Reading Comprehension: Inference
To develop inference skills, helping children 'read between the lines' of picture books.
- Framework: EYFS
- Unit: EYFS Literacy
- Learning area: Literacy
- Level: EYFS Reception
Objectives
- Infers character feelings from pictures
- Explains reasoning using evidence
- Predicts using picture clues
- Uses 'because' to justify thinking
Materials
- Rich picture books with emotional complexity
- Inference question stems
- Feeling faces cards
- Drawing/writing response sheets
Instructions
Choose picture books where the pictures show more than the words: 'Rosie's Walk' (Rosie and the fox), 'Gorilla' (by Anthony Browne — the father's coldness), 'The Tunnel' (sibling dynamics). These texts reward close looking.
Before revealing the text, look at the cover and first spread: 'What can you see? What do you think is happening? How does the character feel? How do you know?' Encourage use of picture evidence: 'What in the picture makes you think that?'
Introduce inference explicitly: 'Sometimes the book doesn't tell us something directly — we have to work it out from clues. That's called inference. It means using clues to figure out what you're not told.'
Use emotion check-ins: 'How is the girl feeling at the start? How is she feeling here, in the middle? And at the end? How do you know?' Feeling faces cards support children in selecting the right vocabulary.
Invite children to 'interview' characters: 'If you could ask the gorilla one question, what would you ask? What do you think he would say?' This theory of mind work is deeply linked to comprehension.
Record inferences in simple writing: 'I think... because...' Even the most emergent writer can attempt this frame: 'I thnk she is sad bcz her fac is lke ths.' Read it back, celebrating the thinking.