This document provides an overview and lesson plan for teaching students how to draw inferences from text. The lesson focuses on the short story "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin. It begins with predicting learning outcomes, which include defining key terms and learning to make inferences from multiple pieces of text. The lesson then models how to annotate the story, ask questions, and draw inferences based on evidence. Students practice this by analyzing a passage with a partner. The goal is for students to develop the ability to make implicit meanings explicit through inferencing.

1. Reading Workshop
SeriesDrawing Inferences

2. DAY 1 DRAWING
INFERENCES AND THE
STORY OF AN HOUR

3. PREDICTED OUTCOMES OF THESE
LESSONS
By the end of these lessons, I should be able to…
Students will be able to define the terms inference, implicit, and explicit and explain why learning about inferencing is important.
Students will be able to read a text closely to make inferences and analyse the author’s words from multiple pieces of text to make
and adjust their inferences.
Students will be able to draw inferences from a 19th century text by annotating the text and pulling out textual evidence.
Students will be able to develop written analysis pieces ranging from short to medium length while working with other members of
the class and alone.

4. The Cornell method has been proven to help students and workers retain
information for longer periods of time.
When do you
have to take
notes at
home, school,
or at work?
Do you
always
remember
what you
wrote or
typed?

5. QUICKWRITE: WHAT
CAN YOU INFER ABOUT
THIS PHOTO?
Jot down your
thoughts in your
Cornell notes while
considering the
photo and
questions below.
What is going on
in this photo?
What do you see
that makes you
say that?
What more can
you find?

6. "The ability to make
inferences is, in simple
terms, the ability to use
two or more pieces of
information from a text in
order to arrive at a third
piece of information that is
implicit."
According to a study done by the National
Foundation of Educational Research entitled
"Effective Teaching of Inference Skills for
Reading"...
Implicit-
suggested
though not
directly
expressed.

7. THE BASICS OF
MAKING AN
INFERENCE

8. According to an article entitled “Effective
Teaching of Inference Skills for Reading” by Anne

9. Only a fraction of our
interpretation of language is
licensed by what is explicitly
stated.
Mary heard the ice cream van
coming. She remembered
pocket money. She rushed
into the house
So, why
should I
care?
According to a presentation by Jane Oakhill entitled
“Children’s problems with text comprehension: focus on
Vocabulary and inference”…

10. We go beyond the literal
meaning of text and “fill in
the gaps with inferences.
Example: A student
carelessly threw away a
burning cigarette. The fire
destroyed many trees on
campus.
According to a presentation by Jane Oakhill entitled
“Children’s problems with text comprehension: focus on
What does it
mean to
infer?

11. Inferences can help us to link
the text into a coherent whole
and make it more memorable
[Authors], they can also make
us think we have “remembered”
material that was never
presented in the first place.
According to a presentation by Jane Oakhill entitled “Children’s
problems with text comprehension: focus on Vocabulary and
What can
inferences
do for a
reader?

12. DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE
DIFFERENT TYPES OF
INFERENCES?
Type 1:
These maintain textual integrity
For example, in the sentence: Peter
begged his mother to let him go to the
party.
The reader would have to realise
that the pronouns ‘his’ and ‘him’
refer to Peter to fully understand the
meaning.
Type 2:
The reader is asked to bridge the current
text idea to prior world knowledge
 For example, in the sentence: Katy
dropped the vase. She ran for the
dustpan and brush to sweep up the
pieces.
The reader would have to draw upon life
experience and general knowledge to
realise that the vase broke to supply the
connection between these sentences.

13. hat should I be asking myself as I rea
if I want to draw inferences from the
text?What are the relationships between characters, goals, and
motivations?
How do I know that my inference is correct? What evidence is
available to support my conclusions?
Is there information that doesn’t agree with what I already know?
How on point was my thinking? Do I need to change my thinking?
What is my prior knowledge of a topic and how is that informing my
understanding of the text? Am I drawing an inference based on my
past experiences?

