Professional Documents
Culture Documents
For your MUET Reading Paper, you will have to read and
comprehend 6 different types of texts of varying length and complexity. With 90
minutes to complete the test, you must make sure that you use your time wisely. Try not
to worry about having to understand every single detail of the text. There is a way for
you to increase your reading speed. Have you heard of skimming and scanning? Picture
it this way, do you read every single word in the newspaper? There’s a bigger chance that
you might not. What you do when you flip through the pages to look for interesting parts
to read before you decide what you want to read is SKIMMING.
What you do when you just read key words to know about something in a newspaper
article is called SCANNING.
Skimming is reading the text very quickly for the main idea of the
text. Below you will find suggestions for ways to skim.
When you skim, you are looking for the meaning of the text, not for a complete
understanding of the text. This means that you need to look at the topic sentences of
each paragraph, and the subject, verb and object of the sentences.
Scanning is when you look for specific details in the text, without skimming or reading
for the meaning. You use this technique when you are looking for the answer to a
question. You will look for the keyword in the question (or a synonym) so you can locate
the answer.
On the line, write whether you would most likely skim or scan to do each of
the following:
All done? Check your answers with your teacher or your friends.
Congratulations! You have just finished reading the text and now, you have new found
knowledge about the topic “How to Prepare for A Job Interview”. Now, let’s look at
three strategies that can help you comprehend the text better. Don’t worry, you may
have already taken these strategies when you were reading the text just now!
To figure out the main idea, ask yourself this question: What is being said about the
person, thing, or idea (the topic)?
The author can locate the main idea in different places within a paragraph. The main
idea is usually a sentence, and it is usually the first sentence. The writer then uses the
rest of the paragraph to support the main idea.
Let’s use the paragraph below as an example. First find the topic, then look for the main
idea.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
1. Don’t walk into a job interview with zero knowledge about the business you are
interviewing with. Research the company beforehand — visit its website, follow it
on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and do some simple Google
searches to see what you can find out about its history and its leadership team. Be
sure to showcase your newfound knowledge during your interview. This will boost
your credibility with the interviewer and will help you to formulate intelligent
questions to ask him or her.
The main idea is: You must prepare yourself before you go for an interview.
Let’s try again. This time, you try it on your own and discuss your answer later with your
teacher.
Your clothing should be neat, pressed, and professional looking. It’s better to dress too
conservatively than too casually. Be well groomed with clean, manicured nails. Keep
tattoos under wraps and remove any facial piercings if you have them. If the work
environment seems casual, you’ll be able to gauge later what’s acceptable — after you
have the job.
Now, try out your predicting skill on the rest of the text. One important thing to
remember though is that while the main idea is usually in the first sentence, the next
most common placement is in the last sentence of a paragraph. The author gives
supporting information first and then makes the point in the last sentence.
Predicting
What Is It?
Effective readers use pictures, titles, headings, and text—as well aspersonal
experiences—to make predictions before they begin to read. Predicting involves
thinking ahead while reading and anticipating information and events in the text. After
making predictions, students can read through the text and refine, revise, and verify
their predictions.
The strategy of making predictions actively engages students and connects them to the
text by asking them what they think might occur in the story. Using the text, students
refine, revise, and verify their thinking and predictions.
Why Is It Important?
Making predictions activates students’ prior knowledge about the text and helps them
make connections between new information and what they already know. By making
predictions about the text before, during, and after reading, students use what they
already know—as well as what they suppose might happen—to make connections to the
text.
Think aloud before you read the text. Try doing this before reading: “I came across an
interesting article today and by looking at the pictures, I am guessing or predicting that
it will be about _____ and _______. When we use what we know to make a guess
before we read it is called ‘predicting.'”
Think aloud while reading the article. Predicting what the article is about while
reading. “Hmmm… my prediction that the article would be about ____ was right, but I
did not think that ____ would happen. I’ll make a new prediction that _____ will
happen based on what I read.”
