I teach fourth grade. One of the most important reading skills we learn is inferencing. Like I tell my students, in second and third grade you learn to understand the text that’s written. In fourth grade we learn to read the text that isn’t written.
And it’s really, really hard for some of them.
I’m always on the lookout for tricks to help my students learn how to make inferences and draw conclusions.
A couple weeks ago we had two days in a row of early dismissals to make time for Spring Parent Conferences. Because of the schedule, my kids had to eat in the classroom within a fifteen-minute time-frame. That meant no time to visit and enjoy the meal. It was a matter of efficiently getting food from trays and bags into mouths. I’ve found the best way to achieve this goal is distraction. So I did what I usually do: show Pink Panther cartoons from YouTube. Why Pink Panther? It’s my favorite.
So we were watching the Pink Panther doing his thing, when it hit me: with no dialog and no narration, watching a Pink Panther cartoon is predicated on making inferences. There’s essentially no other way to know what’s going on. Granted, the plots aren’t overly complex, but still, the process of comprehending these cartoons is basically the same as making inferences from a text. You need to rely on clues and synthesize them with person experience and knowledge.
So I picked out a good one. Pink Panther; Smile Pretty Say Pink. The one where he compromises The Little Man’s efforts at nature photography. I explained the purpose of the lesson to my students and reviewed the fundamentals of making inferences.
As we watched the cartoon, we listed some of the inferences we made. I modeled the first one, we collaborate on the next two, and the students were on their own for the rest. Here’s a typical response.
Of course, I wrapped up the lesson with the all-important debrief. “How is making these inferences and drawing these conclusions similar to making inferences and drawing conclusions in texts?” And they got it! “We used clues and our own experiences to figure out what was happening.”
After that, I worked with my four reading groups, focusing on making inferences. It was awesome! The kids had clearly constructed a clearer understanding of and incredibly important comprehension strategy.
So sit back, enjoy some classic cartoons and Think Pink!
Tom White
Latest posts by Tom White (see all)
- A Successful STEM Expo! - May 20, 2017
- Teaching Inferencing? Think Pink - March 26, 2017
- Homework is Important - March 5, 2017
Love it Tom. Right in line with the book “Falling in Love with Close Reading”. The authors champion using multimedia sources as a way to learn different literacy skills in context that might be more familiar to students. Then taking the time to transfer those skills to a text-based resource. Thanks for sharing!
Inferencing is so important, something we have to practice in Science, and I love how you used the Pink Panther to help kids get the concept of inferencing AND practice making inferences! Brilliant, Tom! I never thought that we are constantly making inferences when watching Pink Panther episodes and I loved that cartoon as a kid (way more than the movies with Inspector Clouseau!). I’m going to have to pass that idea along to my team! Love it!
What a brilliant idea! And rather simple. What better way to teach a skill about reading what is not said than to show a text where nothing is said? This inspires me to find other visual texts to teacher inference as well. Students at the high school level also struggle with this concept. I like how CCSS promotes inference as a reading skill from a young age. Maybe in a few years, my students in 11th grade will have a better time with it once the first generation CCSS students get to my class. I can tell if I have any that had you as a teacher, they will be strong readers.
My students too often like to call inference “hidden meaning.” Showing The Pink Panther would be a great way to emphasize the meaning is not hidden – we as the readers just have to interpret authorial choices. Hidden meaning implies that the author is trying to deceive us. Great idea! This is very useful for my classroom.
Nice thinking on your toes! I was recently talking to a teacher who works in a transition program about using cartoons to teach/reinforce social skills. What a great teaching tool!
I love that idea! I think sometimes we forget that videos can actually serve as important lesson aids if we debrief! I actually have my kindergarteners watch two movies a year where we stop the film in various spots and analyze what is happening in the story. Even though it’s not text, as you said, the skills are transferable. (And usually more accessible to students with low reading ability).
I love it–thanks for sharing; I’m passing it down the line in my school!
I like the bite-size way to teach inferences, along with a fun pop culture reference! In science we invariably need a lesson or two sometime during the year to give students a foundation in observation v. inference. Many of them think they are making observations without realizing how much inferences play a part in what they consider to be objective statements. I hope that many teachers continue the lessons you start in elementary through secondary as these skills continue to be important long after they’ve left your classroom.
Inference is an academic power tool. In math and science, we expect students to read into a data set and to find meaning. Your use of cartoons inspires me to think about using the classic Coyote-Road Runner cartoon laws of physics with my students.
I love teaching inferencing! When I taught 5th reading a few years ago, I started off my inferencing unit by using these great pictures I found online and had the kids make an inference about what they saw happening. One of my favorites is a large group of guys dressed up like batman laying in pool lounge chairs. I have taught my students to answer an inference by stating what they see or read and then what they know from their own life experience. By using these fun pictures and guiding students through how to make an inference, they realize how often they make inferences in life without realizing they were inferring. Once they realize this, inferring becomes so much easier for them.