14. A good reader adapts their
thought processes as they
are presented with new
evidence.
Your inferences may change as
you continue reading…

15. Day 1: Teacher Model
and Class Workshop
Topic for the week:
Gender Roles

16. STORY OF AN
HOUR
BY KATE CHOPIN Academic Vocabulary to know for
today...
 Dialogue- direct speech
 Actions- the things someone
does
 Setting- the place or
surroundings where an event
takes place or something is
positioned

17. STEP 1: READING AND THINKING OUT LOUD
ABOUT THE PIECE...
Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart
trouble, great care was taken to break to her as
gently as possible the news of her husband's death.
It was her sister Josephine who told her, in broken
sentences; veiled hints that revealed in half
concealing. Her husband's friend Richards was there,
too, near her. It was he who had been in the
newspaper office when intelligence of the railroad
disaster was received, with Brently Mallard's name
leading the list of "killed." He had only taken the time
to assure himself of its truth by a second telegram,
and had hastened to forestall any less careful, less
tender friend in bearing the sad message.
She did not hear the story as many women have
heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its
significance. She wept at once, with sudden, wild
abandonment, in her sister's arms. When the storm of
grief had spent itself she went away to her room
alone. She would have no one follow her.
Who knows about
Mrs. Mallard's
condition? Is it
well-known? And,
what is her heart
trouble?
Why does he
move "near
her"?
What does use of
the
word "telegram"
and "newspaper
office"
suggest about
the time period?
What does it
say
about Richard
s that he che
cked twice?
Why wasn't she
paralysed like
most women?
Why does her
grieving stop
so quickly?
When we make an inference, we sometimes analyse a character's
actions, dialogue, description, thoughts, feelings, motivations,
clothing, and setting.
Teach
er
model

18. STEP 2: DRAWING INFERENCES BASED ON EVIDENCE IN THE
TEXT
Inferences and evidence found...
1. Richards and Josephine are concerned about how their friend Mrs. Mallard will take the news
of her husband's death. They try to approach her sensitively.
 Richards checks the information twice by waiting for a confirmation telegram (2)
 Josephine uses "broken sentences" and "veiled hints“ (2)
2. Mrs. Mallard's relationship with her husband may not be as loving as everyone else thinks.
 Unlike other women, she is not "paralyzed" when she hears the news. She weeps immediately almost as if she had
wondered before what his death might mean. (3)
 The way that the narrator describes her release of emotions as a "wild abandonment" suggests that maybe she
felt restricted before and her emotions are released rapidly because the restrictive element, her husband, has been
removed.(3)
 Mrs. Mallard goes to her room at the end of the passage without any support from her husband's friend and
sister.(3)
3. This story is set in an earlier time period from the one we are living in now.
 The authors use of words like "telegram" and "newspaper office" suggests the characters are living during an earlier
time period when those things were in use.
 Knowing the time period is important because it may also inform us, the reader, about why Mrs. Mallard may have
stayed with Mr. Mallard for so long if she were unhappy.

19. STEP 3: WRITING
AN ANALYSIS
PARAGRAPHEach character's actions and the author's emotional diction within the passage
illustrate that the characters have varying perspectives of Mr. Mallard's
death. At the beginning of the paragraph, Josephine can speak only in
"broken sentences" and "veiled hints" when speaking to her sister which
implies that she is nervous about how the news will impact Mrs. Mallard and
she is afraid to share the news. Richards also suspects that Mrs. Mallard will
take the news hard which is why he waits for a "second telegram" in order to
"assure himself of its truth." Richards' behavior indicates that he is not only
thorough, but also a good friend because he does not want to hurt Mrs.
Mallard's feelings. Mrs. Mallard's behavior and the author's impassioned
diction to describe her reaction, however, reveals that she may not be
experiencing the emotions that her friends expect. The author writes that
Mrs. Mallard "[weeps] at once" and with "sudden, wild abandonment" unlike
other women who are usually "paralyzed with an inability to accept [the
death's] significance." The author's use of words like "sudden, wild
abandonment" intimate that Mrs. Mallard's emotions were like a crashing river
that had been restricted or dammed up far too long and her husband's death
was the breaking of that dam. It is clear that she mourns his death, but the
immediate termination of her tears and her quick departure may suggest
something else. From the references to "telegrams" and "news offices" the
audience understands that the setting of the passage was during an earlier
age when divorce or separation was unacceptable. For a character like Mrs.
Mallard, her only option was to stay in a relationship with her husband until
his or her death. When Mrs. Mallard finally climbs the stairs to her bedroom
alone, the audience must wonder if she is rushing to her room because of
grief or excitement.
Start your
paragraph with a
topic sentence
that details the
purpose of the
paragraph.
Move in order of the
story when writing
your analysis. Provide
a point, evidence, and
explanation.
The use of words
like "however"
and transitional
phrases are
helpful to an
audience and
indicate where
you may be
shifting your
thinking.Try to splice your
quotations so
that you only use
the part of the
text that you
need. Embed
these quotes into
your words
(sentences) smoo
thly
Close by considering the overall
implications. How does this
information impact the audience?