Think aloud after reading, reflect on what you have predicted after reading. “My first
prediction was _____. After reading part of the article I predicted _____. Now that I
am finished reading I think my predictions were close/not close to what it was really
about because_____.”
Writers often tell you more than they say directly. They give you hints or clues that help
you “read between the lines.” Using these clues to give you a deeper understanding of
your reading is called inferring. When you infer, you go beyond the surface details to
see other meanings that the details suggest or imply (not stated). When the meanings of
words are not stated clearly in the context of the text, they may be implied – that is,
suggested or hinted at. When meanings are implied, you may infer them.
Inference is just a big word that means a conclusion or judgement. If you infer that
something has happened, you do not see, hear, feel, smell, or taste the actual event. But
from what you know, it makes sense to think that it has happened. You make inferences
everyday. Most of the time you do so without thinking about it. Suppose you are sitting
in your car stopped at a red signal light. You hear screeching tires, then a loud crash and
breaking glass. You see nothing, but you infer that there has been a car accident. We all
know the sounds of screeching tires and a crash. We know that these sounds almost
always mean a car accident. But there could be some other reason, and therefore
another explanation, for the sounds. Perhaps it was not an accident involving two
moving vehicles. Maybe an angry driver rammed a parked car. Or maybe someone
played the sound of a car crash from a recording. Making inferences means choosing the
most likely explanation from the facts at hand.
There are several ways to help you draw conclusions from what an author may be
implying. The following are descriptions of the various ways to aid you in reaching a
conclusion.
General Sense
The meaning of a word may be implied by the general sense of its context, as the
meaning of the word incarcerated is implied in the following sentence:
Murderers are usually incarcerated for longer periods of time than robbers.
You may infer the meaning of incarcerated by answering the question “What usually
happens to those found guilty of murder or robbery?” Use the text box below to write
down what you have inferred as the meaning of the word incarcerated.
If you answered that they are locked up in jail, prison, or a penitentiary, you correctly
inferred the meaning of incarcerated.
Examples
When the meaning of the word is not implied by the general sense of its context, it may
be implied by examples. For instance,
Those who enjoy belonging to clubs, going to parties, and inviting friends often to
their homes for dinner are gregarious.
You may infer the meaning of gregarious by answering the question “What word or
words describe people who belong to clubs, go to parties a lot, and often invite friends
over to their homes for dinner?” Use the lines below to write down what you have
inferred as the meaning of the word gregarious.
If you wrote social or something like: “people who enjoy the company of others”, you
correctly inferred the meaning ofgregarious.
You may infer the meaning of timorous by answering the question “If Ben is fearless
and Jim is very different from Ben with regard to fear, then what word describes Jim?”
Write your answer on the following line.
If you wrote a word such as timid, or afraid, or fearful, you inferred the meaning
of timorous.
Dad gave credence to my story, but Mom’s reaction was one of total disbelief.
You may infer the meaning of credence by answering the question “If Mom’s reaction
was disbelief and Dad’s reaction was very different from Mom’s, what was Dad’s
reaction?” Write your answer on the following lines.
If you wrote that Dad believed the story, you correctly inferred the meaning of credence;
it means “belief.”
Be Careful of the Meaning You Infer!
When a sentence contains an unfamiliar word, it is sometimes possible to infer the
general meaning of the sentence without inferring the exact meaning of the unknown
word. For instance,
When we invite the Paulsons for dinner, they never invite us to their home for a meal;
however, when we have the Browns to dinner, they always reciprocate.
In reading this sentence some students infer that the Browns are more desirable dinner
guests than the Paulsons without inferring the exact meaning of reciprocate. Other
students conclude that the Browns differ from the Paulsons in that they do something in
return when they are invited for dinner; these students conclude correctly
that reciprocate means “to do something in return.”
