Use text features and compare information from two sources

Information text A: A Tray for Small Supplies — original classroom text

Contents: What a tray does; Choosing a tray; Using the tray; Word help.

What a tray does. A tray is a shallow container. Its base supports objects and its raised edge can help keep them inside. The illustration shows three large craft beads inside an example tray. The count of three describes this illustration, not every tray.

Choosing a tray. Choose a tray that fits the supplies and the task. A tray that is too small may not hold all the supplies. A stable, flat base helps the tray rest on the table. An adult should select age-appropriate materials; not every small object is safe for young children.

Using the tray. Set the tray on a stable surface. Put suitable supplies inside its edge. Move it carefully with adult guidance if needed. Return supplies to storage when the task is done.

Word help. Base: the bottom part that supports the contents. Edge: the boundary around the tray. Stable: able to stay securely in place under the described conditions.

Information text B: Choosing a Supply Container — original classroom text

A tray can hold supplies while someone works. A box with a lid can hold suitable supplies during storage. The lid covers the opening when closed. Check the container's size, condition and purpose before choosing it. A container useful for one task may be inconvenient for another. Labeling stored supplies can help people find the correct container.

Learning goal: Use text features to locate information, distinguish what comes from words and pictures, and compare two texts on the same topic. A feature helps a reader navigate or interpret the text. It does not replace reading the relevant information after finding it.

Text A has a contents list, section headings and a word-help glossary. To find a definition of base, use Word help. To find advice about a tray's size, use Choosing a tray. A printed book's table of contents may also give page numbers. This short page lists section names without page numbers; do not invent a page number that is not supplied.

An electronic text may have a menu of section links or icons. On this lesson page, the contents links Learn the idea, Work through the examples, Practice, demonstrate, and explain, and Practice test move to the named sections. Read the link label before selecting it, then check that the destination supplies the information you need. An icon should have a meaningful label or explanation; its appearance alone may be ambiguous.

Text A on a tablet (an electronic version, described). Across the top of the screen is a menu bar with four buttons: What a tray does · Choosing a tray · Using the tray · Word help. Beside the title are two small icons, each with a word under it: a speaker labeled Listen, which reads the page aloud, and a magnifying glass labeled Find, which searches the page for a word you type. To find how big a tray should be, a reader taps Choosing a tray in the menu and then reads the section that opens. To hear the page, the reader taps the speaker icon. Tapping a button only opens a section; the reader still has to read it to find the fact.

Distinguish sources of information within a text. The drawing shows the placement of three beads inside a tray and labels its edge. The words recommend checking size and returning supplies to storage. A picture of a tray does not by itself state that return routine. Some ideas are supported by both: the words describe the raised edge and the illustration shows it.

Both texts concern containers for supplies. Text A focuses closely on choosing and using a tray and includes headings, a glossary and an illustration. Text B compares a tray for work with a lidded box for storage and mentions labeling. It does not provide the same step-by-step tray routine. Identify these differences as differences in emphasis and detail, not as proof that one author is wrong.

A comparison can also identify shared advice. Both texts connect choosing a container with the task or purpose. Text A says the tray should fit the supplies and task; Text B asks readers to consider size, condition and purpose. Use a sentence from each to support that similarity. Do not treat the absence of a detail from one text as a denial of it.

Worked example 1: Choose a feature. A reader asks, “What does edge mean in this passage?” Word help is the most direct feature in text A. After locating it, read the definition and compare it with the labeled boundary in the diagram. Finding a heading alone is not yet answering the question.

Worked example 2: Identify a picture-only detail. The exact arrangement of the three pictured beads is visible in the diagram. The words state their count but do not describe every bead's position. A learner can explain which details require inspecting the picture and which are stated in print.

Worked example 3: Compare emphasis. Text A explains a tray-use routine. Text B introduces a lidded storage box and labels. Both concern containers, but they answer somewhat different questions. A person choosing storage might consult text B, while a person seeking the supplied tray routine would use text A.

Guided practice: Give partners three information-finding questions and ask them to select the relevant feature before answering. Then make a comparison with information in both texts, only text A and only text B. Recheck the passages instead of relying on memory alone.

Independent tasks: Use a heading or glossary to locate a fact, follow one of the page's labeled section links, and explain one difference between picture evidence and word evidence. State a supported similarity and a supported difference between the texts.

Feedback: If the learner assumes an absent detail is a contradiction, reread both statements and distinguish omission from disagreement. If an electronic link is chosen only by its position, practice reading its label and checking the destination. Assess navigation and explanation together.