Millie's ESL Lab

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

As teachers it is important to share ideas and activities we have used in our classrooms. Feel free to copy any of the activities posted on this blog...just remember to leave a comment about the activity you want to use. Thanks

Making Inferences Practice 2

Making Inferences

Directions: Read each passage and then respond to the questions. Each question will ask you to make a logical inference based on textual details. Explain your answer by referencing the text.

Everyday after work Paul took his muddy boots off on the steps of the front porch. Alice would have a fit if the boots made it so far as the welcome mat. He then took off his dusty overalls and threw them into a plastic garbage bag; Alice left a new garbage bag tied to the porch railing for him every morning. On his way in the house, he dropped the garbage bag off at the washing machine and went straight up stairs to the shower as he was instructed. He would eat dinner with her after he was “presentable,” as Alice had often said.

1. What type of job does Paul work? ____________________________________________________

^{How
do you know this?}

2. Describe Alice: ___________________________________________________________________

^{What
in the text supports your description?}

3. What relationship do Paul and Alice have? _____________________________________________

^{Why
do you feel this way?}

Valerie opened up the letter from the military department. She felt the pit of her stomach drop to the bottom of the earth before she even opened it. She knew it was news about John. As she read the first line, she thought of all of the lunches she had packed him and all the nights she tucked him in his bed and warded off the nighttime monsters. The man carrying the flag put his hand on her shoulder. She thought of the day that John signed up for the military. Her tears wet the letter. She stopped reading after the first line.

4. What does the letter say? ___________________________________________________________

^{How
do you know this?}

5. What is Valerie’s relationship to John? ________________________________________________

^{What
in the text supports your description?}

“Tommy!” Mom called out as she walked in the front door. “Tommy,” she continued shouting, “I sure could use some help with these groceries. There was still no reply. Mom walked into the kitchen to put the grocery bags down on the counter when she noticed shattered glass from the picture window all over the living room floor and a baseball not far from there. “I’m going to kill you, Tommy!” Mom yelled to herself as she realized that Tommy’s shoes were gone.

6. What happened to the window? ______________________________________________________

^{How
do you know this?}

7. Why did Tommy leave? ____________________________________________________________

^{What
in the text supports your description?}

Ruby sat on the bed she shared with her husband holding a hairclip. There was something mysterious and powerful about the cheaply manufactured neon clip that she was fondling in her newly suspicious palms. She didn’t recognize the hairclip. It was too big to be their daughter’s, and Ruby was sure that it wasn’t hers. She hadn’t had friends over in weeks but here was this hairclip, little and green with a few long black hair strands caught in it. Ruby ran her fingers through her own blonde hair. She had just been vacuuming when she noticed this small, bright green object under the bed. Now their life would never be the same. She would wait here until Mike returned home.

8. Why is Ruby so affected by the hairclip? _______________________________________________

^{What
in the text supports your idea?}

9. How has the hairclip affected Ruby’s relationship? _______________________________________

^{What
in the text supports your idea?}

10. From where did the hairclip most likely come? _________________________________________

^{What
in the text supports your idea?}

Making Inferences Practice

Making Inferences

Directions: Read each passage and then respond to the questions. Each question will ask you to make a logical inference based on textual details. Explain your answer by referencing the text.

Kyle ran into his house and slammed the door behind him. He paused with his back to the wall and tried to catch his breath. The puppy in his coat struggled to get out. Kyle looked out the window worriedly, but he saw that nobody was coming. Then he let the puppy out of his jacket. The puppy yelped while Kyle took the collar off of him. He threw the collar in an old soup can in the trash, carefully flipping over the can. The dog looked around nervously.

1. Why is Kyle out of breath? __________________________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

2. Why is the puppy nervous? _________________________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

3. Why does Kyle put the collar in a soup can? ____________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

Anastasia sat by the fountain in the park with her head in her palms. She was weeping mournfully and wearing all black. In between gasps and sobs, Anastasia cried out a name: “Oh... John…” And then her cell phone beeped. Her hand ran into her purse and her heart fluttered. The text message was from John. She opened up the message and read the few bare words, “I need to get my jacket back from you.” Anastasia threw her head into her arms and continued sobbing.

4. What relationship do John and Anastasia have? _________________________________________

^{Why do you feel this way?}

5. Why is Anastasia sad? _____________________________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

Cassie rolled over in her bed as she felt the sunlight hit her face. The beams were warming the back of her neck when she slowly realized that it was a Thursday, and she felt a little too good for a Thursday. Struggling to open her eyes, she looked up at the clock. “9:48,” she shouted, “Holy cow!” Cassie jumped out of bed, threw on the first outfit that she grabbed, brushed her teeth in two swipes, threw her books into her backpack, and then ran out the door.

6. What problem is Cassie having? _____________________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

7. Where is Cassie going? ____________________________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

Kelvin was waiting in front of the corner store at 3:56. His muscles were tense and he was sweating a bit more than usual. The other kids gathered in front of the little storefront were much more relaxed, even playful. They joked back and forth lightly to each other but for Kelvin, time slowed. 3:57. “Don’t worry, Kelvin. He ain’t even gonna show up.” Kelvin hoped that he wouldn’t. A black four-door Camry with tinted windows pulled up and parked across the street. Kelvin gulped. 3:58. A group of teenagers piled out of the car. James was in the front. “Hi-ya, Kelvin. Glad you could make it,” James said. Kelvin felt smaller.

8. Why is Kelvin waiting at the corner store? _____________________________________________

^{How do you know this?}

9. Are James and Kelvin friends? _______________________________________________________

^{What in the text supports your idea?}

10. Why is Kelvin so nervous? _________________________________________________________

^{What in the text supports your idea?}

Main Idea #3

Main Idea with Robots

Directions: Read each passage and ask yourself, “What is the author doing in this paragraph?” Write your answer in the summary box and then think of an appropriate title for the passage based on the main idea of the passage.

1. What do you get when you cross a robot and an astronaut? A Robonaut! Robonauts are robot helpers designed to work side-by-side with astronauts. Work on the first Robonaut began in 1997, and by 2002 Robonaut B was revealed to the public. Robonaut B may have featured interchangeable lower bodies, like four-wheel mode or hydraulic legs, but scientists and engineers continued to improve Robonaut. In February of 2010, Robonaut 2 was released to the public. Robonaut 2 moved four times faster than the first Robonaut. An advanced version of Robonaut 2 was finally tested in outer space in 2011. Robonaut functioned exactly as designed.