About this activity
Twelve single-sentence clues with the answer left out: Sam grabbed an umbrella before leaving — what is the weather; Mia's stomach growled loudly — what does she need; Jake was smiling and holding a trophy — how does he feel; the floor was covered in flour and eggshells — what was someone doing; the cake was gone and the dog had crumbs on his nose — who ate it. One clue each, which makes this the step before multi-clue inference.
How to use it in a session
Ask how they know after every answer. The clue is short enough that the student can point at it, which builds the habit before the passages get long. Sort the twelve by what is being inferred — weather, feeling, activity, cause — since a student may be strong on physical inferences and weak on emotional ones. Twelve minutes covers the set with the evidence step.
What to listen for
Watch the feeling items against the physical ones. Leo's face turned red and he looked away requires reading an emotional state from behaviour, which is harder than inferring rain from an umbrella and is a different skill. Notice whether the student offers alternatives — red face could be embarrassment or anger — since recognising ambiguity is more advanced than picking one answer.
Carrying it home
Ask how do you know during any story. It costs nothing, takes seconds, and it is the single most useful comprehension question a family can ask — far more useful than asking what happened, which a child can answer by repeating the last sentence.
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- Second through fifth, at the single-clue stage of inference work.
- Do I need to sign in?
- No, all twelve items play free.
- How is this different from the grades 3–5 inference board?
- That one gives two sentences of evidence and asks the student to combine them. This gives one clue per item, which is the earlier step.