Students will learn how to make assumptions during this session. At the end of the lesson, students are able to:
- Give the meaning of inference.
- Make inferences from nonfiction writings.
- Provide textual evidence to back up your conclusions.

- How can literary and factual texts become meaningful to strategic readers?
- How does interaction with text provoke thinking and response?
- What is the true purpose of this text?

- Inference: A judgment based on reasoning rather than on a direct or explicit statement. A conclusion based on facts or circumstances; understandings gained by “reading between the lines.” 
- Evidence: Support for a response.

- pictures or photos of people (real or cartoon) with a variety of facial expressions or scenarios between two characters. (Piclits.com is a possible site to use for pictures.)
- Kay Moore. (1998). If You Lived at the Time of the American Revolution. Scholastic Paperbacks. 
- A copy of pages 10–11 of this book to display on the board/interactive whiteboard.
- copies of any of the following magazines or others at the student's instructional level:
- National Geographic Kids (at level)
http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids
- Ranger Rick (at level)
http://www.nwf.org/Kids/Ranger-Rick.aspx
- Jack and Jill (easy)
http://www.uskidsmags.com/jackandjill-home
- Spider (easy to midlevel)
http://www.cricketmag.com/kids_home.asp
- Cobblestone (higher level)
http://www.cobblestonepub.com/magazine/COB
- Teachers may substitute other nonfiction materials to provide a range of reading and level of text complexity.
- self-stick notes
- student copies of the Making Inferences graphic organizer (L-4-4-1_Making Inferences)

- Emphasize the value of making inferences from nonfiction texts and providing evidence to back up those conclusions throughout the class. Keep an eye on the students and evaluate their ability to conclude by taking notes and anecdotal observations. 
- Utilize the checklist below to assess pupils' comprehension: 
+ Students can define what constitutes an inference. 
+ The student exhibits their ability to conclude the reading at various stages. 
+ The student correctly identifies textual evidence to back up his or her conclusion. 
+ To gauge students' comprehension, use the Making Inferences visual organizer. Provide each student with detailed feedback.

Explicit instruction, modeling, scaffolding, and active engagement 
W: Explain to students how to recognize hints that bolster inferences and introduce the concept of drawing conclusions. 
H: Incorporate students into the class by having them look at pictures of people and draw conclusions about their emotions. 
E: Give pupils the chance to practice drawing conclusions and substantiating them with textual evidence. 
R: Assign pupils to meet with a fellow student to discuss their work and reconsider their conclusions. 
E: Use dialogue and teacher-student conferences to assess whether reteaching or additional practice is required. 
T: Encouraging pupils to draw conclusions and apply concepts at their conceptual level by using a range of texts and via peer collaboration. 
O: This lesson's learning activities offer large-group teaching and discussion, small-group inquiry, pair work, and individual application of the concepts. 

Focus question: What deductions do readers get from nonfiction texts?

Note: Take multiple photos of people with distinct facial expressions or obvious interactions between two people.
Present each picture to the class one at a time, then ask them to explain the feelings of the people they see. Ask, "How do you think this person is feeling based on what you see and what you know, or your background knowledge?" Permit volunteers to express their thoughts. Talk about the hints that students used to determine each person's emotional state.
Say, "You used the information you already knew and hints in the picture to establish how these people were feeling. This is the method you will now apply to nonfiction texts. To grasp what you are reading, utilize the hints the author provides in both their written words and their illustrations. Then, put those hints together with your prior knowledge. It's known as "drawing an inference".

Part 1

Read aloud the book "If You Lived During the American Revolution", pages 10–11. Give students an example by thinking aloud and drawing conclusions. Say, "I can infer that the King of England was a very powerful monarch if he ruled over 32 territories. (p. 10) I am aware that the more possessions you have, the more likely it is that you have wealth or influence. The author claimed that to fight for the freedom of the colonies, a war had to be started. I may infer that the king wished to hold onto his position of authority."
"(p. 10) We frequently struggle for things we don't want to lose. According to the author, the Revolutionary War was both a civil war and an international conflict. It was therefore a war within a nation. It seems to me that there were disagreements among individuals living in the same nation. (p. 11) I may assume that because some were afraid or believed they would not be able to exist without the supplies provided by England, they felt it was not a smart idea to secede from England. (p.11). I know from personal experience that significant changes can be unsettling.
Say, "You are making inferences when you combine what you already know, prior knowledge, and the author's words or hints."
Determine if you need to model utilizing additional pages from this text through discussion and observation.

Part 2

Assign pupils to work alone or in small groups. Give out copies of chosen periodicals or other suitable nonfiction books so that people can draw conclusions. Give every student a copy of the Making Inferences graphic organizer (L-4-4-1_Making Inferences) and multiple self-stick notes.
Say, "We're going to practice drawing conclusions now. Go over the text. As you read, make a note with a self-stick note of any passages that require you to apply prior knowledge in addition to the author's hints to comprehend the text. While you read, fill in the graphic organizer. Put your text's title and key concept at the top of the organizer. Write the author's hints in the left column, along with the page number where you found them. Put the background information you have that enabled you to draw the conclusion in the middle column. Write your conclusion in the final column."
Let students work for a while. Talk about your ideas with your partners. Keep an eye on the pupils to make sure they know how to apply the information in the text and what it means to draw conclusions.
Write a summary of the inference-making process. Request that volunteers distribute the data displayed on their visual aids. Ask, "How does drawing conclusions help you understand what you are reading better?". (Knowing what's going on helps. You expand on the understanding you acquired from the material. It facilitates your comprehension of the author's intent and way of thinking.)
Gather the graphic organizers from the students to see if reteaching is required.

Extension:

To enhance skills, assign teams to study a chosen nonfiction book and fill out a chart highlighting a conclusion and providing supporting details from the text.
Assign small groups to draw conclusions and provide examples from a range of nonfiction readings.