ELA-Bias-Facts-LNF

Author's Bias-Fact and Opinion - Facts - Print - Literary Nonfiction

 * K-2**
 * //George Washington and the General’s Dog//**//,//** Frank Murphy, ISBN 0-375-91015-8 This is a simplified version of George Washington and his role in the American Revolution and rise to presidency with an emphasis on his love of dogs. The facts are true but the book reads like a story. Students could be challenged to separate facts (such as “The war was called the American Revolution”) from opinions (such as “George liked being at Mount Vernon with Martha and the animals.”) Could pair this book with a more factual account of George Washington such as //George Washington,// Barbara Knox, ISBN 0-7368-2082-5.
 *  //Looking at Ants//**//,//** Eleanor Christian and Lyzz Roth-Singer, ISBN 0-7368-0725-X This book tells how to set up an ant farm with photographs of the steps involved. Opinions about what the ants are doing and how the children feel about the experience are included with factual information about setting up the ant farm.
 * //Where Once There Was a Wood//**//,//** Denise Fleming, ISBN 0-8050-3761-6 The author implies the loss of the animals’ habitat throughout this book. The end of the book includes directions for creating a backyard habitat and what kinds of shelter, spaces, food, and water attract certain kinds of creatures. Additional suggested titles are included.
 * //Dinosaur Hunting//**//,//** Leonie Bennett, ISBN-13: 978-1-59716-554-9 This is an easy-to-read nonfiction book about the study of dinosaurs and fossils. This book includes photographs, a glossary, index, additional titles, and an online source. This book is part of a nonfiction dinosaur series. Pair with //The Day the Dinosaurs Died,// Charlotte Lewis Brown, ISBN-13: 978-0-06-000529-0 to compare/contrast fact with opinion.
 * //I Am America,// Charles R. Smith, Jr., ISBN 0-439-43179-4 Photographs and sparse text relate the author’s opinion of how different children’s physical features, racial background, and personalities constitute the people of America. Facts about how people look and their ethnic backgrounds can be combined with the opinions of what being American means.
 *  //Insects Are My Life**,** //Megan McDonald, ISBN 0-531-08724-7 Amanda's opinion that bugs are wonderful is not shared by her family members or most of her friends. Facts about different types of insects are incorporated into the story. Pair this with the fiction picture book, Beetle McGrady Eats Bugs!, Megan McDonald, ISBN 0-06-001355-9, for another opinion of how insects can be useful. 


 * 3-5**
 * //The Magic School Bus and the Science Fair Expedition//**//,//** Joanne Cole//,// ISBN-13**:** 978-0-590-10824-9 Ms. Frizzle takes her students on an adventure through history to get facts about various scientists. Factual information is interspersed with a fiction story, allowing opportunities for students to differentiate between the two. **Note:** Magic School Bus books are part of a series, any one of which can be used in a similar way.
 * //The Legend of the Teddy Bear //**//, //**Frank Murphy, ISBN 1-58536-013-9 This account of how Theodore Roosevelt inspired the creation of the teddy bear toy includes an author’s note at the beginning of the book. It is interesting to note that the author’s note is meant to set the facts straight about this story, but the note is full of author bias as well, referring to Mr. Roosevelt as a “great man” and “one of this country’s greatest leaders.” Students will have to carefully read this nonfiction story to separate fact from the author’s opinions.
 *  //Mercedes and the Chocolate Pilot, //Margot Theis Raven, ISBN 1-58536-069-4 Many facts that provide background for this story about the WWII Berlin Airlift are included in the front of this book, while additional facts about the event highlighted in this book are included in the epilogue in the back. How the characters in the story felt about and reacted to the events are part fact, part opinions of the author.
 *  //Reaching The Moon//, Buzz Aldrin, ISBN 0-06-055446-0 Buzz Aldrin writes an account of his life and how he became an astronaut. Facts about his life are interspersed with his opinions of how he felt or what he thought about events. A timeline in the back of the book provides additional facts about flight and space exploration.
 *   //Elizabeth Leads The Way//, Tanya Lee Stone, ISBN 13: 978-0-8050-7903-6 Elizabeth Cady Stanton has some very strong opinions about why women should be allowed more rights, especially to vote. Some men at the time had equally strong opinions to keep women from voting. An author’s note in the back of the book also contains the author’s opinionated admiration for Ms. Stanton while providing facts about her life.
 *  //Johnny Appleseed: The Legend and the Truth//, Jane Yolen, ISBN 978-0-59136-6 Facts about John Chapman at the bottom of each page accompany a bit of the legend about each stage of his life. Students can discuss and research the opinions set forth in the legend, comparing them to the facts presented in this book.