Inferencing

You walk into the room and this is what you see: blood on the floor, an empty birdcage and a happily purring cat. You put the clues together and conclude that the cat ate the bird. You have just made an inference, or an informed decision.

When reading, we also use clues to make inferences. By reading between the lines we can discover meaning that is not directly stated by the author.

“Troy stuttered, blushed and shook as he addressed the crowd.” What can you infer about Troy from this statement? A) Troy enjoys public speaking. B) Troy is nervous. C) Troy is an actor.

The sun was low in the sky. Kay’s body ached. Blisters had formed on her hands. She lay the rake down on the pile of leaves and headed for home. What can you infer from this passage? A) Kay had worked a long time. B) Kay had been feeling sick C) Kay doesn’t like raking leaves.

Nice work, detective!

As usual, Jake left for school 10 minutes later than he should have. His shoelaces were untied and his back pay was unzipped. He had travelled only one block when he heard his mother shout his name. He looked back and saw her waving his brown bag lunch. What can you infer from this passage? A)Jake rides the bus to school. B)Jake is disorganised. C)Jake is in 4 th grade.

Excellent work!

Ruben make a mental checklist. Laundry, yes. Bills, yes. Grocery shopping, no. Clean the house, no. Fix hallway light, no. Change bed linens, no. His parents were coming tomorrow and he didn’t know how he would get everything done. Write down what you can infer from this passage.

I inferred that Ruben is stressed.