What You Need to Know About Inferences:

1. There are logical and illogical inferences, inferences that "fit" the rest of the text and inferences that don't. Make sure your inference has the right fit by relying on the author's words more than on your own feelings and opinions.

2. Think of inferring implied main ideas as a two-step process, moving from part to whole. Your first step is to understand what each sentence contributes to your knowledge of the topic. Next ask yourself what the sentences combine as group to suggest. The answer to that question is the implied main idea of the paragraph.

3. If you draw an inference about the main idea, check to see if the your inference is contradicted by any statements in the paragraph. If it is, you have probably drawn an illogical inference, one that does not follow from the information given. With particularly difficult readings, see if you can actually identify the language or statements that led you to the main idea you inferred. This kind of close reading is a great inference check. It also gives you practice doing the kind of thoughtful reading that guarantees remembering.

4. Transitions such as "consequently," "next," and "in summary" definitely help readers make connections between sentences and paragraphs.This is the connection you need to make between what you just read and what's coming up." However, transitions are not as commonly used as readers might like. It's often the reader's job to supply sentence and paragraph connections. If a sentence doesn't open with a transition—and a good many won't—make sure you know how the sentence you are reading connects to the ideas that came before.

	Created by Wynter Kay about 7 years ago

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