critical thinking skills activity 4 distinguishing fact from opinion answers

Teaching Fact and Opinion

DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN FACT AND OPINION

For higher-level reading comprehension, students must accurately distinguish between fact and opinion. To do this successfully, students must begin with solid definitions of the two concepts. Once this has been achieved, students can practice applying these definitions through activities engaging with a wide range of reading material. Let’s take a look at defining these two all-important concepts before proceeding into strategies and ideas for teaching fact and opinion in the classroom.

WHAT IS A FACT?

A fact refers to something true and can be verified as such . That is, a fact is something that can be proven to be true. 

WHAT IS AN OPINION?

An opinion refers to a personal belief. It relates to how someone feels about something. Others may agree or disagree with an opinion but cannot prove or disprove it. This is what defines it as opinion.

Common Fact Vs. Opinion Statements

• The Earth is round.
• Water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius.
• The Great Wall of China is the longest wall in the world.
• The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
• The human body has 206 bones.
• The fastest land animal is the cheetah.
• The capital of France is Paris.
• The Nile River is the longest river in the world.
• The Statue of Liberty is located in New York Harbor.
• The United States of America has 50 states.
• Pizza is the best food in the world.
• Horror movies are too scary to watch.
• Taylor Swift is the greatest musician of all time.
• Dogs are better pets than cats.
• Chocolate ice cream is better than vanilla ice cream.
• Politics is too complicated to understand.
• Exercise is essential for a healthy lifestyle.
• The internet is the greatest invention in human history.
• Living in a big city is better than living in a small town.
• The color blue is the most calming color.

IDENTIFYING FACT FROM OPINION IS AN ESSENTIAL SKILL FOR STUDENTS

The ability to distinguish between fact and opinion helps students develop critical and analytical skills in reading and listening. Fact and opinion are often woven together in texts and speeches. It is, therefore, imperative that students can unravel the threads of what is true from what is mere belief if they are to navigate the deluge of media successfully they will encounter in their lifetimes.

Whether on the news, in advertising, or in a history book, learning to distinguish between what is fact and what is opinion is crucial to becoming an autonomous consumer with the critical thinking skills to avoid being manipulated easily.

THE ULTIMATE FACT AND OPINION TEACHING UNIT

This  HUGE 120 PAGE  resource combines four different fact and opinion activities you can undertake as a  WHOLE GROUP  or as  INDEPENDENT READING GROUP TASKS  in either  DIGITAL  or  PRINTABLE TASKS.

The Language of Facts AND OpinionS: Signal Words and Phrases

Writers will liven up their facts with a sprinkling of opinions. Unfortunately, it can sometimes be challenging to extract the verifiable truths from the author’s preferences and biases. Luckily, the language used often throws up helpful clues in the forms of words and phrases that assist us in identifying statements as fact-based or opinion-based.

Let’s now take a look at some examples of those signal words and phrases being used in the sentence fragments that often precede a statement of fact or opinion:

FACT SIGNAL WORDS

• The annual report confirms …
• Scientists have recently discovered …
• According to the results of the tests…
• The investigation demonstrated …

OPINION SIGNAL WORDS

• He claimed that…
• It is the officer’s view that…
• The report argues that…
• Many scientists suspect that…

As we can see from the signal word examples, the language used to introduce fact, and opinion statements can help indicate whether it is being framed as a fact or an opinion.

Students must understand that things are not always as they appear to be. At times, writers, whether consciously or not, will frame opinion as fact and vice versa. This is why it is vital that students develop a clear understanding of what constitutes fact and opinion and are afforded ample opportunities to practice distinguishing between the two.

WHAT IS CONTEXT?

Context is the circumstances surrounding an event, statement, or idea and in terms of which it can be fully understood. Facts and opinions must be placed in context to draw conclusions, and they can significantly impact the importance we place upon statements of fact and opinion.

For example, a young boy who tells his mother, “I ate a truckload of sweets at the party last night” needs to be placed in the context of his age and audience.

We can confidently infer he never actually ate a real truckload of sweets, but we can reasonably appreciate he ate a lot of them and wanted to emphasise that point. His mother might ask a clarifying question to turn that opinion into a hard fact.

Context provides the background information or circumstances that help us understand the meaning of facts and opinions.

For instance, if we say the factual statement, “it’s raining outside” , the context may differ depending on the situation. If we’re at home, it might mean we must stay inside or find something to do indoors. If we’re at a sports game, it might affect the playing conditions or attendance.

Similarly, the context of an opinion can vary based on the situation. For example, if someone says, “I don’t like spicy food” , the context might include their previous experiences with spicy food or the cultural norms of the cuisine they’re discussing. Understanding the context helps us understand the meaning and implications of what someone is saying.

THE CHALLENGES OF TEACHING FACT AND OPINION IN THE “POST-TRUTH” ERA

Teaching students to differentiate between fact and opinion is a complex task that requires educators to navigate a number of challenges that have only accelerated in the “Post-Truth” era, in which some members of society cannot accept being wrong on a particular issue, even with an ocean of evidence stacked against them.

One of the key challenges is that students often come to the classroom with preconceived notions and biases that can make it difficult for them to accept certain facts.

This is not a new phenomenon. Throughout history, individuals and groups have clung to their beliefs despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. For example, in the 16th and 17th centuries, many people still believed that the Earth was the center of the universe, despite the mounting evidence to the contrary.

Today, we face a similar challenge when teaching students about scientific issues such as climate change. Some students may come from families or communities that deny the existence of climate change, despite the overwhelming scientific evidence that supports it. In such cases, educators must find ways to engage with students respectfully and constructively, while also presenting the scientific evidence clearly and compellingly.

Another challenge educators face when teaching fact and opinion is that students may struggle to distinguish between the two when presented together. This is particularly true in news media, where news articles often include a mixture of factual information and opinions from various sources.

In such cases, educators must teach students to critically evaluate the sources of information they encounter and distinguish between factual information and opinions. This requires a deep understanding of the media landscape, as well as an ability to evaluate the information that is presented critically.

Teaching Resources

Use these resources and tools to improve your student’s media literacy skills through proven teaching strategies.

Fact Vs. Opinion TEACHING activities

Fact and Opinion Activities: Honing the Skills

To become a skilled, critical reader, a student must develop the ability to evaluate a text for facts and opinions quickly. To achieve this, they must practice distinguishing between fact and opinion to a point where it becomes a subconscious mechanism. The activities below will afford your students these necessary opportunities. They can also easily be adapted to various ages and abilities by carefully selecting the reading material.

Student Activity 1. Top 10 Facts and Opinions  

Not only does this simple activity help students hone their fact and opinion-detecting abilities but serves as a great warm-up research activity when beginning a new topic in class. 

When starting a new topic, whether on a historical period, a literary figure, or a species of animal, set students to list ten facts and opinions from their background reading and research on their new topic. Students must then form and record ten opinions based on reflection on this initial reading and research.

It may also be a valuable exercise for students to review their opinions at the end of the topic. Have they changed their opinion in any areas of the topic? Why did they change or maintain their opinion? This can work as a great review activity to wrap things up.

Student Activity 2. Evaluate an Editorial

Newspaper editorials can be a superb resource for students to practice recognizing facts and opinions. They are filled with the editor’s opinions on the day’s issues, intermingled with facts selected to support that view.

First, give students copies of a newspaper editorial. Then, working in pairs, have students go through the editorial to identify the facts by underlining them and the opinions by highlighting them. Remind them to look for the signal words we covered earlier to help identify facts and opinions.

When finished, students can compare their answers and discuss the reasons for their decisions. This will help identify any areas of confusion within the class, providing valuable data to inform your future planning on this topic.

Student Activity 3. Fact vs Opinion Survey

This activity can initially be undertaken using statements compiled on a worksheet. Later, students can work through text passages or a textbook itself directly. Students work through a series of statements marking either F or O beside each to identify that statement as a F act or an O pinion.

This activity is a practical study preparation exercise as it helps students to filter factual content from opinion. It also makes it easier for students to work out the underlying purpose of a text , whether it is designed to inform, persuade, or entertain. Students will soon begin to recognize that passages of text that contain more facts than opinions are most likely intended to inform. In contrast, a more opinion-based text will most likely be designed to persuade or entertain.

