Identifying Facts and Opinions

Ernie and Jane have posted on social media asking their followers to send in facts about American holidays! "Ernie, it looks like our followers sent in facts and opinions." "Let's like only the facts!" Let's help Jane and Ernie with identifying facts and opinions. Facts and opinions are everywhere, such as in printed media like books and newspapers, on social media, and said by people. A fact is something that is true, and can be proven by research. You cannot agree or disagree with a fact. An opinion is how someone feels or thinks about certain things, and this can be agreed or disagreed with! Remember, if your opinion is different than someone else's, you still need to respect what they say! So, how can we identify facts? To identify facts, look for true statements that can include time words, likes dates and time, or clue phrases, like 'it is known', or 'it is a fact'. How can we identify opinions? To identify opinions, look for clues, such as adjectives and descriptive words, 'I' statements, such as I think, and I feel, and think, 'can I agree or disagree with it?', because if you can, it's most likely an opinion! Now that we know a little more about facts and opinions, let's help Jane and Ernie sort through their followers comments! Remember, they asked their followers to share facts about American holidays. "Here is the first one: 'I love the fireworks on the Fourth of July!'" "I wonder if that's a fact or an opinion." This comment has an 'I' statement, and a verb in 'love', which shows a feeling. It is an opinion, as feelings are indicators of opinions too! Jane will continue scrolling through the comments. "Here is the next one: 'Thanksgiving is always on the fourth Thursday of November.'" "Is that a fact or an opinion?" We see time and date words here, fourth Thursday, and November. We cannot disagree with this because it is a true statement, and can be proven by looking at calendars. It must be a fact, so Jane will like the comment! "Ah, what about this comment, 'Christmas is a Christian holiday celebrated in December." Is this comment a fact, or an opinion? We see the phrase 'Christian holiday' and also a time word, 'December'. This comment is a fact, so Jane will like it! While Ernie and Jane continue checking their followers' comments, let's review! Today we learned all about identifying facts and opinions. You can identify facts by looking for true statements that can include time words, or clue phrases. You cannot argue with facts, since they can usually be proven by research. You can identify opinions by looking for adjectives and descriptive words, 'I' statements, such as I think, or I feel, and think, 'can I agree or disagree with it?'. And when someone shares an opinion, you must always respect it, even if you don't agree with them! "That was exhausting work." "Well Ernie, that's just your opinion!"