Title and/or Lesson Plan #: Making Inferences, Extended - Lesson 3

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Lesson Overview: Since making inferences is the basis of the unit’s goal of creating a E
thorough constructed response, students will have additional exposure to and chances for S
making inferences. Students were provided with a text that had already been highlighted as S
a scaffold in Lesson 2. Today’s lesson will focus on connecting an inference to the text details O
that led to that conclusion as students highlight text themselves. N
Resources or Materials Needed 3

 Sort It Out pre-instructional activity

 Video “Inference and Drawing Conclusions” from TeacherTube [Appendix E]

https://www.teachertube.com/video/inference-and-drawing-conclusions-295318

 Computer with internet and connection to projector/smartboard

 Divided text, digital or print, “The Yellowstone supervolcano is a disaster waiting to

happen” by Joel Achenbach

Performance Objective 3:

Given a passage, students will record three inferences that include at least two highlighted
supporting details for each inference.
Time: 60 minutes
Step 1: Pre-Instructional Activities: Small Group Sort

 Teacher shares the lesson’s objective with the students.

 Students will create small groups of 3-4 members for Sort It Out activity.

 Each group will receive a set of six sentence strips related to “Salvador Late or

Early”.

 Students will sort the strips into two piles: Inferences and Statements. Any sentence

that is a conclusion drawn from the text goes into the inference pile. Any sentence

that is a direct statement from the text will go in the statement pile.

 For each sentence, a group will explain which pile they placed it in and why.
Step 2: Content Presentation: Connecting Inferences to the Text
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 Teacher plays video “Inferences & Drawing Conclusions” from TeacherTube
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[Appendix E]
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o The video talks about drawing conclusions from what the text says.
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o Pause for each quiz question in the video. Discuss with students. 3

o Teacher should highlight that most of these inferences were drawn from a

single text detail. Although this is possible, it’s better to draw conclusions

from more than one text detail to give it validity.

o Use the multiple-choice answers from the video’s quiz to show that a single

detail leaves some room for error. Examples: Gulliver could have been a

sailor or soldier since both travel. The Lilliputions could have been evil or

scared since the only detail is they tied up Gulliver.

Step 3: Learner Participation: Partners Practice Supporting and Making Inferences

 Teacher partners students randomly or purposefully and passes out the article “The

Yellowstone supervolcano is a disaster waiting to happen” by Joel Achenbach that is

divided into two parts.

 Students will read the first half of the text and work with a partner to create inferences

and mark at least 2 text details that inspired the inference.

Step 4: Assessment: Formative: Observation and Direct Question G-K-N

 As partnerships discuss, record, and justify their inferences for the text, the teacher

will observe discussion and read responses. Teacher will note which students

struggle.

 Teacher will ask the class how well they understand inferences. Students will give a

thumbs-up for “got it”, a sideways thumb for “kinda” and a thumbs-down for “nope”.
Step 5: Follow-Through Activities: Independent Work Supporting & Making Inferences
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 Students that gave a thumbs-up or sideways will read the second half of the text. E
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 Students will record three inferences and highlight 2+ details to support each one. S
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 Teacher will work with students who gave a thumbs-down in the formative N

assessment. 3

o Teacher can work with the students as a group.

o Teacher can have students start the assignment and move from student-to-

student.

 “The Yellowstone supervolcano…” will be collected and should show three

inferences with at least two highlighted details for each inference. This will serve as a

micro summative assessment of the performance objective.