Student Activity 4. The Great Fact or Opinion Sort

Organize students into reasonable-sized groups of four or five students. Provide each group with a jar containing a set of cards , each with a fact-based or an opinion-based statement printed on it. Students take turns picking a card from the jar and reading it to the group. The group discusses each statement before deciding if it is a fact or an opinion.

Students can then record the statements accordingly on the Fact and Opinion graphic organizer described above or sort them into two piles.

This activity effectively supports struggling students as they learn from those who have already developed a firmer grasp of the two concepts.

Extension Exercise: Identifying Bias

One reason it is so vital for our students to learn to differentiate between fact and opinion is that this ability is a stepping stone to detecting bias in a text. Students begin to evaluate a text for bias by identifying how much of the text is fact-based and how much is based on opinion.

Once this is done, students must then analyse whether the opinions expressed in the text are biased by considering whether the writer has:

• Provided incomplete information
• Intentionally ignored or left out information to persuade the reader
• Allowed their own personal experiences to cloud any sense of objectivity.

A Complete Teaching Unit on Fake News

Digital and social media have completely redefined the media landscape, making it difficult for students to identify FACTS AND OPINIONS covering:

Teach them to FIGHT FAKE NEWS with this COMPLETE 42 PAGE UNIT. No preparation is required,

FACT vs OPINION GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS

Graphic organizers are a great tool to help students sort the facts and opinions in a text. Offering, as they do, a very visual means of organizing information, graphic organizers help students drill their ability to identify differences between fact and opinion statements until they become automatic.

The Fact and Opinion Chart

This simple chart consists of two columns helpfully labelled fact and opinion beneath a topic heading. Students work through a text, sorting statements as they come across them into the appropriate column on the graphic organizer. At the end of this task, they will be left with a clear segregation of the statements of the text according to whether they are objective facts or subjective opinions.

READ OUR GREAT ARTICLE ON LITERACY GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS HERE

IN CONCLUSION

Not only is the ability to identify bias in the writing of others essential, but this knowledge will also be of great benefit to students when it comes to forming and expressing their own opinions.

Taking the time to prepare and deliver discrete lessons on recognising facts and opinions in reading is essential. No matter how confident students are in distinguishing between the two, they are still likely to benefit from further practice. Even the most reflective of us can sometimes remain ignorant of our biases!

Becoming the critical readers that our students aspire to become begins with forming clear definitions of the terms in the student’s minds. These definitions must be supported by examples and illustrations to achieve this. Student understanding must be further underpinned by classroom and home practice. The activities above serve as a good starting point, but they are not sufficient on their own.

It will be necessary to support students further to gain a deeper understanding of fact and opinion (and related concepts such as bias) by frequently referencing these concepts when engaged with students in lessons with other explicit objectives seemingly unrelated to fact and opinion. Reinforcement should be persistent to ensure students develop firm skills in this area.

With ongoing technological advances, assessing the reliability and truthfulness of the media, we consume daily has never been more challenging – or essential.

OTHER GREAT ARTICLES RELATED TO FACT AND OPINION

6 Ways To Identify Fake News: A Complete Guide for Educators

How to Write a Descriptive Text

Teaching Proofreading and Editing Skills

Information Literacy and Media Literacy for Students and Teachers

Teaching Compare and Contrast

What Is An Inference? And How To Teach It.

5 Ways to Teach Critical Thinking in Media Literacy to Fight Fake News

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18 Fun Fact Or Opinion Activities

March 23, 2023 //  by  Laura Spry

As children grow, they need to learn the ability to evaluate information and develop critical thinking skills. Learning the difference between fact and opinion is the start of this journey so it’s crucial to support their fact and opinion understanding. Encouraging these skills will mean that kids can make well-reasoned judgments and produce evidence-based arguments in the future. Let’s take a look at 18 fun fact or opinion activities .

1. Fact or Opinion Robots

Based on the wonderful book by Michael Rex, this activity requires a pencil, markers, glue, and scissors. Students choose their robot from the free printouts and in the front body section, fill in the topic they will write about. Each section should be completed and the robots should then be full of facts and opinions at the end.

Learn More: Mai Story Book

2. Fact or Opinion Sorting Cards

This opinion-sorting game quickly teaches students the concept of sorting fact from opinion. The game cards are simply sorted into two piles; fact, and opinion. These can be personalized so that they are related to your class’s story or current learning topic.

Learn More: The Curriculum Corner

3. Crack the Case Activity

In this detective-based exercise, students must read witness statements and determine what’s fact and what’s opinion. This will test even the most confident students’ analytical skills! The student who can sort through the opinions to reveal the facts the fastest wins.

Learn More: Made by Teachers

4. Ice Cream Activity

In this lovely resource, students must sort the fact and opinions of ice cream scoops into the correct cones. For added fine motor skill practice, kids can cut these out themselves and glue them into their books on top of the correct cone.

Learn More: Tunstalls Teaching Tidbits

5. What is the Difference Between Facts and Opinions?

This fun video starts by giving examples of opinions and goes on to explain that facts are statements that can be proven. This is a fantastic video to show your kids when just starting to discuss the language utilized when giving opinions.

Learn More: Learn Bright

6. In My Opinion

This wonderful story by Deb Bird will be a huge benefit to students starting to study opinion writing. It follows the story of a young girl who is surprised to learn not everyone shares her opinions. She quickly realizes that opinions can change if we learn to use critical thinking skills.

Learn More: Amazon

7. Fact Anchor Chart

For this simple activity, display a fact and opinion poster on your anchor chart and write several facts and opinions on post-it notes. Students must then work together to sort the facts from the opinions by placing them on the correct poster.

Learn More: The Lemonade Stand Teacher

8. Fact or Opinion Clue Words

This is the perfect resource for students learning to sort fact from opinion! Students must cut out the sentences and place them in the correct column. Students are then encouraged to look for ‘clue’ words such as good, bad, best, better, worst, etc. to help them.

Learn More: Ginger Snaps Treats for Teachers

9. Sorting Activity

In this Winter sorting game, students must sort the facts from the opinions and place them in the correct columns. This is a great pairs activity for kids to work on their opinion reading and defining skills.

Learn More: Classroom Freebies Too

10. Fact or Opinion

These fact and opinion paddles can be easily made using popsicle sticks and colored cardstock. You’ll read out extracts from a non-fiction book; pausing when you want the kids to vote if your statement is fact or opinion. They then simply hold their paddles up in the air to vote.

Learn More: Primarily Speaking

11. Read, Think, and Write Activity

This worksheet has handy lined sections for students to neatly write their answers. They are encouraged to carefully read the statement, think about whether this is fact or opinion, and write their answer neatly.

Learn More: Teacher to the Core

12. Identifying Facts and Opinions

Display an illustration from the book you are currently reading on your whiteboard. Have students work together in pairs and write down 3 facts and 3 opinions about the illustration. Discuss the difference between a photograph and an illustration before this task.

Learn More: Inspire Me ASAP

13. Lunch Game

In this fun game, students must help fact and opinion make their lunches. The fact only likes foods with facts on them and opinion only likes food with opinions on them, so sorting through them is key. This is a great review for kids learning to differentiate between fact and opinion.

Learn More: Literacy Math Ideas

14. Sentence Starters

These sentence starters are perfect for little ones just developing their fact and opinion writing skills. Here, they are introduced to the idea of creating an opinion, a reason, and a closing statement.

Learn More: Raise the Bar Reading

15. Telling the Difference Posters

Here, kids are given some keywords to help them distinguish between fact and opinion. Go through this with your kids and then task them with making their own ‘How to Tell a Difference’ poster. They must use different keywords and make it colorful and informative.

Learn More: Primary Flourish

16. Fact vs Opinion Flow Chart

Have your students create a flow chart based on your class story to decide whether certain statements are facts or opinions. They must consider whether the evidence comes from a reliable source and if it contains any opposing or differing evidence.

Learn More: Book Units Teacher

17. Fake News

Provide your students with a photograph. They must then produce 2 news articles based on it. One must only state opinions and the other, facts. It can be based on the truth, or be entirely false- it’s up to them.