Determining An Opinion
Opinions are based on subjective judgment and personal values rather than on
information that can be verified. An opinion is a belief that someone holds without
complete proof or positive knowledge that it is correct. Even experts who have studied
the same issue carefully often have very different opinions about that issue.
Opinions are often disputed, and many times involve abstract concepts and complex
moral issues such as right or wrong, fairness and loyalty.
Look for opinion comparison words such as better than, smarter than…
Opinions are often introduced by verbs and adverbs
that suggest some doubt in the writer’s mind:
It appears she was confused.
Become an alert and critical reader. Understand the differences between facts and
opinions, and interpret and apply both into your critical thinking.
7. True or False? The salary offered can be more than RM3000 per month.
8. True or False? Once employed, the new staff will be expected to work from 10am to
6pm.
Check your answers. Go back to the advertisement if you need to scan for the
answer again.
The following three short texts are broadly about the subject of Facebook.
Two of them however, are concerned specifically with the topic at hand – The
advantages of Facebook.
Skim read the texts and identify as quickly as you can the two texts. Think about the
words or phrases in these texts that help you to make your judgements.
TEXT 1
“It is a great, modern way of communicating with real world friends and the ‘friends’
that you think you must know because you have a bunch of mutual friends with that
person. Other than that, it is a great way of putting everything about your life on the
web.”
TEXT 2
“I think facebook is too overrated and they are indeed making too many changes. I don’t
like the new chat and I think facebook was fine before they changed it. It’s just not the
same anymore and I know my privacy isn’t really private anymore because everything
now is becoming more public and it’s been kinda frustrating lately.”
TEXT 3
“Facebook has its advantages and disadvantages. I like facebook because you can find
people on it. Like I found some of my dads family on it so that got me in touch with him
and I found some old friends that I havnt seen in years on it. It helps you stay in touch
with people and you get all the gossip too. I love facebook :)”.
Having skimmed the 3 texts, which ‘two’ texts do you think explains about the
advantages of Facebook’?
Identify the sentence that best sums up the main idea of the paragraphs.
Text 1
In parts of Uganda, they have raided villages, demolished huts and destroyed plots, not
in an effort to get at food but to scare the people living there. Such attacks have become
more frequent in Bunyaruguru, Western Uganda, where only two years ago, villagers
would think nothing of cycling to the nearby township of Katwe to meet firends and do
business. But they have to be more careful now because elephants regularly block the
roads, and villagers are too afraid to cycle past.
Text 2
This article touches on a subject that’s quite sensitive to many people: body odor. Here,
we explore the link between the foods you choose to consume and the odor produced by
your body (there is a direct correlation). With all the hundreds of millions of dollars
spent each year on personal care products and deodorants, I’m amazed there’s almost
no discussion about reducing body odor by changing your diet. In fact, when I’ve
mentioned this subject to some people, they look at me in bewilderment. They ask
questions like “What do you mean, your foods control your body odor? Body odor is
genetic!” — or some other nonsense. What they need is a crash course in the
underlying causes of body odor. We’ll call it The Fundamentals of Offensive Personal
Odors, or just Body Odor 101, for short.
Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com
The main idea of the above paragraph is that:
Text 3
When, in the year 2000, the Germans finally began to actually perform a substantial
number of tests on thier own herds of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), the
disease was found, and the public was caught totally by surprisse. Ministers were forced
to resign, beef prices toppled, and other countries banned German beef. The
government finally admitted that it had clung too long to the illusion that German cattle
were entirely free of the disease.
All done? Good work. Now discuss your answers with your teacher or your friends.
Read the story below and answer the question that follows.
One day a friend of mine who was driving home late at night saw a young woman
standing by the side of the road. My friend stopped and gave her a lift. The young
woman got into the car and and closed the door. She told my friend she lived in 26th
North Street which was just near my friend’s house.
The young woman takled happily as they drove along but after ten minutes she fell
silent. My friend looked round to see if she was all right. To his astonishment the young
woman has vanished. At first my friend did not know what to do. Finally he decided to
go to North Street to see if anyone there knows the the young woman.
