Teach compare and contrast writing using this simple system with a graphic organizer and outline for excellent essays.
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I once enjoyed a teachable moment that I immediately turned into a compare and contrast writing activity. The students were so excited, they couldn’t wait to write about it and later, to show it to their parents.
The students cheered and called out, “Praying Mantis!” or “Black Widow!” The excitement became contagious. The teacher next door brought her class out to join in the rare teachable moment.
What was happening?
A praying mantis and a black widow were facing off up under the outdoor eaves next to the classroom. Students were super engaged with watching the two creatures battle it out.
Who would win?
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Imagine you’re teaching in upper elementary and your students are super into the books that give two options. When I taught third grade, the hot-ticket books were the “Who Will Win?” books from Scholastic.
These were the books about two animals, let’s say a rhinoceros and a hippo. Sometimes they were about insects or reptiles, such as a stegosaurus and triceratops.
The books described the differences and similarities of two creatures, and in the final pages the two animals confronted each other. Students had to guess which animal would come out the winner. They loved these books!
What they didn’t realize, not even for a minute, was that it wasn’t really about the stegosaurus. It wasn’t about the triceratops. It was about teaching young students how to compare and contrast with the question, “Who will win?”
Introduce Compare and Contrast Writing (What It Is and What It Isn’t)
As you already know, compare and contrast writing is a fundamental expository writing skill that helps students understand and communicate the similarities and differences between two subjects. However, to teach it successfully, it’s important to begin with models and examples to show what compare and contrast writing is—and of course—what it isn’t.
Remember when you were in school and a teacher assigned a piece of expository writing, but didn’t explicitly teach the details of what that writing should look like? Perhaps you turned in a paper that didn’t make the grade. I know I did.
What if your teacher had defined exactly what was needed, before you began writing? Imagine how much easier it would have been. That’s what you can do for your students. Make it clear and make it simple.
What compare and contrast writing is:
Compare and contrast writing involves critical thinking and analyzing two or more things. In upper elementary school, many teachers stick to just two things to compare and contrast.
Students need to read and learn about them, so they can identify their similarities and differences. I used hand signals to help teach this. We would discuss the two topics, and as we did, we all repeated and made the movements together.
- Things that are the same = clasped hands.
- Things that are different = fists bumping and moving apart.
For example, comparing cats and dogs:
What’s the same? “Cats and dogs both have fur.” As we say this, we clasp our hands in front of us.
What’s different? “Cats meow, but dogs bark.” As we say this, we bump our fists and move them apart.
Research has shown that combining movement with teaching and learning helps students understand and retain information better.
This type of writing goes beyond simply listing characteristics; it requires critical thinking and synthesis of information, which makes it a key skill for upper elementary students. The hand movements are a way to cement that critical thinking analysis.
What compare and contrast writing is not:
Compare and contrast writing isn’t simply writing one or two differences or similarities in a list format. It’s definitely not an opinion piece. The goal is to guide students to think deeply about the relationships between the items they’re comparing. Teach them to only state facts. I call that:
JTTF. Just The Facts, Friend!
Once they’re clear on the similarities and differences, they can state them in their writing.
Compare and Contrast is the Expository Writing Lesson to Teach After Summary Writing
Once your students have mastered summary writing, (more on how to teach summary writing in this blog post,) teaching compare and contrast writing is the next step.
Summary writing teaches students to condense information and focus on the main ideas. They’re using the same skills when they begin writing compare and contrast essays. Think of it as an extension of summary writing, a level up.
In compare and contrast writing, students go beyond summarization. They clearly state the similarities and the differences. Then, to conclude, they restate their findings. This progression from summarizing to comparing and contrasting helps students deepen their comprehension and critical thinking skills.
What Does a Compare and Contrast Graphic Organizer Do?
In a word, it helps students lay out their thoughts. It’s like a pattern to follow, and it gives students a way to make sure they’ve noted all the things they want to include.
A compare and contrast graphic organizer, like a Venn diagram, serves as a powerful tool for students to visually map out the similarities and differences between two subjects. You already know that it’s important for students to organize their thoughts before writing, and the graphic organizer helps them do just that.