Learn More: Worksheet Place

18. OREO Opinion

The OREO method teaches students to offer their Opinion, give a Reason, offer Examples, and once again give their Opinion and why they feel this way. First Grade Wow offers exciting fact and opinion printables, including, sentence starters and a handy opinion writing checklist; both of which are ideal for keeping on students’ desks.

Learn More: First-Grade Wow

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4 Activities to Teach Fact vs. Opinion

By Mary Montero

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In a world where news and information is at our students’ fingertips, being able to distinguish fact vs. opinion has never been more essential! The great news is that teaching fact and opinion to upper elementary school students doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact (see what I did there?), the concept can easily be woven into the reading concepts you have already taught to students.

Introducing Fact vs. Opinion

Before jumping into using fact and opinion in reading and writing, I always begin by introducing the concept to students in a mini-lesson. Inform students that a fact is a statement that can be proven. An opinion is a statement that expresses someone’s attitude, belief, or feeling about something. 

We create an anchor chart together, and we go on a hunt for facts and opinions in whatever read aloud we have at the moment. 

Then we move on to one of their FAVORITE parts of this lesson! I always try to incorporate a song or video into my lessons (because BUY IN!), and I love this candy “fact” video . We watch it once through, and I have students think about the facts and opinions they give. They focus heavily on the facts since it is touted as a FACT video! We watch it again, and this time, I have them write down specific facts and specific opinions. They are amazed at the number of opinions that are infused into the video. We take this opportunity to talk about how confusing it can be to be reading or watching something factual, but infused opinions can truly make an impact on our interpretation of them. 

Fact vs. Opinion Activities

Once you have introduced the concept to students, begin reinforcing and strengthening the skill with different tasks and activities. Here are some activities to use with fact and opinion.

#1: Identify and Describe if statements are fact or opinion.

After your mini-lesson, a great activity is having students simply identify and describe if different statements are facts or opinions. You can do this in a variety of ways, such as using task cards, gallery walks, sentence strips, or my super-engaging Candy Aisle Conundrum! 

I created this passage to have my students practice identifying facts and opinions in context. They LOVE this one, and I always enjoy hearing their discussions about some parts that are questionable!

After students have practiced identifying different statements, you can even have students create their own fact or opinion and pass it to a neighbor. Their neighbor can work the same identification process on their peers’ statement.

Want some ready-to-go fact and opinion statements? I have task cards that are perfect for 3rd through 5th grade students. There are a variety of different question types: picture cards for students to generate their own facts and opinion, topic cards for generating fact and opinion, identification cards for determining whether a sentence is fact or opinion, and multiple choice cards for picking out the fact or opinion from three different choices. Grab these fact and option task cards here!

#2: Apply fact and opinion knowledge to a reading passage. 

As you read different texts in class, help students make connections to fact and opinion. With informational passages, for example, the text will be filled with facts. Help students make this connection and identify facts in the passage.

For fiction and narrative writing on the other hand, the text will contain both facts and opinions. Inform students that this is the case when they read this genre. Then, during reading, practice recognizing these different facts and opinions. Don’t forget to have students take identification a step further by explaining how they know it is a fact or opinion. You can even challenge students by asking why the author included this fact or opinion in their writing. 

Looking for a text to practice applying fact or opinion? I have a reading comprehension flip book that reviews several reading comprehension skills , such as main idea, fact and opinion, and sequencing. This activity is great for beginning to weave together previously taught comprehension strategies with fact and opinion.

#3: Compare and contrast information to further challenge knowledge.

As students begin to grow more comfortable with the basics of fact and opinion, it’s time to step up the challenge. One way to do this is to compare a fiction and nonfiction text against one another (ie. an information article about the Grand Canyon and a narrative about a trip to the Grand Canyon). Another way to compare is by giving two texts of the same genre. 

After students have read the text, have them compare and contrast the information given in the article. Which passage was based more in fact / opinion? How did the information in the article impact how you felt about the topic? (ie. an informational article about space and a narrative about an astronauts trip to space – how did you feel after reading each one?)

No time to look for a resource? I have two resources that use compare and contrast for challenging fact and opinion skills. This informational text fact and opinion paired passage resource compares and contracts informational texts. This fact and opinion reading skills paired passages resource uses an informational and a narrative text. Both resources contain three mini-booklets, which contain the articles, comprehension questions, and a compare and contrast section.

#4: Write your own passage.

Lastly, one of the best ways to challenge students’ knowledge is by simply having them create their own passage. For this activity, I suggest giving students a topic. Then have them write two different passages. One should be factually based and one should be more opinion based. Talk with students about where they can obtain facts for their information article.

After your students have finished writing, give them a chance to share with their peers. Have their peers select the passage that they are more likely to read for that topic and why.

More Reading Skills Tips

Fact and opinion is such an essential skill these days. With lots of practice, your students will become pros at deciphering information, and they will be better digital citizens because of it. Want some ideas for incorporating reading skills into your classroom daily? Check out this reading skill review blog post and this reading skills toolkit blog post for ways to spiral reading skills all year long. 

Mary Montero

I’m so glad you are here. I’m a current gifted and talented teacher in a small town in Colorado, and I’ve been in education since 2009. My passion (other than my family and cookies) is for making teachers’ lives easier and classrooms more engaging.

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Teaching Fact vs. Opinion: Tips, Activities, and Resources

Learning to distinguish fact and opinion is one of the most important skills students can learn in school. It serves students for a lifetime and in all aspects of life—from knowing how advertisers get them to buy products to analyzing news stories and the sources. No matter their political leanings, students need to know how to analyze information and differentiate between fact and opinion. They need to be able to pick reliable sources when conducting their own research as well.

Unfortunately, many students do not learn this skill, and that has a negative impact on our country and on their own lives. Perhaps it is because we, as teachers, focus more on memorization than analysis. Students learn analytical skills by doing, not reading and memorizing. It is like learning how to ride a bike, swim, or read. You cannot learn to ride a bike by reading about it or by watching someone else do it. You need to do it yourself.

We cannot function as a democracy if people don’t know the difference between fact and opinion—and how to speak up and make an informed argument. We need students in school to practice being an informed electorate. That is one of the challenges we are encountering today: students are not practicing in school, they are memorizing. They don’t know whether to believe what they read or not. They don’t know how to check to see if what they are reading is actually “fake news.”

In a 2018 Pew Research Center study , U.S. adults had difficulty telling the difference between fact and opinion, with just 26% of those surveyed able to correctly classify a full list of five factual statements and 35% of adults able to correctly classify five opinions. According to Pew, “The politically aware, digitally savvy, and those more trusting of the news media fare better.” It makes sense.

We all want to fare better. It is in the best interests of our country for all adults to fare better. Teaching this skill should begin in elementary school when kids are learning to read.

There is only one way to legitimately incorporate opinion into news, and that is to quote a source saying something. The source has a right to be opinionated. However, if reporters only quote one side of an issue, the story is biased. They need to quote credible sources on both sides to balance the story. That doesn’t always happen, but the reader should be able to note that. They should ask, where is the information from the other side? News can be biased by citing sources from only one perspective.

No matter their political leanings, students need to know how to analyze information and differentiate between fact and opinion.

Defining Fact and Opinion for Students

Use simple definitions to help kids—especially those in elementary school—differentiate between fact and opinion.

• A fact is a statement that can be verified.
• An opinion is an expression of belief about something.

You can add additional qualifiers to your explanation. Facts rely on observation or research and generally involve the use of empirical data and information. In many cases, facts also involve our physical senses, like hearing, seeing, smelling, touching, or tasting. Opinions are based on assumptions that cannot be proven and reflect somebody's views, beliefs, personal perspectives, or values. In a news story, all opinions must be quoted from a source, and sources from both sides should be cited. Even a statement like “it is too hot outside” can be an opinion. Some people prefer hot weather, whereas others do not. Opinions cannot be verified.

• The research confirms…
• The doctors recently discovered that COVID-19 is airborne…, COVID-19 is ...
• "According to [source]" is usually followed by a fact. But it can also be followed by an opinion statement. You need to know your source.
• The source of a fact has to be credible. It cannot simply be your mother or your relatives—unless they are a recognized authority.

