School Improvement in Maryland

Using the State Curriculum: Reading/ELA, Grade 5



Standard 2.0 Comprehension of Informational Text


Objective b. Identify and explain the author's opinion


Students will read an informational text. The teacher will identify the subject/s of the text. Ask students what seems to be the author's opinion about his/her subject/s. Accept reasonable answers and record them on chart paper or a black/white board. Next, ask students what led them to conclude that the author believes that way. Have them return to the text and highlight, post note, or record evidence from the passage that confirms that opinion. Have students share their evidence and then create a hierarchy organizing evidence from most to least important.


The teacher will select a well-known or historical figure or event. Have students read multiple passages with differing opinions about the event or individual and locate in the passage information that supports these opinions. From this evidence determine the author's opinion in each passage. Share the author's opinion from each article with the entire class. Have students decide in which text the author's opinion was most clearly stated. Designate an area of the room for each text. Have students who share that author's opinion gather in that area. Inquire at each area and have students tell why they support that author's opinion.


With a partner preview an informational text. Have students complete an anticipation guide featuring the author's opinions during their preview.

Example: Science fiction always has some basis in fact.
Strongly Disagree  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  Strongly Agree

Discuss each statement. Students should listen to their classmate's opinions and if necessary, adjust their initial opinion. Students will then return to the text to locate the author's opinion/s and to judge how closely the student's opinion aligns with the author's opinion. Students will read the text to find support for the author's opinion.


Provide students with an informational passage. Identify the author's perspective which is the author's idea about a subject. Have students locate supporting evidence for the author's perspective. Ask students to speculate about the author's background or experiences that would cause him/her to hold that perspective. List all reasonable answers. Then provide students with background information about the author to confirm or refute their speculations.

Resources for Objective 2.A.4.b:
LESSON SEEDS | Sample Assessments |