He went up to a house and knocked on the door. It was opened by a middle-aged woman.
My friend explained how he has met the young woman and given her a lift. He told the
woman that the young woman had said she lived in 26th North Street.
3. What do you think the middle-aged woman who opened the door would say to the
man?
After you have answered the questions above, can you come up with a
suitable ending to the story above? Try it out. How the story turns out is all up to you
now!
2.5 Making Inferences and
Drawing Conclusions
What inferences can you make?
Task One
Copy each of the sentences below into your books and
write (in brackets) whether you think each one is
presented as fact or opinion.
Task Two
1. Write two facts about a pop group.
2. Write two opinions about a pop group.
3. Write two facts about school.
4. Write two opinions about school
5. Write two facts about food.
6. Write two opinions about food.
When you are done, exchange your responses with your partner. Do you
agree with what he/she has written about the five topics? Are they facts or
opinions?
Task Three
Copy each of these passages into your
book. Underline sentences you think present facts in one
colour and sentences you think present opinions in
another.
“This has to be the most exciting game of football that
I’ve seen so far. David Beckham is easily the best player
on the pitch. He has scored five goals so far this season. I
think he’ll score a lot more!”
Buy the new Superclean bathroom cleaner. It’ll leave
your bathroom sparkling clean! Superclean uses a
mixture of soap and bleach which attacks dust and
grime. You won’t be able to believe your eyes when you
see what Superclean can do for you. Only RM 12.90 a
bottle.
Tomorrow is an important day for the pop group
BoysRUs. They release their third single tomorrow. Their
last two singles have gone straight into the charts at
number 1. This new single, however, is an awful mix of
pop and blues music. It’s not as good as the previous two
hits. It certainly looks to me like BoysRUs should ask for
their day jobs at the toyshop back!
All done? What do you think of these tasks? To challenge
yourself further, why don’t you try the following activity in
the following website?
http://www.writesite.org
Passage 1
So you’ve landed a job interview? Congratulations! Now it’s time to prepare. With so
much competition for jobs today, the interview is more important than ever. This
crucial face-to-face meeting is your chance to “sell” a prospective employer on hiring
you. Here are 10 steps to acing your next interview. Good luck!
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
1. Don’t walk into a job interview with zero knowledge about the business you are
interviewing with. Research the company beforehand — visit its website, follow it
on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and do some simple Google
searches to see what you can find out about its history and its leadership team. Be
sure to showcase your newfound knowledge during your interview. This will boost
your credibility with the interviewer and will help you to formulate intelligent
questions to ask him or her.
Map out where you’re going and prepare alternate routes. Figure out how long the trip
will take, where to park, and anything else you need to know to arrive on time. Be sure
you have the name and phone number of the person you’ll be meeting with.
3. REHEARSE BEFOREHAND
Every once in a while an interviewer will ask an unexpected question, but for the most
part, many interviews play out the same way.
Prepare intelligent answers to common questions the interviewer is likely to ask, such
as “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”; “Why do you want to work here?”; “Why
should we hire you?”; and “Tell me about yourself.” Conduct a mock interview with a
trusted friend as practice.
Find at least three key people — former supervisors, colleagues, or instructors — who
will serve as your professional references. Ask their permission beforehand, as well as
the best way for them to be contacted.
You may be asked to send these references at a later time, but you should arrive at the
interview with this information in hand just in case it is asked for.
5. BRING NECESSARY DOCUMENTATION
Make a checklist of documents that you will need for the interview, and make sure that
you have them with you. These may include copies of your résumé, a passport, driver’s
license, Social Security card, or portfolio of work.
If the interviewer asks for something that you did not know to bring, be sure to get it to
them as soon as possible.
