Making Inferences

“To infer as we read is to go beyond literal interpretation and to open a world of meaning deeply connected to our lives.”“To infer as we read is to go beyond literal interpretation and to open a world of meaning deeply connected to our lives.” ~ Ellin Keene~ Ellin Keene Author of Mosaic of ThoughtAuthor of Mosaic of Thought

What is Inferencing? Making an inference is “Reading between and beyond the lines.” Finding clues Putting them together Solving the problem Like a jigsaw puzzle Finding clues Putting them together Solving the problem Like a jigsaw puzzle

Inference Take what you know and make a guess! Draw personal meaning from text (words) or pictures. You use clues to come to your own conclusion. Take what you know and make a guess! Draw personal meaning from text (words) or pictures. You use clues to come to your own conclusion.

When proficient readers infer, they create a meaning that is not necessarily stated in the text. Inference is a tough strategy to master because it involves many processes and requires the reader to hold several ideas in his/her mind. When we infer, we use a combination of ~ Questioning Making Connections Background Knowledge (Schema) Predictions Imagination/Visualization Analysis of Text: Interpretation Judgments Drawing Conclusions

Elkhart Community Schools6 Inference Background Knowledge (schema) Background Knowledge (schema) Making Connections Making Connections Questioning Predictions Imagination/ Visualization Imagination/ Visualization Analysis of Text: Interpretation/ Judgment Analysis of Text: Interpretation/ Judgment Drawing Conclusions

Make an Inference! What does this image tell me?

Question… What did I already know that helped me make that inference? Did I use picture or written clues? What did I already know that helped me make that inference? Did I use picture or written clues?

Help Me Make an Inference!

More Questions… Did you use words, graphs, or picture clues to help you make a guess about what that cartoon meant?

Try Again! Can he draw more than tigers? Look up words you don’t know! Can he draw more than tigers? Look up words you don’t know!

Make 1 more Inference

How Do Good Readers Make Inferences? They use: 1.Word/text clues 2.Picture clues 3.Define unknown words 4.Look for emotion (feelings) 5.Use what they already know 6.Look for explanations for events 7.ASK themselves questions! They use: 1.Word/text clues 2.Picture clues 3.Define unknown words 4.Look for emotion (feelings) 5.Use what they already know 6.Look for explanations for events 7.ASK themselves questions!

Make Another Inference Ms. Smith has recess duty. Jacob finds a frog, picks it up, and runs over to show it to Ms. Smith. Ms. Smith screams, jumps, and runs as fast as she can into the school. What can you infer from this passage? What are the “clues” in this passage? Ms. Smith has recess duty. Jacob finds a frog, picks it up, and runs over to show it to Ms. Smith. Ms. Smith screams, jumps, and runs as fast as she can into the school. What can you infer from this passage? What are the “clues” in this passage?

Authors vs. Readers Authors Imply, Readers Infer. Authors make implications that readers have to infer. What do I mean by these statements? Authors Imply, Readers Infer. Authors make implications that readers have to infer. What do I mean by these statements?

Authors vs. Readers Good Readers are Detectives who are always looking out for clues to help them better understand stories and pictures.

Here are some Synonyms deduce figure out guess interpretation read between the lines understand reason drawing conclusions deduce figure out guess interpretation read between the lines understand reason drawing conclusions

Finding Clues What Should We Look For? PLACES TIME COLORS TEXTURES BODY LANGUAGE ACTIONS SITUATIONS OR CONTEXT What Should We Look For? PLACES TIME COLORS TEXTURES BODY LANGUAGE ACTIONS SITUATIONS OR CONTEXT

Visual Clues What clues do you see? What do we know about the product? What do we know about the company? What do we know about the person who drank the drink?

Situational Clues What do we know about this picture? What clues do you see? What can we infer from the clues?

Location Clues What do we know about the event in the photo? What is the mood of the event? What other activities may be occurring at the same time or later?

Word Clues It’s clear It’s round It’s made of glass, metal and plastic It has a handle It makes things look bigger What is it? It’s clear It’s round It’s made of glass, metal and plastic It has a handle It makes things look bigger What is it?

Body Language Clues Are they having the same conversation? How do you know?

Remember… Be a great Detective and Read between the lines searching for clues to the author’s implied meanings