Distinguishing Details in Nonfiction

What is the main purpose of comparing and contrasting two nonfiction texts?

• To find out which author is better

• To understand the differences and similarities in the information presented

• To choose which book is longer

• To learn about fiction stories

When comparing two nonfiction articles about the same topic, what should you look for?

• The color of the articles

• The names of the authors only

• The facts and details that are the same and those that are different

• The number of pages in each article

If one article says that polar bears are losing their habitat due to global warming and another article does not mention polar bears at all, this is an example of:

• A similarity

• A contrast

• An error in one of the articles

• A comparison

What is a Venn diagram used for when comparing and contrasting nonfiction texts?

• To draw pictures of the main ideas

• To write down the characters in the story

• To organize the similarities and differences between the texts

• To measure the length of the texts

If two articles have different opinions on a subject, this is an example of:

• A fact

• A similarity

• A contrast

• A main idea

When you compare two nonfiction texts, you should look at:

• The illustrations only

• The titles and subtitles

• The date they were written only

• The main ideas, supporting details, and the authors' purposes

If two texts provide the same information about a historical event, this is an example of:

• A contrast

• A similarity

• An opinion

• A prediction

Why is it important to compare and contrast the authors' purposes in nonfiction texts?

• To make the texts more interesting to read

• To understand why the authors wrote the texts and what they want the reader to learn

• To find out which author has more books

• To learn about the authors' favorite colors

When two nonfiction texts provide different statistics about the same topic, you have found:

• A mistake

• A similarity

• A contrast

• A main character

What can comparing and contrasting the publication dates of nonfiction texts tell us?

• Which author is older

• How long the books are

• The relevance and possible changes in information over time

• The color of the book covers