Your clothing should be neat, pressed, and professional looking. It’s better to dress too
conservatively than too casually. Be well groomed with clean, manicured nails. Keep
tattoos under wraps and remove any facial piercings if you have them. If the work
environment seems casual, you’ll be able to gauge later what’s acceptable — after you
have the job.
7. ARRIVE EARLY
Arrive at least 15 minutes before the interview. Visit the restroom and check your
appearance. Turn your cell phone off so it doesn’t ring during your meeting.
However, be sure not to announce your arrival too early or you might annoy the
interviewer, who may be meeting with another candidate or simply isn’t ready to meet
with you yet.
8. SELL YOURSELF
Now is not the time to be humble. Develop a 25-second sales pitch that sings your
praises. In business this is called an “elevator speech,” a compelling overview of “why
you?” that can be recited in the time it takes to ride an elevator. It should include your
strengths, your experience, and what sets you apart from other applicants.
9. ASK QUESTIONS
Nobody is very impressed by a candidate who sits in silence, or exhibits little knowledge
about the position he or she is applying for.
Based on your research about the company, ask questions that show your knowledge of
the business and industry. Don’t barrage the interviewer with difficult or sensitive
questions, but make sure your questions aren’t generic either. This is your time to prove
that you are knowledgeable about the company you want to be a part of.
10. FOLLOW UP
After the interview, send a handwritten note or friendly email thanking the interviewer
for his or her time and consideration, as well as restating your interest in the position. If
you don’t hear anything after one week, call to politely ask when they will be making a
decision.
Every interview is a learning experience. Even if you don’t get this job, when the next
interview rolls around, you’ll be better prepared and more at ease, which will improve
your chances of being offered the next job.
A. Set 1
Now that you have been exposed to the reading skills, you can try out these
exercises. You will have to read Reading Text 1 to be able to do these exercises.
While attempting these exercises, you will find yourself practicing the skills you
have learned earlier. Good luck!
Fill in all the gaps, then press "Check" to check your answers. Use the "Hint" button to get a
free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. You can also click on the "[?]" button to get a
clue. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints or clues!
better devote find have disliked have taken have worked part-time
salary schedules thrive
How to Find a Job (after College)
You've got the degree in hand, the work experience on your resume, and the motivation to
(1) [?] a post-college job. For the first time, you are ready to take on a career-
building position with respect. You (2) [?] (have worked, has worked, had
worked) the silly jobs part time, (3) [?] (has taken, had taken, have taken) the
courses, and have gone on the interviews. Now, you have a suit and are on the cusp of
While you may have looked forward to this point in your life for years, it will be a culture
shock. You are used to school, free time, setting your own (4) [?], and relaxing
at your (5) [?] jobs. Now, you must (6) [?] most of your day to a
job. Many post-college grads find difficulty in the transition from school-life to work-life. Your
time is not always your own anymore. Many people (7) [?] in the professional
environment, as they (8) [?] (has disliked, have disliked, had disliked) school
for the (9) [?] portion of their lives. Now, they are in their prime, working daily,
taking orders, giving orders, and climbing up the corporate ladder of whatever company they
work for.
Without additional schooling or training, many post-college graduates are disappointed with
their jobs. They think that with a college diploma, they will find the perfect job with the perfect
(10) [?] and perfect hours. Unfortunately, reality kicks in and they realize that
they will have to start from the bottom of the corporate totem pole. All jobs in corporations will
be entry level positions. When you look for jobs, always look under the entry-level categories.
No matter how qualified you may be, you are entry-level because of your age, your work
experience, and your recent graduate status. Fear not, however, because these entry-level
positions are simply starting points for large growth within a company.
Know the vocabulary. Here are some words that you might
come across in your quest for a job.
We don’t have any vacancies at the moment but we will keep your CV on file.
When a post becomes vacant, the company ‘advertises the post’ in the press.
Although the post was advertised last month, we promoted someone internally.
We advertised the post in the national press last week and have received lots of
applications.
