GED – Fact and Opinion

Performance Objectives:

After completion of the lesson, students will be able to: 1. Identify clues for determining if something is a fact or opinion 2. Identify facts and opinions in an article(s)

Standards:

Reading 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations or descriptions. Craft and Structure 6.Analyze the author’s purpose in providing an explanation, describing a procedure, or discussing an experiment in a text, defining the question the author seeks to address. Writing Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 9. Compare and contrast findings presented in a text to those from other sources (including their own experiments), noting when the findings support or contradict previous explanations or accounts. Research to Build and Present Knowledge 9. Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

Assessment

Free Write Discussion/Participation Parade Fact and Opinion Handout (Parade Magazine) Article Analysis “Area 51” Article Analysis with Graphic Organizer

Materials:

Parade Fact and Opinion Handout (Parade Magazine) Fact vs. Opinion Notes/Description with Article: “Area 51” Article Analysis with Graphic Organizer

Procedure: Entire Class: Introduction and Method of activating prior knowledge – Free Write: What is one fact you believe to be true. How do you know it is true?

Instructor: Liberty Lacy & Erica Hand

Date: June 29, 2012

Course Title: GED Reading

Specific Topic:Learning to Separate Fact and Opinion

Reading Assignment: Area 51

Method of setting purpose – Free Write Individual:

Free Write: What is one fact you believe to be true? How do you know it is true?

Parade Fact and Opinion Handout (Parade Magazine)

Entire Class: Discussion of Fact vs. Opinion

Teams:

Teams of two will analyze “Area 51” article for fact and opinion

Entire Class: Discussion of “Area 51” facts and opinions Explain fact and opinion organizer

Individual:

Students will pick two articles from a provided selection and use the Fact and Opinion Graphic Organizer to identify facts and opinions.

Application of Material:

Today we practiced identifying facts vs. opinions in various articles.

Extension Questions:

Why is it important to distinguish between fact and opinion? How does discerning between fact and opinion in current events keep us “well informed” or make good choices?

Accommodations needed:

Name _____________________________ Date ________________ Period _________

Fact vs. Opinion

A fact is a statement that can be proven ___________________ or ________________. Example: My car has been driven for 23,600 miles. Michael Jordon was born on February 17, 1963. The Empire State Building is 1,250 feet tall. An opinion is someone’s view, or belief, or way of thinking about something. Example: Beethoven is the greatest composer that ever lived. Goodnight Moon is the best children's book ever written. Extraterrestrials exist.

© Education Oasis www.educationoasis.com May be reproduced for classroom use only.

When you are reading, it is important to be able to distinguish between facts and opinions. Written materials such as articles, web site information, biographies, and newspapers often contain both facts and opinions. Being able to tell them apart will help you judge the validity of a writer’s ideas. It will also help you choose appropriate sources when doing research. valid: logically correct; justifiable; well founded in fact

Fact vs. Opinion 2 Practice Directions: Write “F” for fact beside the statements below that are facts. Write “O” for opinion beside the statements below that are opinions. _____ 1. Washington, D.C. is the Capital City of the United States. _____ 2. Walt Disney World is a family friendly theme park. _____ 3. Whales are superior to dolphins. _____ 4. Whales are mammals. _____ 5. John Adams was the second president of the United States. _____ 6. Stephen King is talented. _____ 7. Abraham Lincoln was the best president the United States has ever had. _____ 8. Britney Spears sings better than Madonna. _____ 9. Michael Jordon is the greatest basketball player of all time. _____ 10. Will Smith starred in the movie Men in Black. _____ 11. There are glaciers in Alaska. _____ 12. The Frenchman, La Salle, explored the Mississippi. _____ 13. Every time you wash your car it always ends up raining. _____ 14. There is no life on Pluto. _____ 15. Cats are not as friendly as dogs. © Education Oasis www.educationoasis.com May be reproduced for classroom use only.

Fact vs. Opinion 3 Seeing it in Action Directions: The paragraphs below contain both facts and opinions. Underline the sentences which contain facts. Circle the sentences which contain opinions. There are some sentences which are neither fact nor opinion. Do not mark these.

Area 51

Area 51 is a military facility approximately 90 miles north of Las Vegas. At the center of the site there sits a large air base. Area 51 is also the site of a U.S. Government UFO cover-up. "The government is hiding the remains of alien spacecraft there," says Sarah Mitchell, a long-time resident from the surrounding area. Others believe that weapons testing done there is causing toxic pollution that could harm people near the site. One such person is Mr. Hayakawa, a member of a civilian intelligence group that monitors covert (secret) government operations. "The secrecy must end," he says. "There's nothing extraterrestrial or strange there. It's good old American technology. The government sits back and watches - and sometimes manipulates - these UFO stories to keep people from asking about the real activities there." So does this mean Hayakawa is against the government research and development? No. "Progress is going to take place, and it's not necessarily a bad thing. But it has the potential for abuse," he says. Rumors about what goes on at the base continue. The possibility of aliens draws visitors to the area. There is even a book for visitors seeking information. Written by Glenn Campbell, it is titled Area 51 Viewers Guide. It is the best and most informative book available on Area 51. Parts of this text were excerpted from a newspaper article titled "Secrets in the Desert" which appeared in the Torrance Daily Breeze written by Michael Gougis, Staff Writer © Education Oasis www.educationoasis.com May be reproduced for classroom use only.

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Fact and Opinion

Write your topic at the top. Add details to each column.

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ved.Editorials: Fact vs. Opinion

Not everything in the newspaper is 100% fact. On the editorial page, you will find quite a few facts and a lot ofopinions—in the editorials, in letters to the editor and in the “op-ed” pieces written by the paper’s columnists and expertsfrom outside the news staff. What’s the difference between a fact and an opinion? A fact is something that can be proven.For example, the statement that Kelly Clarkson has won a Grammy is a fact. An opinion is the speaker or writer’sjudgment. The statement that Kelly Clarkson didn’t deserve a Grammy is an opinion.

Below we’ve written an editorial about cafeteria food. Look carefully at each statement. Write F in the blank next to it if itis a fact. Write O if it is an expression of opinion.

Extra credit: Carefully read an editorial or letter to the editor inthe newspaper. Decide if each statement is a fact or an opinion.

____1. Miller High School has the worst cafeteria food in the state.

____2. Yesterday, they served us macaroni and cheese with spinach.

____3. It was cruel to ask any human being to eat it.

____4. The day before, they served grated tofu on hot dog buns.

____5. “I threw mine in the garbage can,” said Tommy Melton, a senior.

____6. A total of 372 students have signed a petition demanding better food.

____7. Of course, the principal probably will not pay any attention to it.

____8. She wouldn’t care if the cafeteria served us paper and glue.

____9. “I will meet with the city’s nutritionist on Friday,” she said.

___10. We should all boycott the cafeteria until something is done.

Boycott the Miller High Cafeteria!

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Answer Key to Skills Sheet: Fact v. Opinion

1. O2. F 3. O4. F5. F6. F7. O8. O 9. F10. O