Inference Jones: Beginning 1

This 48-page book provides short, fun, and easy-to-use reading comprehension activities that improve critical reading and higher-order thinking skills. The activities focus on developing the student's ability to draw inferences from written text as they identify and evaluate evidence. Questions following all stories teach students to evaluate details that at first seemed insignificant but are actually meaningful! These activities develop a depth of analysis that guarantees superior inferential and reading comprehension skills for top grades and higher test scores!

Research shows inferential reasoning is a prerequisite component to superior reading comprehension. The National Foundation for Educational Research concluded that "the ability to draw inferences predetermines reading skills: that is, poor inferential reasoning causes poor comprehension and not vice versa." We all make inferences in our daily lives (e.g. we naturally think a child is happy because we see them laughing). But how does this ability apply to written communication? When we read a written passage, we're actually reading a representation of the author's thoughts and ideas, because the written word does not convey a meaning in and of itself. Readers must construct the meaning through interpretation. The reader's interpretation is the result of inferential analysis which includes drawing from personal knowledge and experiences, social values, and cultural conventions. The interpretation connects a meaning to the words, providing the reader with an understanding of the character's actions, circumstances, or events in the story.

Inferring can be a tricky skill to learn. We often do it without thinking about it, so how do you learn to do it intentionally? Practice helps and Inference Jones is a good place to start!

Once you begin to point out examples, some kids will take off and apply the skill easily. Other children may need more time and written practice for the skill to click. It requires looking at things that aren’t there after all! At least, they are not spelled out for the reader. 

This is the first of three in the Inference Jones series, followed by Beginning and Level 1. A parent or teacher could certainly use these for remediation with a struggling student, but the intended grade levels are on the cover. Reproducible for a single home or classroom. Answers are in the back.

Inference Jones Beginning 1 includes zany, amusing, and clever short stories full of hints and clues to help students hone their inference skills. It has a readability level appropriate for Grades 1-2 but can also be used as a remedial resource for older students (Grades 5-12+).

Product Information
Title: Inference Jones, Beginning 1 (Grades 1-2)
By: Noreen Conte
Format: Paperback
Number of Pages: 48
Vendor: Critical Thinking Company
Publication Date: 2023
Dimensions: 11 X 8.5 (inches)
Weight: 6 ounces
ISBN-13: 9781644200025