ELA-Bias-Opin-F

Author's Bias - Fact and Opinion - Opinions - Print - Fiction

 * K-2**
 * //The Pain and the Great One, //Judy Blume, ISBN-13 ** : ** 978-0-440-40967-0 A brother and a sister see themselves as trouble and most loved in the family. The children use facts/opinions to back up their statements of which is the most loved or most trouble.
 * //The Important Book//**//,//** Margaret Wise Brown, ** ISBN-13: ** 978-0-06-020721-2 Different everyday objects are highlighted where attributes of each object are discussed. One attribute is defined as the important characteristic about that item. Though the feature is a fact, it is a matter of opinion as to whether that is __the__ important feature of the object.
 * //Cowboy & Octopus// **//,//** Jon Scieszka, ** ISBN-13: ** 978-0-670-91058-8 A cowboy and an octopus develop and maintain a friendship despite their many differences and Cowboy’s undiplomatic opinion of Octopus’ hat.
 * //Who Is Melvin Bubble?, // Nick Bruel, ISBN-13: 978-1-59643-116-4 Different family members and other people/animals/characters give their opinion of who Melvin Bubble really is, including Melvin himself. Students will have to discern the facts about Melvin from the opinions about him.
 *  //Ella Sarah Gets Dressed//**//,//** Margaret Chodos-Irvine, ISBN 0-15-216413-8 Ella has definite ideas about what she wants to wear. The facts are what the clothes actually look like; the opinions are what other people think and how she thinks she looks.


 * 3-5**
 * //Frindle,// Andrew Clements, ISBN 978-0-689-80669-8 Nick tries to convince his classmates to use the word “frindle” instead of the word “pen.” His teacher and parents get involved; does this make him a troublemaker? This chapter book for grades 3-5 allow students to debate the issue, using facts in the book to back up their opinions.
 *  //Thanksgiving on Thursday //**//, //**Mary Pope Osborne , ** ISBN-13 :** 978-0-375-90615-2 A short chapter book transports the reader back in time to the year 1621 to the New Plymouth Colony where the first Thanksgiving was celebrated. Facts are included in the fictionalized account of this event, lending the text to distinguish between the facts and opinions of the characters. Note: The Magic Tree House series includes many books that can be used in the same way. Some separate companion books for these historical events, also written by Mary Pope Osborne, are available. For example, //Pilgrims : a nonfiction companion to Thanksgiving on Thursday,// ISBN-13: 978-0-375-83219-2
 * //Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek,// Deborah Hopkinson, ISBN 978-0-375-83768 A picture book with an account of a childhood friend of Abe Lincoln who may have rescued Mr. Lincoln from drowning when he was a boy. Austin Gollaher did exist but students will need to separate the facts from the opinions of the author. An author’s note at the beginning of the book gives some of the factual information from which the story is written.
 * //Goin’ Someplace Special,// Patricia McKissack, ISBN 0-689-81885-8 A picture book set in the 1950’s in which a young black girl sets out to visit “someplace special,” the public library. She encounters obstacles along the way as a result of segregation laws. Facts that highlight some of the segregation laws are interwoven in the story, while the author’s note in the back of the book also contain facts about those now obsolete laws. The girl in the story has some definite opinions about how the laws affect her and make her feel.
 * //Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride//**//,//** Pam Munoz Ryan, ISBN 0-590-96075-X This picture book account of an actual event involving Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt and a night airplane flight includes opinions about how some people felt women should behave and what the conversation might have been like that evening. An author’s note at the end of the book gives additional facts about what really happened and some background about the two women.