1. STEP 7 – INFERENCES P. 273
Mrs. Elizabeth Celeste Coiman-Lopez, BAT., MS.
Houston Community College – Fall 2018

2. “Read between the lines…” to pick up ideas that are NOT stated.
Discovering these ideas is what is called MAKING INFERENCES or DRAWING CONCLUSIONS.
What do you infer from the cartoon on p. 273?
INFERENCES IN READING (p. 274):
“Statements about the unknown made on the basis of the known”
Use all clues provided by the writer, then add your own experience, and logic.
Example: Many of us have ambivalent feelings about out politicians, admiring them but also distrusting them.
Involves positive and negative feelings.
“Mixed feelings”
PRACTICE p
DEFINITIONS P. 273

3. NEVER LOSE SIGHT OF THE AVAILABLE INFORMATION:
Base the inferences on the FACTS:
“Albert tried to stroke the rat”, we conclude the baby did not have fear of rats.
Note when a conclusion lacks support
We only know about being afraid of white furry things.
USE YOUR BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND EXPERIENCE:
As a baby, he is probably afraid of loud noises (the metal sound)
The more you know about a subject, the better the inference.
Doctor’s opinion will be better because he has more background knowledge.
CONSIDER THE ALTERNATIVES:
Don’t consider only the first inference that comes to your mind.
Consider all the facts of the case and all the explanations.
The doctor diagnosing an illness might think about several possibilities before coming to the correct decision.
PRACTICE 1-3 p
MAKING INFERENCES P. 277

4. INFERENCES IN LITERATURE P. 282
Inferences are very important in reading literature.
Some authors only use verbal pictures that SHOW us what they mean. Reader has to infer.
Read example on the page.
Author shows the anger with a lot of details.
Always infer meanings, as you do everyday in life.
PRACTICE p
Explain bottom of p. 284
INFERENCES IN LITERATURE P. 282

5. Creative writers often use a FIGURE OF SPEECH.
SIMILE: it is a COMPARISON with signal words: like, as, or as if
That Halloween night was as dark as de inside of a witch’s hat.
(Read the cartoon and the example in the middle of the page)
METAPHOR: it is an IMPLIED COMPARISON without signal words.
(Read examples p )
The grade on the paper was a dash of ice water in my face.
PRACTICE p
FIGURES OF SPEECH P. 285

6. INFERENCES IN GRAPHS AND TABLES P. 290
You need to infer in many cartoons in newspapers and magazines.
You need to infer when looking at graphs and tables which have words with visual representations.
Consider all the information presented to make a good inference:
Read the title. It tells what the graph or table is about in general.
Check the source, to see the reliability of its material
Read any labels or captions at the top, side, or underneath that tell exactly what each column, line, bar, number, or other item represents.
Now, you will be ready to infer.
PRACTICE 5 p. 292 then Review Tests 1-4
INFERENCES IN GRAPHS AND TABLES P. 290