Opinion Clues

• I think, I believe, I feel, In my opinion, Some people think, My friends think, My parents think, Some people claim, He/she claims
• Always/Never, Awful/Wonderful, Beautiful/Ugly, Better/Best/Worst, Delicious/Disgusting, Enjoyable/Horrible/Favorite, For/Against, Good/Bad,, Inferior/Superior, Oppose/Support, Terrible/Unfair, Worthwhile

Fact vs. Opinion Activities

There are many fact or opinion activities you can use to teach these critical thinking skills. Here are some ideas.

• Analyze News Stories vs. Editorials: As a straightforward and effective activity, have students actively pick out the opinions and facts from an editorial they find themselves. Students share their findings with the class, and then follow up with a news story about the same topic after doing the same type of analysis. Have them compare what they found in each article. A teacher can also find a digital news story and engage the entire class with the same article. Students should have a routine where they find a news story and analyze it at least once a week for the semester. After a semester of doing that, they will have embedded that learning.
• Have Students Practice Writing: Recognizing a biased story is one skill, but going one step further is being able to write balanced news. If students learn to write balanced news and then editorials, they don’t forget the distinction. For example, have them choose a topic they are interested in and then write an objective article on that topic, followed by an editorial where they voice their opinion. When students actually do something, they tend to learn it.

Try this free activity from Human Geography for the AP® Course , which gives geographic context to global, national, and local issues while teaching students to think and write critically about them.

• Give Students Examples: Are these opinions or facts? Give kids some examples. You can use the ones below or others you find or come up with, depending on their grade level. Chocolate is the best flavor for ice cream. The beach is more fun than the mountains. The fires are burning north of Sacramento. Football is a dangerous sport. Tennis is a great sport for kids to learn. Audio books are an easier way to read a book. School uniforms make kids happier. It is difficult for sea turtles to lay their eggs on land. A university education is the key to success.
• Choose and Analyze Opinion Columns: Tell students to pick out two of their favorite columnists, analyze their writing, and state how the columnists supported their opinions. Just finding their favorite columnists will take a lot of researching, and they will learn a lot just in that process. They can then find news stories on the same topic and compare the two types of articles.
• Analyze Speeches from Political Candidates: Have students look for examples of opinions in speeches given by various political candidates and determine whether they back up their statements with facts. What do they claim? Is it factual? How do they support their statements? I used a movie that is still available on Netflix called OutFoxed , which shows how Fox News treats opinion as fact. I had the kids watch Fox News and pick out an opinion that was treated as fact. It is easy to find. Here it is on YouTube .
• Hold a Competition: Have students organize into groups or have classes compete in an activity where they earn a point for every fact or opinion they correctly identify.

Teaching About Fake News and Misinformation

Being able to distinguish fact from opinion is also related to being able to discern that a news story may be fake. Being analytical and knowing fact from opinion is the first step to making that determination.

How do you know if a news story might actually be fake? Here is a great list from Forbes :

• Unusual or unknown web addresses
• A lack of corroboration
• An old date on a “breaking” news story
• An obvious slant or bias by the authors
• A sensational headline

You should also explain to students that when politicians say something is “fake news,” they are usually trying to defend themselves. The facts may indeed be true, but the politician may just not like something that was said. For example, when authorities say, “We will have a vaccine very soon,” they have to cite sources, or you should not believe them. The sources have to be credible. Be careful of politicians who make opinion statements sound like fact. No one can accurately predict with complete certainty that we will have a vaccine very soon.

How do we know if a story is factually correct? Here are some excellent resources for teachers and parents to help kids distinguish fact from fiction.

• VerifyIt! from the League of Women Voters
• Resources from the Stanford History Education Group
• Educator resources from the News Literacy Project
• “Coronavirus as a Teachable Classroom Moment” from the Campus Election Engagement Project
• “Do Not Be Deceived: Detecting Disinformation” from the Campus Election Engagement Project
• Vote by Design from Stanford d.school

Here are sites to help kids determine whether something is fact or fiction. Have them pick out their favorite and use it on a regular basis.

• FactCheck.org
• Media Matters
• Truth or Fiction
• Washington Post Fact Checker

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of HMH.

For a 6–12 ELA curriculum that offers daring texts and inspires confident writers, check out HMH Into Literature .

This blog post, originally published in 2020, has been updated for 2021.

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An author’s purpose can influence the kind of information they choose to include.

Thinking about the reason an author produced a source can be helpful to you because that reason was what dictated the kind of information they chose to include. Depending on that purpose, the author may have chosen to include factual, analytical, and objective information. Or, instead, it may have suited their purpose to include information that was subjective and therefore less factual and analytical. The author’s reason for producing the source also determined whether they included more than one perspective or just their own.

Authors typically want to do at least one of the following:

• Inform and educate
• Sell services or products or

Combination of Purposes

Sometimes authors have a combination of purposes, as when a marketer decides they can sell more smartphones with an informative sales video that also entertains us. The same is true when a singer writes and performs a song that entertains us but that they intend to make available for sale. Other examples of authors having multiple purposes occur in most scholarly writing.

In those cases, authors certainly want to inform and educate their audiences. But they also want to persuade their audiences that what they are reporting and/or postulating is a true description of a situation, event, or phenomenon or a valid argument that their audience must take a particular action. In this blend of scholarly author’s purposes, the intent to educate and inform is considered to trump the intent to persuade.

Why Intent Matters

Authors’ intent usually matters in how useful their information can be to your research project, depending on which information need you are trying to meet. For instance, when you’re looking for resources that will help you actually decide how to answer your research question or evidence for your answer that you will share with your audience, you will want the author’s main purpose to have been to inform or educate their audience. That’s because, with that intent, they are likely to have used:

• Facts where possible.
• Multiple perspectives instead of just their own.
• Little subjective information.
• Seemingly unbiased, objective language that cites where they got the information.

The reason you want that kind of resource when trying to answer your research question or explaining that answer is that all of those characteristics will lend credibility to the argument you are making with your project. Both you and your audience will simply find it easier to believe—will have more confidence in the argument being you are making—based on your selected resources.

Resources whose authors intend only to persuade others won’t meet your information need for an answer to your research question or evidence with which to convince your audience. That’s because they don’t always confine themselves to facts. Instead, they tell us their opinions without backing them up with evidence. If you used those sources, your readers will notice and not believe your argument.

Fact vs. Opinion vs. Objective vs. Subjective

Need to brush up on the differences between fact, objective information, subjective information, and opinion?

Fact – Facts are useful to inform or make an argument.

• The United States was established in 1776.
• The pH levels in acids are lower than pH levels in alkalines.
• Beethoven had a reputation as a virtuoso pianist.

Opinion – Opinions are useful to persuade, but careful readers and listeners will notice and demand evidence to back them up.

• That was a good movie.
• Strawberries taste better than blueberries.
• George Clooney is the sexiest actor alive.
• The death penalty is wrong.
• Beethoven’s reputation as a virtuoso pianist is overrated.

Objective – Objective information reflects a research finding or multiple perspectives that are not biased.

• “Several studies show that an active lifestyle reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes.”
• “Studies from the Brown University Medical School show that twenty-somethings eat 25 percent more fast-food meals at this age than they did as teenagers.”

Subjective – Subjective information presents one person or organization’s perspective or interpretation. Subjective information can be meant to distort, or it can reflect educated and informed thinking. All opinions are subjective, but some are backed up with facts more than others.

• “The simple truth is this: As human beings, we were meant to move.”
• “In their thirties, women should stock up on calcium to ensure strong, dense bones and to ward off osteoporosis later in life.”*

*In this quote, it’s mostly the “should” that makes it subjective. The objective version of the last quote would read: “Studies have shown that women who begin taking calcium in their 30s show stronger bone density and fewer repercussions of osteoporosis than women who did not take calcium at all.” But perhaps there are other data showing complications from taking calcium. That’s why drawing the conclusion that requires a “should” makes the statement subjective.

Critical Thinking in Academic Research Copyright © 2022 by Cindy Gruwell and Robin Ewing is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Teaching facts and opinions to students

Congratulations! You are currently reading the greatest, most informative blog for the coolest educational technology tool in the world! 

