Reading With Meaning

Chapter 8: Inferring

Pages 105-121 

Showing your thinking behind predictions using the text to justify / explain your answers. 

Often readers make predictions and conclusions about text without using what they have read to support their thinking. They infer author’s meaning without regard to clues that are in the text and consequently miss important meaning in the story. It will be easier for them to support their thinking with excerpts from text after they have had experience trying the strategy with a simple picture book. 

Read a selection of text.

Stop and ask the students to predict.

When a prediction is made, have the students explain the thinking behind their prediction.

Teacher might reread the text to help the child clarify their thinking. Teacher might coach the child saying, “What in the book makes you think that?”

As we read on, the children confirm their prediction put a C for “confirmed” in the third column. 

Read most of the text until there is a spot for all the children to make a prediction.

Have the students fill in a paper like this one: 

 
PLAN is an acronym for a study-reading strategy with four distinct steps that readers learn to use before, during and after reading.

P = Predict

L = Locate

A = Add

N = Noting 

• The first step is to PREDICT the content and structure of the text and to assess its potential for the reading task or purpose. Readers create a probable map or diagram of the author’s ideas with the chapter title at the center and the subtitles, highlighted words and information from the graphics as major and minor branches.

The teacher might model this part by using these steps:

Open book and look at the title then close book.

What will the text be about?

Record on chart paper or an overhead transparency or on the board to be saved until text is fully saved.

Open book and look at the subtitles then close book.

What will the text be about?

Record on chart paper or an overhead transparency or on the board to be saved until text is fully saved.

Open book and look at the highlighted words then close book.

What will the text be about?

Record on chart paper or an overhead transparency or on the board to be saved until text is fully saved.

Open book and look at the graphics, charts, captions and then close book.

What will the text be about?

Record on chart paper or an overhead transparency or on the board to be saved until text is fully saved. 

• The second step is to LOCATE known and unknown information on the map by playing checkmarks next to familiar concepts and question marks by unfamiliar concepts. This step enables readers to assess their prior knowledge related to author’s steps.

• As the readers read, readers apply the third step called ADD by adding words or short phrases to the map to explain the concepts marked with question marks or confirm / extend known concepts marked with checks.

Often students have:

to combine information from the text with their schema

to infer information from various places in the text

to draw conclusions from the text

to make judgments about whether their Plan and Locate information steps were accurate. 

• After reading, readers engage in the fourth step by NOTING their new understandings. These notes can take the form of a summary, a log entry, a discussion of the text’s main points, etc. depending on the initial purpose for reading.

Informal Prediction Guides

Prediction Guides are a method to help students develop purposes for reading their content area material. These guides can be used to motivate reading, to call students attention to the information you think is important for them to retain, and to encourage skimming to find information. Informal prediction guides provide opportunities for students to skim content materials before reading. Here students are encouraged to either read the title of the paragraph, or survey the chapter. Then ask them to read to verify their predictions.  
 

Directions: Complete the sentences below after reading just the title or first paragraph of the text. 

From the title / paragraph, I predict that this chapter will be about ________________

___________________________________________________________________ 
___________________________________________________________________ 

The reason I believe this is ______________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________ 

Directions: Survey the chapter. Then complete the sentences that follow. 

After surveying the chapter, I believe that the major figure(s) will be _____________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ 

Some major events will be ______________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

 
PREDICTING WHAT A STORY IS ABOUT 

Based on the _________________________________________. I think this story is

about _______________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________ 
 

I think this because

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________ 

My predictions were confirmed because

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________ 

My predictions were disconfirmed because

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

 
Prediction Log (adapted from Laura Robb’s Teaching Reading in the Middle School) 

To model or teach this strategy: Use a picture book. Look at the cover, read the title and a few pages (2-4). Stop and ask the students for a prediction. Chart the prediction and ask for support, why did you make this prediction? Chart the support. Read a few more pages ask if anyone wants to adjust the prediction or if you have found further support. Chart these results. Read a few more pages or the rest of the book to see if the prediction is confirmed. 

Two titles I have used:  Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say

Possum Magic by Mem Fox 

For non-fiction text: Students must already be familiar with making predictions and finding or stating SUPPORT for that prediction. Once that has happened, have students listen for information that will either strengthen the prediction or cause them to adjust the prediction. In informational text have students use the key words, the illustrations, charts, graphs, captions, and diagrams to make predictions. Ask where the support is. It may be in the pictures, it may be information that the students already know.  

Guidelines:  

 The Prediction Log should be used with content that is not important the first few times. Therefore the students are learning the process before applying it to content that is required.  

 Use the Prediction Log whole class several times before asking individuals or partners to use it independently. 
 
 

TEACH ONLY ONE THING at once. Don’t ask the students to learn about predicting AND content at the same time. Teach the prediction log THEN use the prediction log as a strategy to reinforce content. 
 
