A compare and contrast worksheet helps students analyze the differences/similarities of two separate ideas, people, events, places, etc. It can help students list the evidence for both sides of their topics, and weigh the merits of each. For this activity, students will identify and record differences and similarities between the book and the movie Wonder. Teachers can modify the worksheets to guide students through each text, and scaffold as needed! They can be completed digitally or printed out and used to take notes while reading/watching.
For additional templates to customize for this example, check out our compare and contrast worksheet templates!
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Due Date:
Objective: Identify and record similarities and differences between the book and movie version of Wonder.
Student Instructions:
Using movies to inspire learning is perfect for a language arts class. In general, it is a good idea to read the book first and help students to understand the main ideas through the plot and characters.
Instruct students to watch the movie version of the book, paying careful attention to similarities and differences that they find. Learning how to organize their thoughts into comparing and contrasting is a higher level skill all students need.
Instruct students to find similarities and differences between the book and the movie. They may look at elements such as characters, setting, themes, conflicts, and other interactions in the story line. Classifying elements of the book and movie will help them to organize information.
Students will always need to be able to judge between two different elements and find out how they are different and how they are similar. This helps them to categorize their world beyond literature, and is a lifelong skill.
Students can use movies for an interesting lesson in comparing and contrasting when they compare the actions, characters, and themes of a book and a movie. There are so many lessons to learn about director's choices, how the similarities and differences play out, and how the words on a page can come alive.