While we here at Kialo Edu may genuinely believe the above statement, you can probably tell that it’s merely an opinion and not a provable fact. But can your students? 

As our platform specializes in debate and argumentation, we strive to help students be confident in using both facts and opinions to strengthen their arguments in a discussion . These tips should help you teach your students the essential skill of separating facts from opinions.

Why is it important to distinguish between fact and opinion?

Our students live in a media landscape filled with an unprecedented amount of noise. The ability to distinguish fact from opinion is increasingly important in the digital age, where students are bombarded with fact-like opinions across their social med i a feeds .  

While previous generations could rely on the reputation of newspapers to ensure they got the truth, the growth of the internet means that students get their news from a much broader range of sources. Many students now get their information on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Tiktok, and not all of the people posting on these platforms are acting in good faith. 

This could become concerning and dangerous if they become accustomed to sharing or believing in less-than-verifiable information. After all, we want our students to be able to discern clear facts and information, rather than relying on information from Whatsapp University!

What is a facts vs. an opinion?

First, here’s some background information on what exactly differentiates a fact from an opinion. This will help your students get a solid understanding before diving into dissecting these sources .

What is a fact?

It may seem obvious to most people that a fact is a provable piece of information. Unfortunately, recent surveys have found that many adults can’t identify facts when they see them. It seems that people’s perceptions of facts and opinions were heavily influenced by whether or not they agreed with them! 

Help your students to avoid these pitfalls by giving them a clear definition of a fact. A simple definition could be:

A fact is something that can be proven to be true.

When explaining facts to your students, it is important to have some simple, tangible examples. It’s always best to take facts from your particular curricular materials, but here are some examples.

• Rihanna performed at the Super Bowl halftime show.
• Pythagoras’ theorem applies to triangles.
• Many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed during the 16th and 17th centuries.

All three statements above are undeniable, universal truths. There is not really one way or another to argue against them.

What is an opinion?

In the most simple sense, an opinion is a personal belief. That means that it is an unproven statement that cannot be verified. Moreover, opinions are highly debatable, meaning that different people might have different views on the same matter.

 Below are some opinions that contrast with the example facts above.

• Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance was the best one in years.
• Pythagoras’ theorem is the least interesting theory about triangles.
• Shakespeare’s plays had the most profound influence on how we speak English today.

Notice anything in common with these three sentences that’s different from those fact sentences? Each of them uses a qualifier (best, interesting, most profound). This is a sure sign that the sentence is an opinion, as not everyone in the world will agree that Pythagoras’ theorem is the least interesting — some might find it the most interesting. 

How to determine the difference between facts and opinions

Honest actors often use signal words to indicate whether their statements are intended as statements of fact or opinion. It’s a good idea for your students to be comfortable in using them, and to spot others using them as an aid to interpretation. This handy chart outlines some words that are often used to signify a fact or opinion. 

It’s good to ensure students understand that these words won’t always be used accurately. Students should recognize that some people with bias might use fact signal words when they are actually stating an opinion.

For example, someone might say “this report shows Rhianna’s Super Bowl show was the best of all time!” when the report doesn’t support that at all, or only makes a subjective assessment. This will often be a good indicator that a source is not reliable !

This is important, as many opinions and claims can actually be backed up by facts. Students can find this distinction tricky, so it is vital that they are crystal clear on the difference between the two.

For students, these are the most important differences between facts and opinions that they should be familiar with. It is so essential for students to have a good grasp on this skill to help them navigate their world. We’d love to hear how you taught it in your classroom — drop us a line and connect with us on social media or at [email protected] !  

Check out even more teaching strategies to help you empower your students with the skills they need for discussion success!

Want to try Kialo Edu with your class?

Sign up for free and use Kialo Edu to have thoughtful classroom discussions and train students’ argumentation and critical thinking skills.

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Thinking about the reason an author produced a source can be helpful to you because that reason was what dictated the kind of information they chose to include. Depending on that purpose, the author may have chosen to include factual, analytical, and objective information. Or, instead, it may have suited their purpose to include information that was subjective and therefore less factual and analytical. The author’s reason for producing the source also determined whether they included more than one perspective or just their own.

Authors typically want to do at least one of the following:

• Inform and educate
• Sell services or products or

Combination of Purposes

Sometimes authors have a combination of purposes, as when a marketer decides they can sell more smartphones with an informative sales video that also entertains us. The same is true when a singer writes and performs a song that entertains us but that they intend to make available for sale. Other examples of authors having multiple purposes occur in most scholarly writing.

In those cases, authors certainly want to inform and educate their audiences. But they also want to persuade their audiences that what they are reporting and/or postulating is a true description of a situation, event, or phenomenon or a valid argument that their audience must take a particular action. In this blend of scholarly author’s purposes, the intent to educate and inform is considered to trump the intent to persuade.

Why Intent Matters

Authors’ intent usually matters in how useful their information can be to your research project, depending on which information need you are trying to meet. For instance, when you’re looking for resources that will help you actually decide how to answer your research question or evidence for your answer that you will share with your audience, you will want the author’s main purpose to have been to inform or educate their audience. That’s because, with that intent, they are likely to have used:

• Facts where possible.
• Multiple perspectives instead of just their own.
• Little subjective information.
• Seemingly unbiased, objective language that cites where they got the information.

The reason you want that kind of resource when trying to answer your research question or explaining that answer is that all of those characteristics will lend credibility to the argument you are making with your project. Both you and your audience will simply find it easier to believe—will have more confidence in the argument being you are making—based on your selected resources.

Resources whose authors intend only to persuade others won’t meet your information need for an answer to your research question or evidence with which to convince your audience. That’s because they don’t always confine themselves to facts. Instead, they tell us their opinions without backing them up with evidence. If you used those sources, your readers will notice and not believe your argument.

Fact vs. Opinion vs. Objective vs. Subjective

Need to brush up on the differences between fact, objective information, subjective information, and opinion?

Fact – Facts are useful to inform or make an argument.

• The United States was established in 1776.
• The pH levels in acids are lower than pH levels in alkalines.
• Beethoven had a reputation as a virtuoso pianist.

Opinion – Opinions are useful to persuade, but careful readers and listeners will notice and demand evidence to back them up.

• That was a good movie.
• Strawberries taste better than blueberries.
• George Clooney is the sexiest actor alive.
• The death penalty is wrong.
• Beethoven’s reputation as a virtuoso pianist is overrated.

Objective – Objective information reflects a research finding or multiple perspectives that are not biased.

• “Several studies show that an active lifestyle reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes.”
• “Studies from the Brown University Medical School show that twenty-somethings eat 25 percent more fast-food meals at this age than they did as teenagers.”

Subjective – Subjective information presents one person or organization’s perspective or interpretation. Subjective information can be meant to distort, or it can reflect educated and informed thinking. All opinions are subjective, but some are backed up with facts more than others.

• “The simple truth is this: As human beings, we were meant to move.”
• “In their thirties, women should stock up on calcium to ensure strong, dense bones and to ward off osteoporosis later in life.”*

*In this quote, it’s mostly the “should” that makes it subjective. The objective version of the last quote would read: “Studies have shown that women who begin taking calcium in their 30s show stronger bone density and fewer repercussions of osteoporosis than women who did not take calcium at all.” But perhaps there are other data showing complications from taking calcium. That’s why drawing the conclusion that requires a “should” makes the statement subjective.

An interactive H5P element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here: https://minnstate.pressbooks.pub/ctar/?p=112#h5p-16

The New York Times

The learning network | skills practice | distinguishing between fact and opinion.

Skills Practice | Distinguishing Between Fact and Opinion

Academic Skills

Teaching ideas based on New York Times content.

• See all in Academic Skills »
• See all lesson plans »

An article published in The Times on Dec. 13 begins:

On Saturday, a festive, besotted mob of 20- and 30-somethings, decked out in various measures of Santa Claus dress and undress, will descend on the bars of lower New York City and rain down Christmas cheer like spoiled eggnog. This obnoxious event is SantaCon. For those living in peaceful oblivion, SantaCon is an annual tradition in which revelers dress up as Kriss Kringle (or, at least, put on a Santa hat) and participate en masse in an often literal bar crawl, cramming 12 nights of Christmas boozing into a single afternoon.

