Core Knowledge has little readers for each topic. This is the companion worksheet I created for the children to use to practice identifying the difference between facts and opinions out that support each lesson topic. I used this tool in reading groups.
I found it was a great way for higher readers to complete the book on their own once I taught how to choose good facts and share their opinions for each lesson.
It was an excellent tool to use for struggling readers in small group instruction because it helped them focus on one lesson at a time, really digging into the information until they could choose a fact and share their opinion on something they read.
I taught them how to take notes and paraphrase to avoid future plagiarism. It was harder using this strategy, especially for the more advanced students because it made them chose their words as opposed to just copying a sentence. I told them 3-4 words maximum in each box. They could write out their whole opinion.
At the end of the sheet, there is an assessment piece to determine if they could state 3 facts they learned and 3 opinions about what they learned. It was very quick for me to determine who got the two mixed up and conduct intervention on the skill.