20. DAY 2: THE STORY OF AN
HOUR
Reading The Story of an
Hour and Analysis

21. YOUR TURN...
In a moment you will be given
a passage to work on with a
partner.
1st- Read the passage aloud
while writing questions in the
margin that you are asking
yourself as you read. Pay
attention to actions, thoughts,
feelings, motivations,
clothing, etc. (slide 15)
2nd- Jot down three
inferences that you made and
the evidence you used
to support that inference.
(slide 16)
3rd- As a pair, develop an
analysis paragraph based on
the inferences you uncovered.
(slide 17)

22. TIME TO SHARE...
1. You and your partner will
sit with another group during
this portion of the class
period.
2. You are going to read
through each other's
paragraphs offering advice
and positive comments to help
them improve their
writing. Use the rubric
provided to guide
your remarks.
3. Teams will get their
paragraph back and write a
second draft.
4. Share out

23. DAY 3: THE AWAKENING
Finishing our Analysis of
The Story of an Hour and
starting our reading of The
Awakening

24. FINISHING THE STORY: DOES MRS. MALLARD DIE OF A
HEART ATTACK OR OF FRIGHT?

25. CLASS BELL RINGER:
Using the story, Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin, you are challenged to examine the piece for explicit and implicit
evidence that the main character either died of fright or died of a heart attack. Document your findings in a chart like
the one below in your Cornell notes and then decide.
Be sure to provide citations (paragraph numbers for your quotations).
In a moment you will share out.
Heart Attack Fright
Academic Vocabulary
Implicit- suggested; you have to interpret the text to work it out
yourself.
Explicit- clearly stated; you just need to find it.

26. SUMMARISING MRS.
MALLARD:
Using Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin and a chart in your notes like the one below, document what you learn
about Mrs. Mallard implicitly and explicitly. Be sure to support your claims with evidence from the story. Document
all quotations and their location(paragraph numbers will suffice).
You will use this information on a final assessment. Be thorough!!
Explicit Implicit
• "Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with
a heart trouble..." (1).
• She felt repressed by her life
and her husband.
• "She was young, with a fair,
calm face, whose lines
bespoke repression..." (8).
Academic Vocabulary
Implicit- suggested; you have to interpret the text to work it out
yourself.
Explicit- clearly stated; you just need to find it.

27. THE AWAKENING Kate Chopin

28. THE AWAKENING
BY KATE CHOPIN
Individual assessment: Time to show you can
draw inferences and compose a writing on your
own. Please use the graphic
organisers provided to finish each step.
Step 1: Read the story and develop questions in
the margins of the text.
Step 2: Develop inferences based on those
questions and document your textual evidence in
a chart found on your daily Cornell notes.
 Step 3: Tomorrow, you will compose an essay
that compares the rich inner lives of the women
presented in each piece.
I will help guide you through this part of the
writing process, and you will have time to revise
your draft before final submission.
We will start the essay in our next session.
Every step she took toward relieving
herself from obligations added to her
strength and expansion as an
individual. She began to look with her
own eyes; to see and to apprehend the
deeper undercurrents of life... (Chopin

29. DAY 4: ELEMENTS OF A
COMPARISON ESSAY
Discussion of Structure for
a Comparison Essay

30. WHAT IS THE
COMPARISON
STRATEGY?
LET’S SEE IT IN
ACTION…

31. COMPARE AND CONTRAST THE
FOLLOWING PAINTINGS IN YOUR
CORNELL NOTES
Consider the following when comparing the two
paintings…
Medium Harmony among elements Movement: Swirling,
flowing, dramatic
Techniques The path or direction of the
viewer’s eyes
Tone: Subtle, contrasting,
muted, dramatic
Subject matter Negative space
Shape and proportion Texture: Rough, fine,
smooth, coarse, and uneven
Positioning Color: Bold, vibrant, subtle,
pale, earthy, naturalistic

32. FIRST STEPS” BY
MARGUERITE GÉRARD

33. “FIRST STEPS” BY VINCENT
VANGOGH

34. DISCUSSION QUESTIONSDiscussion Questions
Perspective
What point of view does the painting take toward its subject?
Does the perspective seem subjective or objective, positive or negative, emotional or detached?
How do the details of the painting create a specific impression?