Where in the newspaper do you think this article was published? Is it A) a news report that belongs on the front page? B) a review in the Arts section? Or C) an Op-Ed piece in the Opinion section?

If you chose C, you’re right. In “Bring Drunken Santas Under Control,” Jason O. Gilbert argues that SantaCon “contributes absolutely zero value — cultural, artistic, aesthetic, diversionary, culinary or political — to its host neighborhood.” To do this, he relates facts like the history and reach of the event to make his case, but much of the writing is a colorful, impassioned and often funny plea for New Yorkers to ban, or reign in, this tradition.

Read the full piece. Which lines in it are facts? Which are opinions? How can you tell the difference?

As a class, choose another piece from the Opinion section, whether one of those listed below, or something else that fits class curriculum:

• “The Case for Tolerating E-Cigarettes,
• Mexico’s Soda Pop Ploy
• In Praise of Art Forgeries
• Why Attractive Candidates Win
• Epi-pens For All
• Greedy Gardeners

As you read, underline the facts in the article and circle the opinion statements. After you complete this, compare with your neighbor. Did you underline the same facts? Did you circle the same opinions? If there are differences, why do you think that is? Which ones were tricky? What does the ratio of fact to opinion in this article tell you?

Before You Do This Task, You Might…

1. Better understand the difference between fact and opinion:

• A fact is considered something proven to be true.
• An opinion is a personal belief that is not founded on proof or certainty.

2. Examine the intent behind a news story vs. an opinion piece:

• According to Margaret Sullivan, the public editor at The Times, reporters writing a factual news story strive to be impartial — meaning they keep their opinions out of the story.
• A person writing an essay, review or opinion article is trying to persuade readers to accept their views based on their professional or personal experiences. The writer often uses first or second person ( I, we, our, ours, you, yours ) to make it clear the article is based on a personal point of view.

3. Take this quiz, which uses sentences from recent Times articles.

4. Know that many articles in The Times contain both facts and opinions. Although articles that are chiefly reporting news contain mostly facts, the reporter might quote stakeholders who give their opinions on the topic. And some Times features, like News Analyses, might be labeled “interpretive journalism.” You can read more about features like this, and a trend some see as a troubling blurring of fact and opinion, in this 2010 column by a former public editor at The Times . After you read it, view a News Analysis piece like the recent “Considering the Humanity of Nonhumans” to see what you think.

Above and Beyond

Read a News Report and an Opinion Piece on the Same Topic: For example, here’s a news article about SantaCon , which you can read alongside the Opinion article that opened this post. Or, here is a news report on a New York City hearing on e-cigarettes , which you might read alongside the Op-Ed “The Case for Tolerating E-Cigarettes.” What are the differences? What is the fact/opinion ratio in the news piece? You can conduct this same experiment with any topic that interests you: contrast the reporting on the front page on a big news event like with a piece in the Opinion pages that takes on the same topic.

Fact vs. Opinion Scavenger Hunt: Where in a typical edition of The Times are you more likely to find reporting that relies chiefly on facts? In what sections are you more likely to find pieces that privilege opinion? Why? Go through one day’s edition of The Times and create a quiz like the one above for your classmates using sentences from different sections.

Arguments and Counterarguments: Choosing another Op-Ed article, practice making a counterargument. Using this activity sheet (PDF), select one opinion and one related fact stated in the Op-Ed article. Then, speculate about what you might say in opposition and write a rebuttal.

This resource may be used to address the academic standards listed below.

Common Core E.L.A. Anchor Standards

1   Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

4   Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

6   Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

8   Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

Comments are no longer being accepted.

Great lesson on evaluating credibility of source materials. I find that students naively assume any information in print or on the Internet must be true. They also have difficulty ascertaining bias, subjectivity/objectivity, purpose, and motive in the articles that they read. This lesson helps focus students’ critical thinking skills, and encourages sound analysis and evaluation.

James Mulhern, //www.synthesizingeducation.net

An interesting exercise. However, fact/opinion determination is not as straight forward (possible fact) as you seem to make it out to be (opinion). Looking at three items, one might judge a “fact” statement to contain an opinion, and an “opinion” to contain a fact.

#1 “a remarkable personal odyssey” might be judged an opinion within a fact; #2 “America is falling behind other countries in science and math” may be a fact within an opinion ; and, #5 “thus unloading the messy and demanding business of chick-rearing” seems to be an anthropomorphism (opinion) within a fact.

My argument does not take away any thing from your basic premise, which I support; I only hope it expands on your idea.

I think this is a good idea, it gets people in the mood of christmas. Many people don’t know what christmas realy is all people think it is, is people getting gifts. Well its not about getting gifts, its about celebrating gods birthday. Tis is just my opinion.

i think chrismas is a good holoday not for the gifts well i guess sum what but for the happyness. but this is my opinion sum people may be different then mine is there may be beater then to but all maders is that chirismas is a good holiday

“On Tuesday, Ms. [Mary] Barra, 51,

completed a remarkable personal odyssey

when she was named as the next chief executive of G.M.–and the first woman to ascend to the top job at a major auto company.”

That the woman was named chief executive is fact. That she “completed a remarkable personal odyssey” is absolute opinion. That the sentence was written in an article that was supposed to be fact, does not stop that bit from being opinion.

On the flip side,

“A big reason America is falling behind other countries in science and math is that we have effectively written off a huge chunk of our population as uninterested in those fields or incapable of succeeding in them.”

May have been posted in the opinion section, but this “quiz” does not offer citations for anything, therefore, lack of citation is not enough to prove this wrong. Other countries do not write off women and the poor as incapable of succeeding in math and science, the way America does, and it is a “big” (not a statistically supportable or deniable term) reason America is falling behind.

Fact or opinion is a a helpful exercise to help determine the motivation of the articles. The reader can determine if the article is fact or opinion by key words-babyg

I gpt one wrong? thats your opinion.

i got 7/7…..thats nice.. this article really helps me a lot.

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Chapter 16: Distinguishing Between Facts and Opinions

What is the difference between fact and opinion.

Master readers must sort fact from opinion to properly understand and evaluate the information they are reading.

A fact is a specific detail that is true based on objective proof. A fact is discovered.

An opinion is an interpretation, value judgment, or belief that cannot be proved or disproved. An opinion is created. Objective proof can be physical evidence, an eyewitness account, or the result of an accepted scientific method. Most people’s points of view and beliefs are based on a blend of fact and opinion.

Separating fact from opinion requires you to think critically because opinion is often presented as fact. The following clues will help you separate fact from opinion.

Recognizing Fact and Opinion

Fact:  a specific detail that is true based on objective proof such as physical evidence, an eyewitness account, or the result of an accepted scientific method.   Example: Kanye West was born June 8, 1977 .

Opinion : an interpretation, value judgment, or belief that cannot be proved or disproved. Opinions often include biased words (beautiful, miserable, exciting, frightful).

Kanye West is superior to all other hip-hop artists.

To test whether a statement is a fact, ask these three questions: —Can the statement be proved or demonstrated to be true? —Can the statement be observed in practice or operation? —Can the statement by verified by witnesses, manuscripts, or documents?

If the answer to any of these questions is no, the statement is not a fact. Instead, it is an opinion. With that being said, many statements blend both fact and opinion.

Kanye West, the best hip-hop artist around, was born June 8, 1977.  

This statement has both a fact and opinion. If you don’t have both options as one answer choice on a test, then choose opinion.

There are various ‘levels’ of opinions:

An  informed opinion  is developed by gathering and analyzing evidence.

Example: a news reporter writing an editorial about a political candidate and why we should vote for him or her.

An  expert opinion  is developed through much training and extensive knowledge in a given field.

Example: a doctor giving a patient advice about diet and exercise

Beware! Expert and informed opinions may sound factual, but they still are OPINIONS!

Ask Questions to Identify Facts

To test whether  a statement is a fact, ask these three questions:

• Can the statement be proved or demonstrated to be true?
• Can the statement be observed in practice or operation?
• Can the statement by verified by witnesses, manuscripts, or documents?

If the answer to any of these questions is  no , the statement is  not  a fact. Instead, it is an opinion. With that being said, many statements blend both fact and opinion.

