An Interactive Exercise Fact vs. Opinion An Interactive Exercise

Fact v. Opinion What is a fact? What is an opinion? How are they different?

A fact is a statement that can be proven.

An opinion is a statement that tells what someone thinks or believes.

An opinion cannot be proven.

best, worst, good and bad are often used when giving opinions. Words such as best, worst, good and bad are often used when giving opinions.

Fact or Opinion? My mother is 46 years old. My mother is old. It is beautiful outside today. The sun is shining outside today. It’s a great day for going to the beach. Everybody wants to go to the beach today.

Directions: Each slide contains a statement. Read the statement carefully, then click on either the fact or opinion button at the bottom of the slide. Once you select your response, you will see a slide informing you whether or not your response is correct. Use the back button to proceed to the next question and continue this same process for all questions. Good Luck!

Question #1 Abraham Lincoln was the greatest president. Fact Opinion

Question #2 Marilyn Monroe was a movie actress. Fact Opinion

Question #3 Tiger Woods is the best golfer who ever played the game. Fact Opinion

Question #4 Tiger Woods was the first African American to win the Masters Golf Tournament. Fact Opinion

Question #5 Dale Earnhardt died in a NASCAR race crash. Fact Opinion

Question #6 All Rap lyrics are offensive. Fact Opinion

Question #7 Charles Lindbergh was brave to attempt to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Fact Opinion

Response #1: Incorrect Although Abraham Lincoln was a president, whether or not he was the greatest president is an opinion.

Response #1: Correct! Although Abraham Lincoln was a president, it is an opinion that he was the greatest one.

Response #2: Correct. Marilyn Monroe was in 29 movies Response #2: Correct! Marilyn Monroe was in 29 movies. Since she acted in those movies, that is a fact.

Response #2: Incorrect. Marilyn Monroe was in 29 movies Response #2: Incorrect! Marilyn Monroe was in 29 movies. This is a fact, not an opinion.

Response #3: Incorrect Although Tiger Woods has won many golf titles, whether he is the greatest golfer is an opinion. It can be debated based on the amount of titles he has won, but even this might not be the only basis for evaluating him as the greatest.

Response #3: Correct! Although Tiger Woods has won many golf titles, calling him the greatest is an opinion. It is a topic open to debate.

Response #4: Correct! In the history of the Masters Tournament, this is a fact. Tiger Woods was the first African American to win the Masters.

Response #4: Incorrect! Since no African American had ever won the Masters before Tiger Woods did, this is not an opinion, but a fact.

Response #5: Incorrect! Dale Earnhardt died on February 18, 2001 as a result of a crash during the 2001 Daytona NASCAR race. This is a fact, not an opinion.

Response #5: Correct! Dale Earnhardt died on February 18, 2001 as a result of a crash during the 2001 Daytona NASCAR race. This is a fact.

Response #6: Incorrect! Although Rap lyrics often contain questionable language, whether they are offensive or not is an opinion, not a fact.

Response #6: Correct! Although Rap lyrics often contain “bad” or questionable language, whether this makes them offensive or not is an opinion.

Response #7: Incorrect! Many people thought Lindbergh’s attempt to fly nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean was foolhardy rather than brave. Although he was successful, calling him brave is a value judgment and an opinion rather than a fact.

Response #7: Correct! Many people thought Lindbergh’s idea was foolhardy rather than brave. Calling this a brave act may be considered a reasonable argument, but it is not a fact.

Nice work! If time remains, you may want to try more practice with fact and opinion using the following websites: Fact or Opinion? Fact or Opinion? Game #1 Quiz Tutorial: Distinguishing Between Fact and Opinion