Inferences in Fiction

What is an inference?

Writers of fiction often show their characters in action and allow them to speak for themselves. Readers then have the job of deciding what those actions and words mean and what they reveal about the characters, the events of the story and the message the author intends to send. In other words, readers must draw inferences about what they read. An inference in fiction is a reasonable conclusion or judgment about some element of a story based on the information given in the story and the reader's personal knowledge of how the world works.

• a reasonable conclusion or judgment about some element in a story based on information from the story

• a reasonable conclusion or judgment about some element in a story

• information contained in a story that leads a reader to the theme

• information in the story to help a reader ask questions and make connections

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How to Draw Inferences

1. You look for clues in the text, little pieces of information that seem to relate to the missing information or your question.

2. You think about what you already know from your own experience in the real world.

3. You put these two pieces of the puzzle together in a logical way to produce a reasonable conclusion that supplies the missing piece of information or the answer to your question.

Drawing an inference requires your background knowledge and information from the text?

• TRUE

• FALSE

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Drawing an Inference

You've made many inferences in your life, but you might not even know it. For instance, your cat runs up to you the minute you step through the door. She meows, rubs your legs, runs into the kitchen and stares at the cupboard where you normally store the cat food. It doesn't take much effort to figure out that your cat wants food. You've just drawn an inference.

You draw many inferences in your everyday life?

• TRUE

• FALSE

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Drawing Inferences

Let's go back to your cat and apply the process for making an inference. At first, you might wonder what your cat is doing. You look for clues in your cat's behavior and notice how she meows and rubs your legs to get your attention and how she stares at the food cupboard. You also think about what you already know from past experience; your cat has done this before, and you've responded by giving her food. So you put those two pieces together in a logical way and correctly infer that your cat wants food.

Drawing an inference from a book follows the same process of drawing inferences in your everyday life?

• True

• False

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____ in fiction is a reasonable conclusion or judgment about some element of a story based on the information given in the story and the reader's personal knowledge of how the world works.

• A clue

• A question

• An inference

• An implication

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"You've never had Hot Fries? They are the best!" Red powder covered Isaiah's fingers as he popped yet another chip into his mouth. "Come on, you have to try them" Todd made sure he had plenty of water nearby. Unlike Isaiah, Todd rarely ate spicy food, but decided to give them a try. He popped one chip into his mouth. "Whoa! It burns!" Todd began to guzzle his glass of water. He decided spicy food was not for him.

Which sentence from the passage helped you infer that Todd did not enjoy the spicy food?

• He popped the chip into his mouth.

• Todd began to guzzle his glass of water.

• Todd decided to give the chips a try.

• Isaiah's fingers were covered in red powder.

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Johnny had soccer practice and then swimming lessons. It was late when he got home so he went straight to bed without studying for his math test the next day. You can tell that......

• Johnny will get a good grade.
• Johnny will ace the test.
• Johnny will probably fail his math test.
• Johnny will study during the test.

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Rose shivered as she climbed up the long ladder.  Carefully, she walked to the end of the board and looked down.  "Hurry up!" said the kid behind her.  Rose held her breath and jumped. 
Where is Rose?

• on a trampoline
• on a diving board
• on a pirate ship
• on a slide 

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   Yoshi was in her room reading a book. Her mom called her to come downstairs and help. As Yoshi entered the kitchen, her mom handed her a pile of plates. Yoshi put them on the table and went to get the silverware and glasses.
You can infer that it is...              

• Dinnertime
• Bedtime
• Time for School
• Playtime

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Amy opened the door to the bathroom and said, “What is that dripping sound? Why is the carpet wet and squishy all around the bathtub? The rest of the carpet is dry. Oh no!”
What is the problem?

• The TV is broken.
• The bathtub is overflowing.
• There is no soap in the bathroom.
• The stove was left turned on.

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