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Did the Words or the Picture Tell You?

A 40-minute Grade 1 lesson on distinguishing information that came from the pictures from information that came from the words.

Did the Words or the Picture Tell You? is a free 40-minute Grade 1 English lesson plan for Common Core standard RI.1.6 — say which facts came from the picture and which came from the words. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the meaning, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Grade 1
Length:
40 minutes
Standard:
RI.1.6

Grade 1 · Reading: Informational Text

RI.1.6

Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text.

Objective

Students will be able to say whether a fact came from the words or from an illustration in an information text.

Students are successful when they can

  • Says "Ladybugs eat aphids" came from the words.
  • Says "Ladybugs have six legs" came from the picture, because the words do not say it.
  • Sorts six facts into a "words" column and a "picture" column.

What you need

  • The "Ladybugs" text (in the Teach section) and a large labeled sketch of a ladybug
  • Sorting mats with two columns: "The words told me" and "The picture showed me"
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — pictures covered

5 min
  1. Read the text with the picture covered: "Ladybugs are small beetles. They eat tiny bugs called aphids. When a ladybug is scared, it plays dead."
  2. Ask: "What color is a ladybug?" The words do not say. "How many legs?" The words do not say.
  3. Say: "Let us see what the picture adds."

Teach — sorting by source

13 min
  1. Uncover your sketch: a red ladybug with seven black spots, six legs and two feelers, sitting on a green leaf with tiny green aphids.
  2. Ask: "What does the picture show that the words did not say?" Fill the picture column: red with black spots, six legs, feelers, lives on leaves, aphids are green.
  3. Ask: "What did the words tell us that the picture cannot show?" Fill the words column: they are beetles, they eat aphids, they play dead when scared.
  4. Point to "plays dead." Ask: "Could the picture show that?" Not really — it only shows one moment. Some things need words.
  5. Point to the aphids. Say: "The words told us they eat aphids. The picture showed us what aphids look like. Both helped."
  6. Read a fact and ask the class to point to the side it came from: "Ladybugs have spots." (picture) "Ladybugs are beetles." (words)
“Ask yourself: did I read it, or did I see it? If I read it, the words told me. If I saw it, the picture showed me.”

Guided practice — sort six

12 min
  1. Give pairs a new text and sketch: "A giraffe is the tallest animal. It eats leaves from tall trees." The sketch shows a giraffe with brown patches, a long tongue, small horns and a baby beside it.
  2. Pairs get six fact cards: tallest animal, eats leaves, brown patches, long tongue, has small horns, has a baby. They sort them on the mat.
  3. For each card, one partner says "I read it" or "I saw it" and points.
  4. Circulate and ask about "eats leaves": "Did you see it, or read it?" Both, perhaps, if the sketch shows a tree. Accept both with a reason.
  5. Share one pair's mat and check the tricky cards together.
“Point to it. Point to the words, or point to the picture. If you can point to both, say both.”

Independent practice

8 min
  1. Students complete the words-or-picture page, reading the text and answering where each piece of information came from.
  2. Remind them to check the words first before deciding a fact came from the picture.
  3. Sit with any child answering from memory and ask them to point to the source.

Close

2 min
  1. Ask: "Ladybugs play dead when they are scared. Did the words or the picture tell you?"
  2. Fish for "the words — the picture cannot show that."

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Says every fact came from the words, including "ladybugs are red."

Why: Reading is what they think information comes from. The picture feels like decoration, so they forget it taught them anything.

Fix: Cover the picture and reread the words: "Did you hear the word red?" No. Then uncover it. Show that the picture is a source too.

Gives facts they already knew: "Ladybugs can fly" — from neither words nor picture.

Why: They know things about ladybugs from home, and that knowledge feels like it came from this text.

Fix: Ask "Show me where." If they cannot point to words or picture, it goes in a third pile: "I already knew." Praise the knowledge, then sort it out.

Thinks a picture can show anything, so puts "plays dead when scared" in the picture column.

Why: They imagine a picture of it, so it feels like a picture fact.

Fix: Ask "Is it in this picture?" Point to the sketch. Imagined pictures do not count. Only what we can point to on this page.

If they are not there yet

  • Use three fact cards only, with one clearly from the words and two clearly from the picture.
  • Read each card aloud and ask "Can you point to it in the picture?" first.
  • Use a photograph instead of a sketch so the details are clear.

If they finish early

  • Draw a picture for the ladybug text that shows something the words do not say, and explain it.
  • Find a page in a class book where the words and picture tell different facts, and list both.
  • Write a caption for the sketch that adds a fact the words left out.

Exit ticket

Name one fact about ladybugs the picture showed you, and one the words told you.

What to look for: Picture: red with spots, six legs. Words: they eat aphids, they play dead. Both from the words means they are not using the picture as a source. A fact from neither means they are using what they already knew.

Printable practice for RI.1.6

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about Did the Words or the Picture Tell You?

How long does the Did the Words or the Picture Tell You? lesson take?

40 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 13 min, guided practice 12 min, independent practice 8 min, close 2 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does Did the Words or the Picture Tell You? teach?

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.6 — RI.1.6, Reading: Informational Text for Grade 1: “Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text.” In plain terms, say which facts came from the picture and which came from the words.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

The "Ladybugs" text (in the Teach section) and a large labeled sketch of a ladybug, sorting mats with two columns: "The words told me" and "The picture showed me" and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: says every fact came from the words, including "ladybugs are red."; gives facts they already knew: "Ladybugs can fly" — from neither words nor picture and thinks a picture can show anything, so puts "plays dead when scared" in the picture column. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “Name one fact about ladybugs the picture showed you, and one the words told you.” Picture: red with spots, six legs. Words: they eat aphids, they play dead. Both from the words means they are not using the picture as a source. A fact from neither means they are using what they already knew. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with Did the Words or the Picture Tell You??

Yes — 1 printable RI.1.6 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is Did the Words or the Picture Tell You? free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on October 8, 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-10-08. Aligned to RI.1.6 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.