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TEKS ELA Standard: 4.9.D.iii

organizational patterns such as compare and contrast

geometric pies
packages being sorted on conveyor belts
cube-shaped watermelons
Scythe vs Brushcutter
Order to Chaos: Dominoes or Dam?
Order to Chaos: Dominoes or Dam?
Sometimes outside forces turn order into chaos. But sometimes chaos comes from within.
Order and Chaos Hide Inside Each Other
Order and Chaos Hide Inside Each Other
Chaos can contain order. Order can contain chaos! Is chaos ever truly random?
Who has more power: the Queen Bee or the Hive?
Who has more power: the Queen Bee or the Hive?
Who really runs the hive: the queen, or the thousands of bees around her?
Two Animals Switch Biomes
Two Animals Switch Biomes
What if a capybara and a kangaroo rat switched homes? Would their adaptations be helpful at all?
A System Similar to a Cell
A System Similar to a Cell
Which parts of a cell serve a similar job to the parts of a cruise ship, human body, computer, or other system?
Compare and Create New Year’s Traditions
Compare and Create New Year’s Traditions
Hey! Our New Year traditions have a lot in common.
Melting Ice Cream
Melting Ice Cream
Various desserts melt in surprisingly different ways.
Analyze Paragraphs: Baseball
Analyze Paragraphs: Baseball
Three paragraphs about baseball. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines
Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines
Three paragraphs about wolverines. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.
Writing Technique: Contrast With Synonyms
Writing Technique: Contrast With Synonyms
A specific technique to help students add some spice to their writing. We’ll be contrasting two ideas using synonyms.
Holiday vs Holiday (from a Mascot’s Perspective)
Holiday vs Holiday (from a Mascot’s Perspective)
Want something to do during the holiday season that is both fun and involves thinking? Get students writing about what a snowman would think about Halloween or what a ghost would think about Thanksgiving.
What’s In My Brain: May vs May
What’s In My Brain: May vs May
The word “may” can be used for possibility or permission. It’s a modal auxiliary verb!
Upgrading Compare and Contrast Writing
Upgrading Compare and Contrast Writing
Upgrade compare and contrast writing with just a couple of key words.
Content Imperatives: Parallel
Content Imperatives: Parallel
Get students thinking broadly by exploring similarities across multiple topics. Combine with Depth and Complexity for bonus points!
Depth and Complexity: 📈 Trends
Depth and Complexity: 📈 Trends
Has something been changing recently? What might be causing that? What are the effects?
Depth and Complexity: ⏳ Change Over Time
Depth and Complexity: ⏳ Change Over Time
Want to get students thinking about how a topic has changed or might change in the future? The ⏳ Change Over Time thinking tool is just what you need!
Depth and Complexity: Patterns
Depth and Complexity: Patterns
Can your students spot anything that repeats? Or that has stopped repeating?
Literary Technique: Juxtaposition
Literary Technique: Juxtaposition
Put a grumpy character next to a joyful one and they make each other stand out even more. Opposites are powerful!