West B Reading: Inference and Drawing Conclusions Flashcards

Which of the following is the best strategy for making inferences while reading?

Answer: Connect text evidence with what you already know.

Effective inferencing combines stated text evidence with the reader's background knowledge to reach logical conclusions.

A passage describes a man who 'sold his car, canceled his vacation, and applied for food assistance.' What can be inferred?

Answer: He is experiencing financial hardship.

Selling a car, canceling vacation plans, and seeking food assistance are multiple indicators of serious financial difficulty.

If a passage implies that a character 'hadn't slept in days,' what can a reader infer about that character?

Answer: The character is likely exhausted and possibly under stress.

Not sleeping for days is a well-understood indicator of exhaustion and significant stress or worry.

The phrase 'reading between the lines' most closely describes which reading skill?

Answer: Making inferences

'Reading between the lines' is a common expression for making inferences from implied rather than stated information.

A news article reports that a city's crime statistics are 'significantly lower than five years ago.' What inference is most justified?

Answer: The city's public safety efforts may have been effective.

A significant drop in crime over five years reasonably suggests that safety measures or other factors have had a positive effect.

To distinguish between what a passage states directly and what must be inferred, a reader should ask:

Answer: 'Was this detail mentioned explicitly in the text?'

Asking whether a detail was explicitly stated helps readers separate direct information from inferred conclusions.