What’s an Inference?

When we read, we use inferences to draw conclusions or make educated guesses based on clues, evidence, and what we already know. Making inferences means going beyond what the author explicitly says and using our critical thinking skills to understand implicit meanings, connections or intentions. This is an important skill for students to develop.

Essentially, making an inference is like a bridge between what is written in the text and what it means. As a teacher, you can help your students understand the text better by analyzing details, considering context and using their background knowledge. For example, if a character in a story is described as shivering while wearing a coat indoors, students might infer that the room is cold, even if the temperature isn’t mentioned.

Practice Inferencing Skills – Birthday Style! 

Inferencing is a valuable skill for students to apply when engaging with and responding to texts. However, it can be a tricky skill, especially for young readers.

Teach Starter has created an activity that requires students to look at a birthday invitation and answer a series of questions that will prompt the students to make inferences based on specific items on the invitation. Then, they must provide the clues they used to make their inference.

Either project the invitation on your screen and go through the activity together as a class, or use it as an independent task to monitor your students’ inferencing skills. This even makes a great guided reading activity to use with your small groups!

How to Get Your Making Inferences Worksheet

If you are ready for your students to use this birthday-themed activity in your classroom, head on over to the green download button! Here, you will find the quick-print PDF file and the editable Google Slides document. There is a low-color and black-and-white version of the birthday invitation you can choose from. If selecting the Google Slides option, please note that you will first be prompted to make a copy of the resource to your personal drive before accessing it.

Looking for More Practice With Inferences?

Make sure to check out some of our suggested resources below!

teaching resource

Making Inferences With Pictures Worksheet

Guide your students to use pictures to make inferences with this reading worksheet.

teaching resource

Inference Detectives Worksheet Pack

Guide your students to use personal experiences and text evidence to make inferences with this set of reading worksheets.

teaching resource

Making Inferences Worksheet Pack

Guide your students to read between the lines with this making inferences worksheet pack.