In the Member Vault on this website, you’ll find a packet of graphic organizers you can download for free. These will help your students to take notes as they read.
The Venn diagrams help students to clearly see the overlap and distinctions between the two items they’re analyzing. The notes in the graphic organizer become the key points for their essay.
Use a Simple Compare and Contrast Outline
The simpler the outline, the better. A simple outline ensures your students have a clear and understandable structure to follow. Guide your students in transferring their ideas into the outline. Model, model, model, until they can do it on their own.
The simple outline that follows will guide them in writing a clear and organized compare and contrast essay.
You might recognize this outline as being very similar to the one we use for summaries. Simple systems like this, that transfer across skills, are what build strong writers.
Outline Structure:
I like to use a color system, and the introductory sentence or thesis statement are green. Have students use a colored pencil or crayon to underline their introduction.
The facts are yellow. If more details are added about that fact, it’s colored red.
Finally, the conclusion is also colored green, as it refers back to prior statements in the essay.
- Introduction: Start with a sentence that introduces the two items being compared and contrasted.
- Similarities: Write at least one similarity and one detail about it. (For example, cats and dogs have fur. (Fact.) The type of fur can be very different, depending on the individual animal. (Detail.)
- Differences: Write at least one difference and one detail about it.
- Conclusion: Conclude with at least one sentence that restates some of the points and may provide a final thought about the topic.
This straightforward outline helps students to translate their organized thoughts from the Venn diagram into well-structured paragraphs, ensuring their essay is cohesive and easy to follow.
How Long Should the Compare and Contrast Essay Be?
Here’s the answer we all love to hate.
It depends.
It depends on the topic, the age and ability of your students, the complexity of the material, and how comfortable your students are with writing.
You can begin with a four sentence paragraph in the very early stages. This is the very minimum and includes the four points in the compare and contrast essay outline. This can be a low-stakes daily writing assignment.
For the actual essay, in lower elementary grades, you could begin with a six sentence paragraph. That would be an introduction, a similarity, a detail, a difference, a detail, and a conclusion.
Finally, once students are becoming strong writers, you can move into a four or five paragraph essay format.
Where to Find Compare and Contrast Essay Ideas
What do your students love reading about and learning about?
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, when I taught third grade, the most popular books were “Who Will Win?” books. Those make perfect starting points for compare and contrast writing.
Finding engaging topics for compare and contrast essays is key to keeping students interested and motivated.
Here’s a short list of ideas of things to compare and contrast:
- Two characters from a story they’ve read. (This is a perfect activity to add to a novel study unit.)
- Two animals they’ve learned about. (This is the basis for my Rainforest Animal compare and contrast writing resource.)
- Two cultural traditions. (I delve into this in my resource to compare and contrast Chinese Lunar New Year with New Year in the U.S.A.)
- Two biomes.
- Two historical events.
- Two types of technology. (Think iPhone vs. Android here!)
- Two means of communication. (Such as taught in the Braille escape room versus the Morse Code escape room.)
As you feel better and better about teaching compare and contrast expository writing, you’ll tune in to the topics that interest your students which could be adapted into engaging lessons. Imagine your students becoming enthusiastic about it and turning in thoughtful writing. Yes, it can happen!
Summary: Best Practices to Teach Compare and Contrast Writing
Just as you teach your students to summarize their writing, here’s a quick summary of this blog post. Teach compare and contrast writing by following these best practices:
- Build on existing skills: Teach compare and contrast writing after summary writing to leverage students’ existing skills.
- Start by introducing what it is: Make sure your students understand what compare and contrast writing is before assigning anything.
- Use graphic organizers and hand movements: These help students visually organize their thoughts. It works best if you choose one or two organizers and use them for all your lessons.
- Use a simple outline: This outline not only helps your students, it helps you to grade these essays faster!
- Choose topics your students will love: You know your students best. You’re in the best position to choose the topics…more so than a canned curriculum.
Who will win?
I believe it will be both you and your students!
