Kelly Gallagher (2004) says that "good readers infer when they read; that is, they see and consider things that are not literally on the printed page" (p. 80). When reading text, many students find that making inferences is difficult. In When Kids Can't Read (2003), Kylene Beers (2003) suggests specific types of inferences skilled readers make as they read. To help less skilled readers learn to make the same types of inferences, Beers suggests that teachers use short passages to show students how to do the following:
Recognize the antecedents for pronouns
Figure out the meaning of unknown words from context clues
Figure out the grammatical function of an unknown word
Understand intonation of characters' words
Identify characters' beliefs, personalities, and motivations
Understand characters' relationships to one another
Provide details about the setting
Provide explanations for events or ideas that are presented in the text
Offer details for events or their own explanations of the events
Understand the author's view of the world
Recognize the author's biases
Relate what is happening in the text to their own knowledge of the world
Offer conclusions from facts presented in the text