Helping your child with inference involves explaining how it works and practicing by looking for clues and using their own experiences.
To help your child develop inference skills, the key is to explicitly explain the concept and provide opportunities to practice. Inference is essentially making a "smart guess" or drawing a conclusion based on information you have and what you already know.
Explaining How Inference Works
Begin by clearly explaining to your child what inference means. You can describe it as being a "reading detective" or making educated guesses. Emphasize that it's not just guessing randomly, but using information to figure something out.
- Use Analogies: Simple, everyday examples are best. The provided reference suggests a great one: ask your child what they would infer if they looked out the window and saw people using their umbrellas. Guide them to understand that the clue is people using umbrellas, and their prior knowledge (umbrellas are used when it rains) leads them to infer that it is raining.
- Highlight the Components: Explain that making smart guesses (inferences) requires two things:
- Looking for Clues: Finding hints or evidence in what they observe or read.
- Thinking of Their Own Experiences: Connecting the clues to what they already know about the world.
Practicing Inference Together
Once they understand the basic idea, practice making inferences in various situations.
- While Reading:
- Ask questions like, "How do you think that character is feeling? What clues in the story make you think that?"
- Discuss what might happen next and why they predict that.
- Talk about things the author doesn't explicitly state but wants the reader to figure out.
- In Daily Life:
- Play games like "I Spy" where the answer isn't directly named but inferred from clues (e.g., "I spy something you use to eat soup" - spoon).
- Talk about why someone might be acting a certain way ("Why do you think she looks sad? What makes you say that?").
- Discuss observations ("The park is empty today. What do you think that means?").
- Using Pictures: Look at illustrations or photographs together and ask questions that require inference:
- What happened before this picture was taken?
- What might happen next?
- How are the people/animals feeling? How can you tell?
By consistently explaining the process and practicing with simple examples from their world and stories, you help your child build this crucial comprehension skill.
