Underlying the creation of this Project NECESSITIES unit entitled "Communication Skills: Fact and Opinion" (for secondary students) are the following assumptions: (1) that the way a person presents an argument is as instructive and sometimes as persuasive as the content of the argument, (2) that understanding the process of persuasion and the use of fact and opinion are important in understanding human behavior, (3) that concepts and generalizations are useful in the classroom to the degree that they generate open questions from students, (4) that the means of conveying social studies content and principles is through fact and opinion, (5) that classroom questions should become more of a tool for the student than for the teacher, (6) that a concept is no more useful than a fact unless the possessor can make use of the concept as a means of solving real problems or further understanding a real situation, and (7) that what we come to know and to believe should make us better able to fulfill our life's objectives and to manipulate our environment successfully. In the document, the narratives of the 14 classroom activities for this unit focus on teaching what fact and opinion are, how students can begin to use the analytic skills they learn in practical ways, and how to distinguish fact from opinion. Along with the narratives, evaluations and recommendations made by the 5 schools which field-tested this unit are included. (LS)