ShmoopTube

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[Dino and Coop singing]

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If you want to get a good look at all the beautiful diversity we have on planet Earth, [Earth]

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look no further than...

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Sandwiches. [Plate of sandwiches]

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No, seriously.

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Think about how many types of sandwiches there are!

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Roast beef.

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Peanut butter and jelly.

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Ham and cheese.

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BLT.

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Egg salad.

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The possibilities are deliciously endless. [Pictures of the sandwiches are shown]

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But as we are all so tragically aware, not all sandwiches are made equal.

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Take this delightful tuna sandwich...

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And this broccoli-pickle-sardine sandwich.

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Yugh.

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One of them looks like a great sandwich companion to spend your lunch break with. [Girl looks happy with her lunch]

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The other looks like Batman's newest nemesis. [Batman stood next to the gross sandwich]

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But as cool as it would be if this video really was just about sandwiches, what we really want

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you to think about is the process that goes on in your noggin when you look at these two

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sandwiches.

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What you're doing is comparing the sandwiches. [Girls head opens and comparing sign appears]

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And we don't just compare sandwiches – we compare everything.

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Whether we're comparing people to decide which one wore it best...

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Comparing cars to see which one the coolest... [Ferrari pulls up next to the Batmobile]

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Or comparing movies to find which one will become our very favorite... [Car jumping over a ramp]

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…We're always making comparisons.

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But we're ultimately doing is something you've probably heard a lot about in school: “comparing [Coop pointing at a blackboard]

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and contrasting."

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That's when we look at the similarities and differences between two things.

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We know, you're probably thinking that the only time you compare and contrast is when

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your teacher tells you to “compare and contrast” two poems for a school assignment. [Teacher looking excited about the assignment]

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Which, if we're being honest, means you probably think of “comparing and contrasting” as [Students falling asleep]

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a pretty boring thing – sorry, Teach.

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But guess what?

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You do it all the time – you just don't say it in such boring-sounding terms.

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On the playground, if you're arguing over who's the best football player, you're not [Guy catches the football]

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going to say “Let's compare and contrast John and Billy's skills in order to make a

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determination.”

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You're going to say, “Dude, John can throw farther, and Billy tied his shoelaces together

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again, so…" [Billy falls over]

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Yup. Seems like an easy choice.

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But just because you didn't say the words compare and contrast doesn't mean that's not

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exactly what you're doing. [Girl's head opens and compare and contrast signs appear]

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Which is great, because it means you're constantly practicing your compare and contrast skills, [Dino pointing at a blackboard]

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so that when the time comes to do your boring old compare and contrast assignment in school, [Girl working on her assignment]

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not only will you know exactly what that means, but you'll be a natural at it.

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Just…don't call your teacher "dude."

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