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making inferences
It is not really difficult to construct a series of inferences, each dependent upon its predecessor and each simple in itself.
SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE (18591930) BRITISH AUTHOR, SHERLOCK HOLMES

In this lesson, youll discover you can use what you already know, plus clues from the text, to figure out things an author doesnt tell you outright!

SOMETIMES AN AUTHOR doesnt tell you exactly whats happening, but

gives you clues so you can gure it out yourself. An inference is a logical guess you make based on facts in the text plus what you already know from life. Maybe you or a friend have had a similar experience. Or maybe you read about something similar in a book or saw it in a movie. You can put the facts and personal knowledge together to gure out whats going on and why characters act or feel the way they do. Example A soaked Randy slipped inside the door and put his dripping umbrella in the corner. As he crossed the room to our table, his shoes made a squishy, squeaking sound. What a day! he moaned as he plopped into a chair and grabbed a menu. The author didnt state what the weather was like or where the people were, but you can infer the answers. Clues in the text and your own experiences help you infer that a soaked Randy and dripping umbrella indicate its raining outside. Randy going to a table and getting a menu helps you infer hes in a restaurant! Some people call making an inference reading between the lines.

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Making inferences helps good readers better understand the text. Inferring also builds readers interest as they continue reading to nd out if their inferences were or werent correct. An inference chart can help you track guesses as you read. List details you nd in the text, what you already know, and what you infer from them. The text says . . . Randy is wet. shoes squish and squeak. he has umbrella. he comes inside. he goes to our table. he grabs a menu. I know . . . you use umbrellas in rain. you get soaked in rainstorms. restaurants have menus. restaurants have tables. people share tables in restaurants. So I infer that . . . its raining hard.

hes in a restaurant.

P R AC T I C E 1 : N OT I C I N G N U M B E R S
Read the selection, and then answer the questions that follow. (1) My math teacher, Mr. Reyman, always comes up with really great ideas. Take for example our assignment last weekend. We thought hed ask us to study for the upcoming test. Instead, on Friday he says, Some of you have questioned our need to study fractions and how often people really use them in everyday life. So to answer your query, I want you to go on a fraction hunt this weekend! (2) Raquelita raises her hand and asks, You mean bring in like part of a fraction, like one shoe because its half of a whole pair? (3) Or bring me, Paco laughs, since I play baseball, Im 1 of a team? 9 (4) Youve got it, Mr. Reyman agrees. Actually bring things or just draw them. Your families can help. Lets see who can nd the most interesting! (5) At dinner that night, I tell Dad and Mom about the assignment. Sounds like fun, Mom says. I bought new shoes today. Theyre size 61 . 2 (6) Great! Im on my way! I say as I draw a shoe with a 61 label inside. 2 (7) In the kitchen, I spot measuring cups with 1 , 1 , and 2 on them and a mea4 2 3 suring spoon labeled 1 . Dad brings in his toolbox and says, Look in here. 3 5 7 9 Youll nd lots of fractions! I do, wrenches labeled 1 , 16, 3 , 16 , 16, 5 , 11 , 3 , 13 , 4 8 8 16 4 16 7 and 8 !

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(8) Over the next two days, we nd many other things. Dad asks, Did you know hats come in fractional sizes? (9) No, I usually see them labeled small, medium, and large! I reply. (10) Dad laughs and shows me his hat with a tag inside labeled 67 . I used to 8 wear a 73 , he chuckles. My head must be getting smaller . . . or maybe I 8 just had more hair then! (11) In the Sunday paper, I notice ads for sales, where things are 1 or 1 off. And 2 3 Sunday night Dad shows me something special he has with a fraction written on it. You can take this to school, but just be very careful with it, he says as he wraps it carefully in a soft cloth and puts it into a bag. Its one of my favorites . . . and kind of rare. (12) Monday everyone brings bags of stuff and lots of pictures to class. Other kids have wrenches, measuring utensils, and clothes. But no one else has the special thing my Dad gave me. Wow! says Mr. Reyman when I take it carefully out of the bag. An old Beatles record! (13) He holds the record up for everyone to see. There, on the label, is the fraction and some letters: 331 RPM. Mr. Reyman explains that the letters stand 3 for Revolutions Per Minute . . . the number of times the record spins around on a turntable each minute. He adds that today, CDs spin at between 200 and 500 RPM and produce a cleaner, clearer sound. (14) We all agree that fractions are useful and people do use them a lot in everyday life. I wonder what fun assignment Mr. Reyman will think up next? 1. What can you infer from the rst paragraph? a. Mr. Reyman is a new teacher in the school. b. The kids need to practice for the school musical. c. Theres an important math test coming up soon. d. Most of the kids dont understand meteorology. 2. Why might you infer that the narrators father is bald? a. He likes to wear hats. b. He said he used to have more hair. c. The narrator said he had a shiny head. d. The hat t the narrator.

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3. What can you infer about the fraction nd? a. Some kids couldnt nd anything with a fraction on it. b. Raquelita found the most interesting item. c. Paco brought in his whole team. d. The Beatles record was the most interesting thing. 4. From the story, what can you infer about the narrators family? a. They get along well together. b. They argue a lot. c. They live in a trailer. d. They dont have time to do things together.