 

Guess The Covered Word Procedure

Guess the Covered Word is a Working with words block activity. Its purpose is to help children practice the important strategy of cross-checking meaning with letter-sound information. Here is the procedure: 

The teacher writes four or five sentences on the board (or overhead) covering a word in each sentence with two sticky notes — one covering the onset, all the consonants prior to the first vowel, and the other sticky note covering the rest of the word. Most teachers tear their sticky notes so that the children become sensitive to word length also. 

The children read each sentence, then make several guesses for the covered word. (There are generally many possibilities for a word that will fit the context and the teacher points out that there are many possibilities when you can’t see any of the letters.) The guesses are written on the board. 

Next, the teacher takes off the first sticky note, which always covers all the letters up to the first vowel. 

Guesses which don’t begin with these letters are erased and new guesses which both fit in the meaning and start with the right beginning letters are made. When all the guesses which fit both meaning and beginning sounds have been written, the whole word is revealed. 

Page 148 The Teachers Guide to Four Blocks by Cunningham and Hall. (Used with permission) 
 

Other Prediction activities:

Picture Walks  pages 54-57  Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way

What’s for Reading pages 58-62  Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way

Predicting Chapter 6   Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way

Prove It!  pages 64-66  Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way

Anticipation Guides pages 67-68 Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way

Rivet   pages 70-74  Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way  
What is the OWL strategy? 

What is Observation in OWL?

What do you notice?

• Setting: time of day, constant place setting; multiple settings;
• Foreshadowing clues
• Picture walks if there are pictures
• Type of language used (British English, American English, slangs, use of foreign languages

Before reading

Steps for OWL:

• Have one copy of the book.
• Have the students sit in a circle.
• Open the book to the story.
• Teacher makes an observation about any page in the story. IE, “I notice…I observe…I see… that a boy and his dog are playing outside.”
• Teacher passes the book to the student sitting next to the teacher. Student makes an observation about any page in the book.
• Every student has an opportunity to make an observation using one of these sentence starters: “I notice…I observe…I see…”
• Teacher makes an “I wonder…” statement about the same page she/he made an observation about.
• Teacher passes the book to the student sitting next to the teacher. Student makes a “I wonder…” about any page in the book.

Every student has an opportunity to make an I wonder… statement about the same page she/he made an observation about. 

What is Wonder in OWL?

Turn to the page that you made an observation on, then ask a wonder question.

Wonder about stuff! What if…? Why did…? How did…? Where was this happening? When was this was happening? 

During reading

• Have the students each have a copy of the book.
• Decide how the story will be read. Remember to make the decision of how to read the book based on these three criteria:
1. number of copies of the book
2. the reading level of the students
3. the reading level of the story.

I suggest that teachers read the story using Three Ring Circus (see Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way, chapter 20, page 182. This way you’ll be able to allow some children to read independently, some with a partner, and some with the teacher.

• While you are reading today, think about your wonder question and the wonder questions from the other students. Remember to link the story to your life. What does this story remind you of in your life?

 
What is Link in OWL?

Link to your life

Here are 3 examples of links

• Link to your own personal experience (On a simplistic level: I am a girl and Pippi Longstocking is a girl. Taking this one step further: We both don't like to eat peanut butter sandwiches unless there is mayonnaise with it. Really touching the link: We both have dad's and want our dad's to come back from their far away adventures to be with us. OR we both feel and act like we don't have parents.

• Link to someone else's experiences : My cousin once tried to ride a horse and fell off before really getting on the horse.

• Link to another text, video, movie (e.g.: This book is similar to the setting in the Hobbit by another author: the author created another world, language, and map for the setting environment.)

Speed-readers have slowed down to start to notice things in their readings that they usually sped over before. Slower readers feel more justified in noticing more details, and have sped up as they latch onto clues. Most of my students have said at some point: "Hey, wait a minute. I thought that…" in the middle of their silent reading bouts. 

After reading

Steps for OWL continued

• Put all the books away, EXCEPT ONE book
• The teacher holds the book and makes a “Link to my life” statement.
• Then the teacher passes the book to the student sitting next to the teacher. The student makes a link to my life statement.
• Continue passing the book the circle until everyone has a chance to share.

 
Guided Reading the Four Blocks Way pages 58-62 “What’s for Reading?” 

“You want the children in your classroom to know that they will read something every day during Guided Reading, and as Guided Reading time approaches, you want them to begin asking themselves “What’s for reading?” Then you want them to know they can take a quick peek at the text and see the kinds of reading they can anticipate. “What’s for reading?” is a previewing technique where the children decide what kind of text they are going to read and what special features that text has.”  
 

Reading With Meaning, page 146 

Have the students look at nonfiction and fiction texts and determine what are the characteristics of both types of text. 

Make a Venn Diagram reflecting what they learned. 

FICTION    BOTH    NONFICTION