How to implement it?

1. Helping children realize that they already know how to make inferences can boost their confidence and introduce them to the concepts and vocabulary they will need to discuss their inferential thinking. Many models for teaching inference are intended to be used with text, but they can also work just as well to guide students through making inferences about images, whether individual images or wordless picture books, as an intermediate step to making inferences about text. With explicit instruction, students can learn to recognize the inferences they make about their reading, check their thinking to ensure it makes sense, and adjust their inferences as they gain new information.

2. A simplified model for teaching inference is based on the following assumptions:

​ ​• We need to find clues to get some answers.

​ ​• We need to add those clues to what we already know or have read.

​ • There may be more than one correct answer.

​ ​• We need to be able to support the inferences with evidence.

3. In this model, teachers pose four questions to students to facilitate a discussion about inferences (Marzano, 2010). The goal is for students to internalize these questions so that they can be aware of and evaluate their own thinking.

​ • What is my inference? This question helps students realize that they may have made an inference by filling in information that was not presented directly.

​ ​ ​• What information did I use to make this inference? This helps students understand the different types of information they use to make inferences. This can include information presented in the text, or it can be prior knowledge that a student brings to the learning environment.

​ ​ ​• How good was my thinking? Once students have identified the premises on which they based their inferences, they can engage in the most powerful part of the process: examining the validity of their thinking.

​ ​ ​• Do I need to change my thinking? The final step is for students to consider possible changes in their thinking. The point here is not to invalidate the students' original inferences, but to help them develop the habit of continuously updating their thinking as they gather new information.

Diversity in the classroom

For second language learners, students with varied reading skills, and younger students.

​ • Provide images or video clips for students who may not be able to understand the text or allow them to draw instead of writing their inferences.

​ • Use graphic organizers to make the steps from observation to inference more explicit.

​ • Model the process from observation to inference over and over again, using as many real-life examples as possible.

​ • Recognize that the prior knowledge on which inferences are based will vary from one student to another.

​ • Reaffirms to the students that answers may vary, but all must be based on evidence.

Evidence

Cain, K., Oakhill, J., & Lemmon, K. (2004). Individual differences in the inference of word meanings from contexts: The influence of reading comprehension, vocabulary knowledge, and memory capacity. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96, 671-681.

Elleman, A. M. (2017). Examining the impact of inference instruction on the literal and inferential comprehension of skilled and less skilled readers: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Educational Psychology, 109(6), 761–781. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000180

Gregory, A.E., & Cahill, M. (2010, March). Kindergartners Can Do It, Too! Comprehension Strategies for Early Readers. The Reading Teacher, 63(6), 515-520.

Magliano, J.P., Trabasso, T., & Graesser, A.C. (1999). Strategic processing during comprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 91(4), 615-629.

Marzano, R. (2010). Teaching inference (opens in a new window). Educational Leadership, 67(7), 80-01.

Ozgungor, S., & Guthrie, J. T. (2004). Interactions among elaborative interrogation, knowledge, and interest in the process of constructing knowledge from text. Journal of Educational Psychology, 96(3), 437-443.

Tarchi, C. (2015) Fostering reading comprehension of expository texts through the activation of readers’ prior knowledge and inference-making skills. International Journal of Educational Research, Volume 72, 80-88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2015.04.013

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 This article is a free adaptation and translation of: Reading Rockets (n.d.) Inferencing. https://www.readingrockets.org/classroom/classroom-strategies/inferencing