When you want a new job, you send ‘letters of application’ to the company concerned.
I’ve written letters of application for four different jobs but had no reply yet.
The candidates who apply for the job are also known as
the ‘applicants’.
The number of applicants is very high. There are a lot of people with the right
qualifications and experience.
There are several recruitment agencies that specialize in our sector so we can find
highly qualified candidates quickly.
For this post, we give full training. The only qualification necessary is a high school
diploma.
‘Experience’ is the knowledge acquired through time
already spent in work, in different jobs.
I have a lot of experience managing a small team and would now like to manage a bigger
one.
The best candidates are those who have previous experience in the food industry.
‘Salary and benefits’ are what you are paid and the
extras you receive in return for the work you do.
Although the starting salary is not very high, the benefits include health insurance.
We pay very competitive salaries and provide some of the best benefits in the sector.
I hear that they are not hiring people at the moment because of budget problems.
If you ‘fire’ somebody, you dismiss them from their job, usually because of something
they did.
He gave in his notice and they told him he could leave straight away.
We have to give her two months’ notice that we are letting her go
If you ‘get the sack’ or are ‘given the sack’, you are fired.
He was given the sack because he kept arriving late.
If you take legal action against your employer for ‘constructive dismissal’, you claim that
you were forced to leave your job because of the actions/behaviour of your employer.
B. Reading Text 2
Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
Even Jules Verne or Aldous Huxley could not have imagined such a world- a
complete city that could accommodate more than 50000 people totally beneath
the earth’s surface. Science fiction? No, today’s reality. Faced with nowhere to
expand and yet a mushrooming population, Asian cities, such as Hong Kong and
Singapore, have had to squeeze taller and taller buildings into less and less space.
But one Oriental city has been experimenting with a different method and the
result is the largest underground urban complex in the world – Osaka’s Rainbow
Town.
This was aimed at solving the traffic problem, overcoming the pollution and
permitting a vast shopping complex which would easily be accessible to millions
of people. It also would provide a vast area on the surface which would be free for
recreational development. The idea paid off, and for more than a decade, between
500,000 and a million people have visited Rainbow Town on weekends. Nearly all
are transported by subway. The city is not only unaffected by surface climatic
changes and temperature, but also temporal ones. Open 365 days a year, it has no
night, being perpetually illuminated. In the winter, the temperature remains
electronically-controlled 25degrees Celsius and in summer, 20 degrees.
Why the name ‘Rainbow’? I asked the mayor. “Rainbows, like towns, were
once found only above the ground,” he answered with a broad smile. “But we
created one here to be a symbol of how man has no limits to his creative powers.
In fact, we have two different kinds of rainbow here.”
The first is immediately visible as one descends into this futuristic world.
The motion of the crowds passing through the entrance tunnel triggers special
photo-electronic cells which activate electronic music and a polychrome, neon
rainbow effect on the ceiling and walls. The second is an equally complex
electronic affair. Located in the heart if the city’s main plaza, it is comprised of
2000 nozzles which project streams of water three meters into the air. This
waterfall-in-reverse is illuminated by means of intricate ‘rainbow’ lenses- a tribute
to man’s genius.
As we continued along the main boulevard, the mayor told me this broad,
car-free street, lined with brightly-lit shops- stretched for 1000 meters and would
be expanded. Off the main street, numerous side lanes, each with a different floral
name, branched out as far as one could see. There were almost 400 stores along
these lanes which catered to man’s every material need. What impressed me was
how so many stores selling identical items were able to successfully compete. Just
in our ten minute walk, we must have passed a dozen shoe stores, a dozen candy
shops and two dozen clothing stores.
“We have a 100% occupancy rate and business is booming,” said the mayor.
“The combined sales from all the different privately owned stores is US$1.6
million a year. Some people warned us that the novelty of the town would wear off
but that was 12 years ago and we are still going strong. We are even expanding.”