P R AC T I C E 2 : A N C I E N T A N I M A L S
Read the selection, and then answer the questions that follow. (1) Dinosaurs are everywhere. You see them in movies, books, museums, and TV documentaries. They show up as stuffed toys or on T-shirts. These prehistoric beasts may be extinctno longer livingbut theyre denitely not forgotten! Its been a long time since dinosaurs roamed and ruled Earth. Scientists say the last ones died about 65 million years ago. We know the dinosaurs are gone, but no one knows exactly why. After all, no one was here to witness what happened! Most scientists believe dinosaurs died out after a gigantic meteorite hit Earths surface and drastically changed the planets climate. Birds and mammals that were protected by feathers and fur, were better able to adapt to the weather changes than cold-blooded dinosaurs. Other scientists say dinosaurs arent extinct, they just look different! These experts believe the prehistoric beasts changed and developed into birds! Still other scientists say that Earths warmer weather caused more male than female dinosaurs to develop. So, they say, dinosaurs died out because there were no more females to increase the population! How do scientists know what dinosaurs looked like? There were no cameras millions of years ago, so dinosaurs are the only ones who know . . . and theyre not talking! Scientists get clues from dinosaur fossils, and infer the rest.

(2)

(3)

(4)

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(5)

Bones, footprints, and other remains are evidence of how big dinosaurs were and how they moved. To gure out how they looked with their skin on, scientists look at animals that live today. Because dinosaurs were lizard-like, scientists can infer that dinosaurs looked a lot like modern-day lizards. And since modern lizards are brown, gray, or green, then dinosaurs probably were, too! Thats why dinosaur pictures and museum models have the same colors as todays lizard populations. Scientists are always discovering new things about dinosaurs. In recent years, fossils were found in Antarctica, proving that dinosaurs lived on every continent. Experts also gured out that Stegosaurus had only one spread-out row of plates down its back, not two individual rows. And fossils of the smallest and the largest dinosaurs have been found. What will scientists discover next?

(6)

5. From the rst paragraph, you can infer that a. you can see dinosaurs only in museums. b. all dinosaurs were very tall. c. the author doesnt like dinosaurs. d. people of all ages are interested in dinosaurs. 6. Scientists found a rare blue lizard in Colombia, so you can infer that a. the scientists were looking for missing people. b. some dinosaurs might have been blue. c. no dinosaurs had ever lived in Colombia. d. the lizards built nests near the top of a volcano. 7. Since scientists are always discovering new things about dinosaurs, you can infer that a. they still might not have found the smallest or biggest dinosaurs. b. science is no longer interested in looking for fossils. c. prehistoric people left written records with descriptions of dinosaurs. d. when scientists make inferences, they are always right. 8. What can you infer from the fact that Stegosaurus has just one row of plates? a. Stegosaurus wasnt as old as scientists thought. b. Old pictures and museum models of Stegosaurus had to be changed. c. Someone stole the other row of plates from a museum. d. Stegosaurus means roof lizard.

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9. What can you infer about lizard eggs? a. Cooler temperatures should produce more female lizards. b. Hot weather should produce female lizards. c. Cold temperatures will produce more male lizards. d. Hot weather will produce more orange lizards. 10. What can you infer about scientists? a. They never watch TV. b. All scientists study about dinosaurs. c. They dont always agree. d. They never make mistakes.

P R AC T I C E 3 : TOA D S TO O L O R M U S H R O O M ?
Read the selection, and then answer the questions that follow. (1) All toadstools are mushrooms, but not all mushrooms are toadstools! Thats because toadstools are mushrooms that are either poisonous or have a bad taste. There are more than 2,000 mushroom species, and theres no simple test to tell the poisonous ones from those safe to eat! You just have to learn to recognize which is which. Most toadstools arent deadly if eaten, but theyre likely to make you very sick. For example, the Jack-o-Lantern toadstool, whose bright orange cap glows in the dark, might give you an upset stomach or diarrhea. But some toadstools have deadly poison, and no amount of cooking can get rid of it. They damage the liver and kidneys, and unless the eater gets immediate treatment, he or she will die. Thats why experts warn, never eat a mushroom you nd growing anywhere unless you know its the safe kind. Some of the loveliest toadstools are deadly. For example, the y agaric has a bright yellow, orange, or red cap with white bumps on top. Some people cut up this deadly beauty, sprinkle it with sugar, and tempt pesky ies to drop in for a meal. If they do, they get the specialty of the house: instant death!

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(3)

11. Which can you infer about mushrooms? a. They are all poisonous. b. They grow on soil. c. They are all yellow. d. They are all toadstools.

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12. After reading the article, what can you infer about blue mushrooms? a. They are extremely poisonous. b. They are always safe to eat. c. They will upset your stomach. d. I dont have enough information to infer anything. 13. Which can you infer about mushrooms? a. They are very expensive. b. They are all at. c. People cook them. d. They only grow under the ocean.