Note : Biased Words to Identify Opinions

Be aware of biased words, words that express opinions, value judgments, and interpretations. They are often loaded with emotion.

Biased words:

• unbelievable

Note Qualifiers to Identify Opinions

• Be on the lookout for words that qualify an idea.
• A qualifier may  express an absolute, unwavering opinion using words like always or never.
• It can also express an opinion in the form of a command as in must, or the desirability  of an action with a word like should.
• Qualifiers may indicate different degrees of doubt with words such as seems or might.

Words that Qualify Ideas

Think Carefully About Supposed “Facts”

Be aware of false facts, or statements presented as facts that are actually untrue. Sometimes authors mislead the reader with a false impression of the facts.  Ex: political and commercial advertisements. Sometimes an author deliberately presents false information.Be aware of opinions that sound like facts. Facts are specific details that can be researched and verified as true.  However, opinions may be introduced with phrases like in truth, the truth of the matter, or in fact.

Example:  In truth, reproductive cloning is expensive and highly inefficient.

Reading Critically: Evaluate Details as Fact or Opinion in Context

• Because the printed word seems to give authority to an idea, many of us accept what we read as fact. However, much of what is published is actually opinion.
• Master readers questions what they read.
• Reading critically is noting the use of fact and opinion in the context of a paragraph or passage, the author, and the type of source in which the passage is printed.

Evaluate the Context of the Author

Even though opinions can’t be proved true like facts can, many opinions are still sound and valuable.  To judge the accuracy of the opinion, you must consider the source; the author of the opinion.

• Authors offer two types of valid opinions: informed opinions and expert opinion.
• An author develops an informed opinion by gathering and analyzing evidence.
• An author develops an expert opinion though much training and extensive knowledge in a given field.

 Evaluate the Context of the Source

• Often people turn to factual sources to find the factual details needed to form informed opinions and expert opinions.
• A medical dictionary, an English handbook, and a world atlas are a few excellent examples of factual sources.

Reading a Textbook: The Use of Graphics, Fact, and Opinion in a Textbook

Most textbook authors are careful to present only ideas based on observation, research, and expert opinion. Textbook authors often use pictures, drawings, or graphics to make the relationship between the main idea and supporting details clear. Master readers must carefully analyze these graphics in order to discern facts from opinion as they are interpreted.

Watch this video to see more examples of facts and opinions:

CC Licensed Content, Shared Previously

Content adapted from  an open course from Broward, licensed under a CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 license .

Video Content

“ Distinguishing fact from opinion ” by Snap Language

Integrated Reading and Writing Level 1 Copyright © 2018 by pherringtonmoriarty and Judith Tomasson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Free Printable Fact vs. Opinion Worksheets for 4th Grade

Fact vs. Opinion: Discover our collection of free printable worksheets for Grade 4 Reading & Writing teachers to help students differentiate between facts and opinions, enhancing their critical thinking skills.

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Fact vs. Opinion worksheets for Grade 4 are an essential tool for teachers to help their students develop critical reading and writing skills. These worksheets are specifically designed to engage fourth-grade students in the process of distinguishing between facts and opinions in various texts. By incorporating these worksheets into their lesson plans, teachers can provide a solid foundation for their students in reading comprehension strategies. As students work through these exercises, they will learn to identify and differentiate between factual statements and personal opinions, which is a vital skill for success in reading and writing tasks. Furthermore, these worksheets can be easily integrated into a variety of classroom activities, making them a versatile and valuable resource for teachers of Grade 4 students.

Quizizz is an innovative platform that offers a wide range of educational resources, including Fact vs. Opinion worksheets for Grade 4, to help teachers enhance their students' learning experience. This platform allows teachers to create engaging quizzes, polls, and interactive lessons that can be easily shared with their students. In addition to Fact vs. Opinion worksheets, Quizizz also offers resources that cover various aspects of reading and writing, such as reading comprehension strategies, vocabulary development, and grammar exercises. By utilizing Quizizz in the classroom, teachers can provide a more interactive and engaging learning experience for their Grade 4 students, ultimately leading to improved reading and writing skills. With Quizizz, teachers have access to a wealth of resources that can be tailored to meet the specific needs of their students, making it an invaluable tool for educators.

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• Fact and Opinion Worksheets

Recognizing the difference between facts and opinions is a skill that is often evaluated on state reading tests. In my experience I've found that students often get confused trying to determine whether a statement is factually accurate, and that is not the skill that is evaluated. Therefore, I teach students that a fact is any statement that can be proven: "there are 10,000 feet in a mile." Even though this statement is incorrect, I teach students that this is still a fact, even though it is not true. When students define a fact as any statement that can be proven to be true or false, they will concern themselves less with whether the statement is accurate and focus more on whether each statement can be proven. Hence, they will better be able to identify facts and opinions.

I hope these worksheets and resources help you teach your students to reliably distinguish between statements of fact and opinion. Learn more about teaching fact and opinion ?

Fact and Opinion Common Core State Standards

114 comments, serenity shaw.

omg i love fact and opinion

your material that you shared here. its very helpful to me as teacher. they can be some sources to improve my material as reading lecturer

Smart Person

Fact- something that is true Opinion-something that someone believes is true

I agree that a fact is able to be proven either correct or incorrect. The weight to verifying then falls to the individual. In our current culture, we need to raise students who are able to delineate between what is written as a fact and is true, what is written as a fact and is false, and what is written as an opinion based upon fact that must be verified as either true or false before adopting it as one’s own opinion.

hilal sengenc

thank you very much for the clarification of fact vs. opinion distinction and the worksheets.

What we call “information” is everywhere. We gain information from looking at the sky, from tasting objects, from reading books. However, even most information is subjective. For example, we know from looking at a thermometer that the air is at a certain degree (either Celsius or Fahrenheit), but is the temperature warm, hot, or just comfortable? That depends on how our individual body reacts to temperature. We can measure the direction and speed of the wind, but is it a mild breeze or a stiff wind? That depends on how we react to wind, and whether we find that amount of wind to be useful (such as in sailing) or a nuisance (especially when it’s blowing in our face). We can taste a particular bottle of wine, but is the wine bitter, sweet, dry, acidic, full-bodied, or oakie? Does a dish have too much salt or not enough? That depends on our taste buds. While the information may be the same for everyone, the opinion about the information may be quite different depending on each person’s preferences. Facts are not subject to subjectivity—which is why there are so few of them. A fact is something that can be proven, over and over and over by using different proofs. For example: Every living thing on the earth needs water to survive. Every living thing on the earth will eventually die. These are pretty well proven facts. However, what about information that may be a little less certain? The speed of sound is 343 meters per second (1,125 ft/s). At least, it is in dry air at 20 degrees C (68 degrees F). How do we know that? Because many scientists, using different methods, have measured it. No matter who does it, or how they do it, the results always come out the same—as long as the instruments have been calibrated properly and the conditions are similar. Naturally, the speed of sound varies at different temperatures, so we must take that into account when discussing the ‘fact’ of the speed of sound. It also varies when passing through solids or liquids, so we would have to consider the circumstances as well if we wanted to be perfectly objective. On the other hand, an object pulled by the force of gravity accelerates at 32 ft/sec/sec. The equation for the force of gravity is F = mg, with the general result being that all objects fall at the same rate, regardless of their mass. Gravity on the moon and on other planets would have different values of acceleration due to the different sizes and densites of those bodies, but the effects of the force are similar. Of course, we’re assuming no other influencing factors, such as a parachute slowing down the object due to wind resistance. So, we can pretty much take the acceleration of a falling object on Earth as a fact. What’s a factoid? Something that sounds like a fact, but is actually only a generalization of accepted information. For example, the world is round. Really? Actually, the basic shape “approximates an oblate spheroid, a sphere flattened along the axis from pole to pole such that there is a bulge around the equator.” (Milbert, D. G.; Smith, D. A.) It also has such an irregular shape that the highest peak, Mount Everest, is 8,848 meters above local sea level and the deepest ‘canyon’ is the Mariana Trench, 10,911 meters below local sea level. Why “local”? Because even sea level varies from place to place and from time to time. ‘Sea level’ is also a factoid. The sky is blue. Well, it appears that way during certain atmospheric conditions. Finally, to contradict Scott, I will cite Shakespeare: “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” Hamlet, II,2. What you ‘know’ may be based on information, but what you think about it is merely opinion.

