Strategy 7: Inferring
Inference is a process whereby a proficient reader blends information from the text with his/her schema and prior knowledge to create opinions that are not explicitly stated by the author but are inferred through hints etc. In essence, inference is ‘reading between the lines’. It is the creation of the implicit meaning of the text by the reader.
This raises an interesting question – what is the difference between prediction and inference? Prediction is making a ‘guess’ about what might happen next. It may or may not be right. Inferring is piecing together clues from the text and your own life to draw a conclusion that is correct. Children can find it difficult to distinguish between these two strategies initially and need support to do so.
Children make an ‘i’ symbol to show they want to infer. Through the inferring strategy, children learn how to read the ‘invisible ink’ of the story, reading between the lines to determine what the author is hinting at, but not saying.
Inference is a process whereby a proficient reader blends information from the text with his/her schema and prior knowledge to create opinions that are not explicitly stated by the author but are inferred through hints etc. In essence, inference is ‘reading between the lines’. It is the creation of the implicit meaning of the text by the reader.
This raises an interesting question – what is the difference between prediction and inference? Prediction is making a ‘guess’ about what might happen next. It may or may not be right. Inferring is piecing together clues from the text and your own life to draw a conclusion that is correct. Children can find it difficult to distinguish between these two strategies initially and need support to do so.
Children make an ‘i’ symbol to show they want to infer. Through the inferring strategy, children learn how to read the ‘invisible ink’ of the story, reading between the lines to determine what the author is hinting at, but not saying.
