contrasting two narrative texts.