Tom became angry at a sports game and stormed off slamming the door, leaving his teammates in stunned silence. Hannah was excitedly opening her birthday present, giggling and clapping her hands. Fred, an old man, sadly paid for chocolate when he saw a photo of his late wife in his wallet, before returning home for a lonely night watching TV.

1. Inference detectives: Looking for clues
Read the excerpts and write your inferences in the box below.
Think about . . .
• Who the character might be (old, young, sporty, brainy etc) •
• What kind of person the character is (kind, thoughtful, nasty, selfish, etc) •
• How the character is feeling at that moment and why
• Where and when this action is taking place
•
1 Tom clenched his fists until the knuckles were white. He sighed deeply, stood up and
stormed toward the door without saying another word. He opened the door and slammed it behind
him. His ten team mates sat staring at each other in stunned silence.
Tom is a young nasty boy and has been bullyed and now he is angry.i think he is at
bassball.
2 Hannah’s eyes grew as big as saucers and she began to clap her tiny hands together. As
soon as the present was within reach, she grabbed it and began ripping off the paper. She was
giggling and squealing with delight.
I think she is young and nice. She is at her home and it is her birthday so she is exited.
3 Fred hobbled toward the counter. He reached into his pocket and with a shaking hand pulled
out his old leather wallet. As he got his money out, he noticed the picture of his wife Molly. All of a
sudden his eyes became sad and after paying for his chocolate he quickly put his wallet back into
his pocket. Thanking the shop assistant he left the shop and headed home for a lonely night in
front of the television.
He is a kind old man who has probbly lost his wife and he has seen a photo of her so he
is sad.