Handout

Zitat: „ Menschen, die blind in Kollektive sich einordnen, machen sich selber schon zu etwas wie Material, löschen sich als selbstbestimmte Wesen aus. Dazu passt die Bereitschaft, andre als amorphe Masse zu behandeln... Eine Demokratie, die nicht nur funktionieren, sondern ihrem Begriff gemäß arbeiten soll, verlangt mündige Menschen. Man kann sich verwirklichte Demokratie nur als Gesellschaft von Mündigen vorstellen... Die Konkretisierung der Mündigkeit besteht darin, dass die paar Menschen, die dazu gesonnen sind, mit aller Energie darauf hinwirken, dass die Erziehung eine Erziehung zum Widerspruch und zum Widerstand ist.“

Objective: At the end of this session, participants will be able to • Define compare and contrast • Explain why being able to compare and contrast is an important strategy for increasing comprehension and vocabulary • Give at least one example of how to use compare and contrast

Materials:
• Chart paper • Books or other resources (magazine or newspaper articles, menus, pictures) parents can share with children) • Copies of Venn Diagram graphic organizer parent handout (enough to use in the session and to give parents for use in PACT Time) • Copies of Igloo parent handout (enough to use in the session and to give parents for use in PACT Time)

Welcome/Ice Breaker:
Greet parents as they come in. Build rapport and break the ice.
Ask parents what kinds of activities they did with their children that week. Were they able to incorporate any of the material they learned at their previous session in their activities with their child?
Give parents a piece of paper. Ask half of them to write five words describing a car. Ask the other half to write five words describing a bus. Have several parents from each group share one of their words. Write the words on the board/chart paper under the word "Car" or "Bus." After you have about 10 words written for each vehicle, ask parents which words can be used to describe both (e.g., means of transportation, both have wheels and windows) and circle them. Then ask parents which are used to describe only one of the vehicles (e.g., public vs private, driving vs driven, number of passengers). Tell parents you could even add a third vehicle-motorcycle-to find other similarities and differences.

Alike…and Different
Workshop Topic:

Topic Review:
Tell parents the idea of finding similarities and differences-comparing and contrasting-is both a reading strategy and a real-life strategy they can use with their children. Being able to see similarities and differences helps children see patterns and make connections. When students can compare and contrast characters, illustrations, facts, and ideas, they can gain a deeper understanding of a story or text, remember important content, and increase their vocabulary.

Opening Activity:
Ask parents to think of two television shows, two movies, two books they have read, two books they have read to their children, or two foods that they enjoy. Then ask them to write on the paper they used in the icebreaker, the ways these two things are alike and how they are different. Ask several parents to share what they have written.

Central Ideas and Practice (Content and Strategies):
1. Share with parents that comparing and contrasting is a valuable learning tool that helps children understand not only what they learn from books, but also what they learn about the world around them. What is alike and different between eating an apple and drinking apple juice? Which is the better buy-the smaller, less expensive product or the family size, more expensive product?
2. In reading, comparing and contrasting can be used to understand the elements of a story by looking more deeply at the characters, the events, or the facts and details.
3. Comparing and contrasting can help prepare children to think more critically about what they read, see, and hear. The more experiences children have the easier it is for them to compare their experiences with what they encounter in stories and informational texts…and in their everyday lives.
4. Tell parents there are some words they can look out for when they are reading with their children that indicate how things are alike (also, same, both, alike, similar, compare to) and different (different, but, on the other hand, instead of, in contrast to). 5. We often use comparison and contrast to explain. For example, you might compare and contrast kinds of food to help children understand which food needs to be refrigerated and which can be stored in a pantry or cabinet. You also can compare and contrast to evaluate why one kind of food or brand is better than another. For example, why apples are a better snack than a chocolate bar. Content or Strategies • Infant/Toddler Content or Strategies You can help infants and toddlers begin to understand comparing and contrasting by asking them questions, such as "Which animal is bigger?" while pointing to pictures of animals in a book. Squat down and say "short," jump up and say "tall." Talk about hands/fingers and feet/toes.

• Preschool Content or Strategies
Show children pictures of several food items. Ask them which foods are the same color or the same shape and which have the same taste. Ask children what was alike in two stories you have read to them. Were the characters girls or boys or both? Were there any animals in the stories? Did the animals live in the zoo or did they live in a house with a family? Have children use a Venn Diagram whenever possible.

• Elementary Content or Strategies
Ask children to tell you what they see that is the same and different between two illustrations. Have children pet their class hamster/bunny and then touch the class lizard/snake. How do they feel different? Does the fur of the bunny feel like any other animal they have touched? Ask children if the character in the story you just read is like someone they know? How? The book The Snowy Day can be used to compare the day in the book to a day children have experienced.

• Middle School Content or Strategies
Middle schoolers can compare and contrast events in their social studies books and point out the differences and similarities of people who live in other countries. They can see the similarities and differences in science experiments and discover how a book and a movie are alike and different. Have children use a Venn Diagram whenever possible. Give copies of the Igloo handout to parents and ask them to read it and answer the questions. Review answers to the questions with the group. Hand out the copies of the Venn Diagram and demonstrate how it is used. Ask parents to look back through the Igloo handout and fill in the Venn Diagram. Review responses with the group.
Give parents a copy of a blank Venn Diagram and a copy of the Igloo story to use with their children during PACT Time.

Connection to Parent and Child Together (PACT) Time ® :
During PACT Time, have parents read the Igloo story with their children and answer the questions. Then they can fill out the Venn Diagram. If time permits, parents can read a book or other resource with their child and compare the story, characters, or topic with other books they have read.
• Infant/Toddler Connections Parents can help infants and toddlers become familiar with differences and similarities by saying, "You and your sister are girls. Sophia is the big sister and you are the little sister. You have short hair and Sophia has long hair. Mommy's hair is short like yours.

• Preschool Connections
Look for comparisons that your child can make when you are reading. For example, ask your child to compare the tortoise and the hare from that story or the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood and the wolf in the Three Little Pigs.

• Elementary Connections
Ask your child about the library book he is reading. What event in the book reminds him of something he has seen or experienced? How were the two alike? How were they different? When in the grocery store ask your child how two fruits (e.g., an orange and grapefruit or an apricot and peach) are alike. How are they different?

• Middle School Connections
Ask your child about a book or article she has been reading at school or at home. What other book or article would she compare it to? What are the similarities between the two texts? What are the differences? Ask her about an article in her science book that describes two animals. Do the animals look alike? How are they different? Are their habitats the same or different? When looking at her geography book, ask her how the weather in your area is the same as or different from the weather in another area or country.

Wrap up/Closure:
Review with parents how comparing and contrasting can help engage a child in reading. Ask them how they will use compare and contrast strategies with their child when reading books or other forms of text, e.g., advertisements, newspapers, magazines, or even billboards. Remind parents their child might enjoy using a Venn Diagram when they are comparing and contrasting. Tell them that at the next meeting, you will review how they used compare and contrast with their children during the week.

PARENT EDUCATION WORKSHOPS
Venn Diagram