Drawing Conclusions

This week we have been discussing Drawing Conclusions as part of our reading comprehension time.   Helping your child understand when information is implied, or not directly stated, will improve her skill in drawing conclusions and making inferences. These skills will be needed for all sorts of school assignments, including reading, science and social studies. Inferential thinking is a complex skill that will develop over time and with experience!

Here is another example of what we discussed....using clues!  Explain to your child that we make conclusions about things and draw inferences all the time. Draw a conclusion together and then talk about what clues were used to come to that conclusion. For example, Mady played outside today. How can we tell? She has muddy shoes, jump rope on front porch, water bottle out. Dad seems tired tonight. How can we tell? he's rubbing his eyes, he's on the couch, he was yawning at the dinner table.

Play twenty questions! This familiar word game helps build inference skills. As your child develops skill with the game, encourage him to avoid asking direct questions like, "Is it a dog?" Rather, encourage him to ask broader questions, "Does it walk on four feet?" Then, when your child figures it out, ask him to tell you the clues that lead to the right answer