Teach Inference – YES you can, the ultimate list of teaching inference ideas!

Teaching inference or how to infer – got ya covered….including mentor text for inferencing and inferring.

This was another one of those scary words initially when as a new teacher I peeked into what my students had to master…

Digging deep to uncover it really is just about reasoning and using clues from the text to figure something out….well then…crisis averted.

How to Teach Inference

Maybe not crisis fully averted…what inference lesson plans would be the best for my students? How should I model inferring from text – short stories, read alouds, books?

The answer is YES! Any text can be used to model inference!

• Stopping to ask questions during reading – for individual students or as a class is a good strategy!
• using predictions for parts later in story based on what is known already
• putting together pieces/clues to help solve what is happening (I love depicting that with an anchor chart)
• Inference Task Cards are a gamechanger and an easy introduction as an inference activity!
• Inference Scoot- use task cards and move after a specific number of minutes!

Pictures are another great way to teach inference! Using images students can determine clues and what might be happening in the picture.

What are the best books for teaching inference?

Lessons on inferring are rooted in books. Here is a list of best book to teach inference! These are my personal favorite inferring mentor texts.

The Sweetest Fig – With such a fun plot this book does leave the reader guessing until the end which makes it perfect to use the inference vocabulary and predict using text based information what will happen.

Teammates – I admit, I probably don’t showcase enough sports books and this book reflecting on historical baseball and amazing character is a great book to teach inference!

How Many Days to America – A deeply historical tale told by the fantastic Eve Bunting. Inferring about plot, characters, setting, and more is an easy jumping off point for this book.

Fire Flies – a super descriptive book that will leave readers deciding important information about the main character’s future.

The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks – a great historical tale that again puts the reader into the position of what happened to the characters.

Inferring can also be done in a listening capacity (hello – rigorous test prep!) Check out this free listening center focusing on literacy and inferring in a new way!

Save time and grab your Listening Centers NOW!