The fact/opinion distinction, as used by most teachers, is hopelessly confused. The distinction can be refined but hasn’t been except by some philosophers. Also, there seems to be no clear motivation behind trying to teach this material in the first place. Finally, those of you who teach that all value judgments are mere opinion are doing the world a terrible disservice. Do you really believe that it is a matter of opinion whether it is wrong to torture a baby “just for fun”? And if you don’t think its ok for your students to cheat their way through your courses, don’t you in truth believe it is NOT just your opinion that it is wrong?

I think that “do not torture babies” is an opinion that is held by the current majority, for very good reason. But, nonetheless, this is cultural. Aztec ceremonies could get pretty gruesome, but they did those things because they thought that they were right.

Edward Woelke

Fact or Opinion Worksheet 1 contains a typo. No. 7: Chicken has more protein carrots * Chicken has more protein than carrots

prison is one of the worst places on the planet

That’s an opinion with which most people would agree.

very helpful. I have a Test tomorrow. It helps me big time!

I am tutoring a GED student who needs help in virtually every aspect of language arts. Your web site is an incredible resource. Thank you for all the work you’ve done to put it together. You have made this tutor’s life a lot easier, and impacted the life of at least one GED student.

I’m so happy to hear it. Thank you for visiting and taking the time to comment. Best wishes!

Thank you for help me

I need help with main idea opinions

I’m not seeing why any of the examples of opinions cannot be proven or verified. Is there a proof which establishes that no ethical or aesthetic statements are provable? I’ve never seen one myself. Should we conclude, then, that the classification of such statements as opinions is itself an opinion?

Someone might think ethical statements are “opinions” because they are purely *subjective*. But subjectivity doesn’t entail that there can’t be a proof. (The proof would simply be about a particular subject.)

Very helpful and meaningful work. use the worksheets for my students. Tq Mr Morton.

Terra Cooley

Thank you so much for this site. I wish I would have known about your site all year. I normally teach math, so I need all the help I can get with Language.

I’m so happy to help. Best wishes!

Deokie Rattan

Thank you for these activities. they are really helplful and works in the classroom. I appreciate your work and what you are doing for teachers who just starts their career. May God continue to bless your administration and provide bountifully so that you all can achieve your goal and continue to be a blessing to millions of teachers.

Thank you for the blessings.

cool thanks for the facts i guess 8)

A. Peterson

Thank you for these activities. I have been using these in my introductory reading classes at three different community colleges. They really help students focus on biased language and spotting when an author’s personal bias has crept into an otherwise “factual” statement. Objective vs. Subjective is a big challenge for some students, especially now that “news” can come from a variety of heavily-biased sources and still be called “factual”. When we use these sheets in particular, I have to remind the students that it is NOT True-False, but rather focusing on whether it is stated factually (as in “Can it be verified?”) It seems that even some of your critics posting above struggle with this idea. Yes, as teachers we would promote the message that “Copying homework is wrong”, but this is not a fact. What is “wrong” is completely subjective – The kid who makes it through college by copying others’ work may face some comeuppance, but should he or she succeed and move into a successful career, they may be hard-pressed to deem what they did as “wrong”. In short, factual statements can be verified and require one answer. The opinions have varied answers “depending on who you ask”. My students totally get this. Let’s be realistic – if I tell my 18-year old students that “Copying homework is wrong” is not a fact, it’s not exactly going to shake civilization to its very foundations. Get over your selves.

Thank you for your contribution to the discussion.

Thank you so much for the wonderful website, everything is helpful.. I am a college student, yet I learned so much . If you could add more complex lvl worksheets, it would be great.

George Biscuit

Thanks for the materials and your time. I appreciate your attitude in dealing with the vitriolic posters at the beginning of the thread. Thank you for staying civil and not getting baited into a pointless back and forth. Keep it classy!

I am having a really hard time refraining from bad language etc etc. In the article you say:

“In my experience I’ve found that students often get confused trying to determine whether a statement is factually accurate, and that is not the skill that is evaluated. Therefore, I teach students that a fact is any statement that can be proven: “there are 10,000 feet in a mile.” Even though this statement is incorrect, I teach students that this is still a fact, even though it is not true.”

This is SO bad. You are teaching incorrect things to your students and you are doing a disservice to them and everyone else they will interact with. SHAME ON YOU.

A fact is a true statement, that has already been proven. NOT a statement which could either be true or false or that may be proven in the future but hasn’t yet. (this is a fact that you can verify by checking a dictionary)

As an educator, I would hope you were not only aware of these various terms and their different meanings but would do more then simply take a very poor short cut to try to get a better test result regardless of how that education will or could actually be used or weather the method you are teaching them is correct. Process is important and as an educator I shouldn’t have to explain that to you.

When someone communicates something that could be true or false and which therefore hasn’t been proven or dis-proven yet then it is simply a statement, or maybe a theory. Statements are capable of being true or false. Statements or premises can be opinions but until they are proven true they cannot be facts.

JUST WOW. SO SAD…

Thank you for your contribution to the ongoing discussion.

Thank you so much for posting these worksheets. They are fantastic for helping students learn the basics about “facts” and “opinions”.

What do you mean by “proven?”

I find it disturbing that someone who is not educated in (or even aware of) the underlying philosophical problems associated with this content is attempting to teach it.

“…a fact is any statement that can be proven…”

This statement cannot be proven. Hence, by your own argumentation, it is an opinion. Opinions should not be taught as though they are factual.

Your teachings on this matter (like all logical positivism) is self-refuting.

Objective statements can be true or false.

Statements of personal opinion can be true or false.

To attempt to teach that objective statements are “factual” in nature and opinion statements cannot be true or false is a philosophically sophomoric error.

I can’t argue your logic, but I feel as though people are missing the spirit of my instruction in that it helps students answer such questions with reliable accuracy.

“I can’t argue your logic, but I feel as though people are missing the spirit of my instruction in that it helps students answer such questions with reliable accuracy.”

I don’t think anyone is missing the “spirit” of your instruction. You are prioritizing a test score rather then a usable education that represents effectively applied knowledge or the ability to effectively apply knowledge.

Now your students have to go unlearn what you taught them if they want to have a real understanding of those terms or issues or if they want to be able to make effective evaluations of, for example, politicians and reports who make a lot of statements and claim fact without the evidence or proof to back up their claims.

Thank you for contributing to the conversation.

Mr Morton: please tell me that you’re not both this flagrantly wrong and teaching the next generation at the same time. A fact is by definition something that is true. Worse, by your definition, it would seem that prior to the advent of the telescope, it wasn’t a fact that the Earth revolved around the sun. After all, it wasn’t “provable.” I implore you to please, please consult with a philosopher before propounding more fallacious reasoning to our kids.

Sorry, but you are wrong. “Truth” is whatever a person believes. A “fact” is what can be proven over and over. Just because heliocentrisim could not at that time be proven, was it not a fact?

Thank you so much for your website and worksheets. I practice numerous skills from your site with my students often. I think you have done a great job!

What all this does prove is the fact that you are a bunch of educated idiots.

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Distinguishing fact from opinion

Classify statements as a fact or an opinion.

It is becoming increasing important (and sometimes difficult) for students to distinguish fact from opinion.  In these reading worksheets, students classify statements from a text as either fact or opinion .

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Time does not stand still and the service is being modernized at an incredible speed. Now the customer can delegate any service and it will be carried out in the best possible way.

Writing essays, abstracts and scientific papers also falls into this category and can be done by another person. In order to use this service, the client needs to ask the professor about the topic of the text, special design preferences, fonts and keywords. Then the person contacts the essay writing site, where the managers tell him about the details of cooperation. You agree on a certain amount that you are ready to give for the work of a professional writer.

A big bonus of such companies is that you don't have to pay money when ordering. You first receive a ready-made version of the essay, check it for errors, plagiarism and the accuracy of the information, and only then transfer funds to a bank card. This allows users not to worry about the site not fulfilling the agreements.

Go to the website and choose the option you need to get the ideal job, and in the future, the best mark and teacher's admiration.

Eloise Braun

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