Home›Lesson Plans›English Language Arts›Reading: Comprehension · Grade 1

Fiction & Nonfiction: Make-Believe or Real?

Students learn the two big kinds of books — fiction, which tells make-believe stories, and nonfiction, which gives real, true facts — and how to tell them apart.

Grade 1Comprehension35 minutes1 class periodReading WorkshopExplicit teaching4 StandardsCommon Core
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Know fiction is a made-up story.
  • ✓Know nonfiction gives real facts.
  • ✓Sort books into the two kinds.
  • ✓Explain how you can tell.
Essential Question

Some books tell made-up stories, and some teach you true things about the world. How can you tell a make-believe book from a real one?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Real or Make-Believe · Interactive

Real or Make-Believe?

Project this and sort each book idea into “Make-Believe (Fiction)” or “Real & True (Nonfiction).” Tap one, then tap the basket.

📚 Sort each book — make-believe or real?Try it
🐉 Make-Believe
🦁 Real & True
Tap a book, then tap a basket.
The Lesson · Reading Workshop (Mini-Lesson · Practice · Share)

35 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Connect — Could It Really Happen?

5 min

A talking dragon vs. real lions — which could really happen?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Compare a fantasy and a fact book.
  • Ask which is real.
  • Set the goal: fiction/nonfiction.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Compare the books.
  • Say which is real.
  • Predict the kinds.
2

Teach — Two Kinds of Books

10 min

Teacher models.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Fiction = made-up story.
  • Nonfiction = real facts.
  • Show clues for each.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Learn the two kinds.
  • Hear the clues.
  • See examples.
3

Active Engagement — Sort Together

10 min

Class uses Real or Make-Believe?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Sort each book idea.
  • Explain the clues.
  • Discuss each choice.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort the books.
  • Give a clue.
  • Explain it.
4

Independent Practice — Your Turn

10 min

Students sort books.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Give book covers to sort.
  • Look for real vs. made-up clues.
  • Explain each.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort the books.
  • Find the clues.
  • Explain them.
5

Share — Share

5 min

Students share a book.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Invite a fiction and a nonfiction book.
  • Explain how they know.
  • Hand out the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Share a book.
  • Name the kind.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.

CCSS
RL.1.5

Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information.

CCSS
RI.1.1

Ask and answer questions about key details in an informational text.

CCSS
RL.1.1

Ask and answer questions about key details in a story.

CCSS
RI.1.6

Distinguish between information from pictures and from words.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Sort book-cover picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “This book is ___ because ___.”
  • Compare a story and a fact book.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with a clear fantasy vs. animal-fact book.
  • Use real book covers.
  • Focus on “could it really happen?”

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Find fiction and nonfiction in the library.
  • Name a nonfiction text feature (a photo, a label).
  • Turn a fact into a fiction story.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 📓Reading notebooks
  • 💻Real or Make-Believe?
  • 📚Story and fact books
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

fictiona made-up storynonfictionwriting that gives real factsmake-believenot real; imaginaryrealtrue; could happenfactsomething truestorya telling of eventsinformationreal facts and detailsauthorthe person who wrote the book
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is fiction?
A made-up story — it is make-believe.
QUESTION 2
What is nonfiction?
Writing that gives real, true facts and information.
QUESTION 3
A book about a dog that talks and drives a car — fiction or nonfiction?
Fiction — it is make-believe (a real dog can’t talk or drive).

Going deeper? Two books, one topic.

Have students compare a fiction and a nonfiction book about the same animal (a story dog vs. a facts-about-dogs book) and tell what’s different. A printable compare sheet is in the ELA library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Fiction vs. NonfictionFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Fiction vs. NonfictionQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
0%

Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Fiction vs. NonfictionPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: author, fact, fiction, information, make-believe, nonfiction, real, story
  1. real facts and details
  2. something true
  3. writing that gives real facts
  4. a made-up story
  5. the person who wrote the book
  6. not real; imaginary
  7. a telling of events
  8. true; could happen

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is fiction?
  2. What is nonfiction?
  3. A book about a dog that talks and drives a car — fiction or nonfiction?
Answer key — Part A: 1) information · 2) fact · 3) nonfiction · 4) fiction · 5) author · 6) make-believe · 7) story · 8) real
Part B: 1) A made-up story — it is make-believe. 2) Writing that gives real, true facts and information. 3) Fiction — it is make-believe (a real dog can’t talk or drive).