“The spider’s jaws open and close like a pair of pliers” (Simon, 2007). Isn’t that an amazing image to think of? It really helps the reader think about how this spider’s jaw works, right? Comparisons are commonly used by authors of nonfiction to help young readers understand tricky concepts. BUT do our students notice and think about those comparisons?

Below is a description of a three-phase lesson I gave with a group of intermediate grade students and Seymour Simon’s Spiders. (If you don’t like spiders, choose any of his other books about animals. The comparisons are always abundant!)

Phase One: Enjoy the Source!

Read aloud several pages for the joy of learning about spiders. Project the amazing photos for all to see. Pause at points to ask students to think-pair-share – What are you learning? (BTW – You don’t have to finish the book. Leave it in your classroom library for students to snatch up and finish later.)

Phase 2: Meet “Comparisons”

Define “comparison.” (BTW – I thought I might teach “metaphor” and “simile” but found that, in this case, using “comparison” was the easiest way to help students access this concept.) 

Closely read, discuss, annotate. One example in Spiders is “In most spiders, the jaws open and close like a pair of pliers.” There are more in this PDF – Examples of Comparisons in Seymour Simon’s Spiders. Read a few together and begin to identify and discuss the comparison. Make an anchor chart (see image below) documenting what the students notice.

Important questions to ask students include:

• What two things are being compared? (how a spider’s jaw opens and closes; how a pair of pliers open and close)
• What is the characteristic of these two things being compared? (how they work or operate)
• Why do you think the author made this comparison? Or what did you understand better because of this comparison? (This comparison in particular helps the reader visualize the way a spider opens and closes its jaws. This is good to know and understand because a few sentences later Simon contrasts “most spiders’ jaws” with that of the “tarantula” with that has “fangs like two daggers.”)

Release responsibility to partners or individuals to locate the comparison and discuss the three questions; they might annotate or take notes on at least two different comparisons.

Phase 3: Write a Reflection

Ask the students to choose a few comparisons to write about in a response. They might jot notes on a sticky note.

Engage the students in orally rehearsing how they will describe these comparisons. They may need sentence stems like “The two things the author compares are…”    or “The author is comparing…”

If needed, engage in shared writing about one comparison as well. Below is a photo of shared writing I did with the students using the document camera. 

Ask the students to write about an additional comparison or two on their own.  The rehearsing and writing was tricky for the students. They did not have the language for talking or writing about comparisons they’d read in a text and needed a LOT of prompting!

Beyond the Lesson: Independent Practice

Provide opportunities for students to enjoy reading and hunting for more comparisons. Authors of nonfiction use a lot of comparisons to describe all sorts of topics – animals, simple machines, weather, etc. You might provide an opportunity for students to read other of Simon’s books or other authors like Nic Bishop and Rachel Poliquin and to keep an eye out for comparisons they can share with each other.

Hope this helps.

Sunday

UPDATED JANUARY 2025