D A city of skyscraper
B complex city
C underground city
D artificial city
4. Why does the writer say that Rainbow Town has no night? (line 26)?
A It has rainbows throughout the year
C It is built underground
B The waterfall-in-reverse
7. In what way is the warning, in the last paragraph, “that the novelty of the
town would wear off” unfounded?
A The total sales reach US$1.6 million a year
C Business is booming
Links
Below are several useful links for enrichment. Try them out!
http://www.lessonplanet.com/
There are more explanations about the skills available in this site:
http://www.brighthubeducation.com/
Want to know why Reading is such an important part of a child’s development?
Find out here:
http://www.ehow.com/ehow-family/
Extensive explanations and also samples of the skills are provided here:
http://academic.cuesta.edu/
Looking for worksheets to try out? Look for them here:
http://www.ereadingworksheets.com/free-reading-worksheets/reading-
comprehension-worksheets/main-idea-worksheets/
http://www.studyskills.soton.ac.uk/studytips/reading_skills.htm
Find out about the many activities that you can try out when you read a text in this
website:
http://www.rhlschool.com/reading.htm
Reading is such a rewarding activity. Find out about it here:
http://www.literacy.uconn.edu/compre.htm
Need more exposure to similar tests like the MUET? Find them here:
https://www.ielts4u.net/reading.php
There’s something for everyone here at BALL. Its actually a collection of Blog-
Assisted Language Learning (BALL) materials, online ESL learning packages. Go
ahead, its just a click away!:
Students’
Background : Form 6 or pre-university level
Instructional
Aids
: https://salhamzah.wordpress.com
http://www.allbusiness.com/tips-
preparing-job-
interview/http://www.lessonplanet.com/
http://academic.cuesta.edu/
References
http://www.ereadingworksheets.com/
Instructional Procedure
Warming up(5
minutes)
Rationale:
Developmenti)
Activity 1 (30 Students are asked to
minutes) read the Reading Text
1 from the website and Read the text and
Rationale:
discuss among make inferences
To add on to their themselves. Teachers about what to
current knowledge will assist if the expect in a job
about job interviews students face difficulty. interview
LEAVE A COMMENT
Updated Dec 13, 2011 • Related Guides: Comprehension Skills | Vocabulary Lists
Students practice the skill of making inferences before beginning to apply this
skill to their reading comprehension activities.
If you want to improve your students’ reading comprehension skills, teach them
some basic reading strategies. Teaching your students to make inferences helps
them think about the texts they read on a deeper level than they have done in the
past. When it comes time to take a state assessment for reading, they will be able
to understand and explain the implied meanings of the text.
Instructional Time
Explain to the students that they have been making inferences when they looked
at the photos. Tell them that an inference is an educated guess about the hidden
meaning of something. Here is an example I like to use when I explain inferences
to my students:
Me: Ok, class, let’s say ________ (insert name of good-natured student in class)
goes up to a girl and tells her she’s the most beautiful creature he’s ever seen. He
asks her if she will please, please, PLEASE be his girlfriend. The girl says, “Yeah –
right.” (Use your best sarcastic voice here.) Does _____ have a new girlfriend
now?
Class: No! (Much laughter at ____’s expense ensues.)
Me: Why not? She said “yeah,” and “right,” – two words that indicate her
agreement to what he had to say. So why isn’t she his girlfriend?
Class: She didn’t really MEAN it, Mrs. Cook.
Me: How do you know?
Class: (some type of response about her tone of voice, the way she said it, etc.).
Me: Ah, so you made an educated guess about what she really meant, regardless
of the words she used. That’s making an inference.
You may want to ask students to put “making inferences” in their notes or
vocabulary lists at this time.
Independent Practice
Give students a short story to read and a list of questions about the implied
meaning of the story. Have them answer individually on paper or out loud as a
class. You can fit in this activity with any text or theme you are currently studying;
just find a story that has surface-level and implied meanings, and ask away!