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Venn diagram (free printable, two circles)

Two big overlapping circles on a landscape page, with a label over each and one over the middle. Name your two topics and print for any compare and contrast.

Printed on the sheet. Leave it empty to write by hand.
Colour
Compare and Contrast, page 1Compare and ContrastNameDateTopic ATopic BBothWrite what is only in each circle on its own side, and what they share in the middle.Free at teach.peabody.kids

To save a PDF, choose Print, then “Save as PDF” as the printer. Only the sheet prints.

About this sheet

A Venn diagram makes a comparison visible: what is only true of one thing, what is only true of the other, and what they share. The space is large because students need room to write whole phrases, and the overlap is wide enough to hold the shared ideas that students tend to find hardest. Edit the three labels for the lesson: two characters, two versions of a story, two animals, two numbers or two historical events. The middle label is editable too. The tints in the circles are light, so the page photocopies and prints cheaply, and it works in black and white.

Grades: 1 to 8. Best in: September, October, January.

How to use it

  1. Type the names of the two things being compared and, if you like, a label for the middle. Print on landscape letter or A4.
  2. Model one comparison on the board first, filling in a shared fact and a different fact, then let students work alone or in pairs.
  3. Ask students to use their diagram to speak or write a sentence beginning Both… but only…

Five ideas for class

  1. Compare two versions of the same story, two characters in one book, or the book and its film, and let students find at least three differences and two similarities.
  2. Use it in science to compare two animals, two habitats or two states of matter, with the shared properties written in the middle.
  3. Put students in pairs, give each a different color pencil and have them fill in the diagram together, so you can see who contributed what.
  4. Turn a finished diagram into a paragraph: one sentence for each circle and one for the overlap, with a closing sentence for what it means.
  5. Fill in a diagram of two students in the class (with permission) as an icebreaker, and discover what the pair share.

Related

Questions

What is the middle for?

Anything that belongs to both sets. Many students leave it empty at first, and a prompt such as What do they both have? helps.

Can I use it for more than two things?

Use the three-circle version for three topics. For more than three, a table works better than overlapping circles.

Can I edit the labels?

Yes. The three labels are the three lines in the box. Leave a line blank to use the default wording.

How do I save it as a PDF?

Choose Print, then pick “Save as PDF” as the printer. Only the sheet prints: the page around it is hidden. You can also save a sheet as a PNG image under the preview.

Can I print it in black and white?

Yes. Switch to Black and white beside the sheet: fills turn white and lines turn black, so it saves ink and photocopies cleanly.

Is what I type saved or sent anywhere?

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