Compare and Contrast: Fictional and Historical Accounts

Have students compare and contrast fictional and historical accounts with this seventh-grade reading comprehension worksheet! Students will use this graphic organizer to take notes about a fictional portrayal of a time, place, or character and a historical account of the same period. Then they will answer questions to dig deeper into how and why authors of fictional texts use or alter history, and what the benefits and weaknesses might be of fictional and historical accounts. 

Some possible topics and texts include:

• Number the Stars by Lois Lowry and Tell Them We Remember: The Story of the Holocaust by Susan Bachrach
• A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park and “'Lost Boys’ of Sudan Tell Their Story” from NPR
• The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis and “Letter From Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Bud, Not Buddy by James Paul Curtis and "Firsthand Accounts of the Great Depression" from facinghistory.org
• Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse and "Letters From the Dust Bowl" published by The Atlantic