35. Discussion Questions
Techniques
What artistic techniques does the painting display?
Does the painting seem realistic or impressionistic?
Are its colours vibrant or subdued?
Does the brush work look polished or messy?

36. Discussion Questions
Composition
How are the details of the painting arranged?
What do you notice about the colours, the lines, and the relationships among the people and
objects portrayed?
How do the individual figures relate to each other and to their setting?
What visual parallels and relationships do you see?

37. WHAT IS A COMPARISON
AND CONTRAST ESSAY?
Comparison- presents two or more subjects (people, ideas, or
objects), considers them together, and shows in what ways they
Contrast- shows how they differ.
These two perspectives, apparently in contradiction to each other,
that they are commonly considered a single strategy, called
comparison for short.

38. COMPARISON AND
CONTRAST IN WRITTEN
TEXTS
The strategy of comparison and contrast is most commonly used in writing when the subjects under
discussion belong to the same class or general category.
 Four makes of car
 Two candidates for Senate
Such subjects are said to be comparable, or to have a strong basis for comparison.

39. TYPES OF COMPARISON:
POINT BY POINT
There are two basic ways to organize a comparison and contrast essays.
Point-by-point comparison: the author starts by comparing both subjects in terms of a particular
subjects in terms of a particular point, then moves on to a second point and compares both
subjects, then moves on to a third point, and so on.
 Point-by-point comparison allows the reader to grasp fairly easily the specific points of
comparison the author is making.
 It may be harder, though, to pull together the details and convey a distinct impression of what
each subject is like.

40. PRE-WRITING- DEVELOPING YOUR POINTS OF COMPARISON
Point-by-Point Organisation
Topic: Solar Energy vs Wind Energy
Points Subject 1 Subject 2
POINT 1: Cost Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 2: Efficiency Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 3: Convenience Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 4: Maintenance
Requirements
Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 5:
Environmental Impact
Solar energy Wind energy

41. TYPES OF COMPARISON:
BLOCK COMPARISON
 In this pattern, the information about one subject is gathered into a block, which is followed by a
block of comparable information about the second subject.
 The block comparison guarantees that each subject will receive a more unified discussion;
however, the points of comparison between them may be less clear.

42. Pre-Writing-Developing your points of comparison
Block Organisation
Topic: Solar vs Wind Energy
BLOCK ONE: SOLAR ENERGY
Point 1 Cost
Point 2 Efficiency
Point 3 Convenience
Point 4 Maintenance Requirements
Point 5 Environmental Impact
BLOCK TWO: WIND ENERGY
Point 1 Cost
Point 2 Efficiency
Point 3 Convenience
Point 4 Maintenance
Point 5 Environmental Impact
Notice they are both from
the same class.
Notice that the author
has chosen points that
can be discussed for
both types of energy

43. Take a Stand
Hunting safaris should become a thing of the past because the attack of animals for sport is wrong.
Agree Disagree

44. Looking at an example of a
Comparison Essay
“Guns and Cameras”- Barbara Bowman

45. ANALYSING BARBARA
BOWMAN’S COMPARISON
ESSAY
1. What is Bowman’s thesis in this essay?
2. What are her main points of comparison between hunting with a gun and hunting with a camera?
3. How has Bowman organised her essay? Why do you suppose she decided on this option?
Explain.
4. How else could she have organised her essay? Would this alternative organisation have been as
effective as the one she used? Explain.
5. How does Bowman conclude her essay? In what ways is her conclusion a reflection of her thesis?

46. DAY 5-7 WRITING
WORKSHOP
Pre-Writing and Drafting
of Comparison and
Contrast Essay

47. NOW IT IS YOUR
TURN...
Compose a comparison essay that discusses the
rich inner lives of the women presented in both
pieces of writing.
Story
of an
Hour
The
Awakeni
ng

48. WHERE WE START WHEN WE ARE
ASKED TO WRITE A COMPARE AND
CONTRAST ESSAY…Step 1: After selecting a topic, compare items from the
same class…
 When you are developing your paper, you want to select
items from the same class.
 Those classes can consist of persons, places, things,
persons, places, things, and activities.
activities.
 If you selected a difficult topic, you may want to consider
using an analogy.
Step 2: Determine your purpose
 Before you move forward you need to determine the
purpose of your piece.
 You should also consider the following questions:
 Who is your audience?
 Is your purpose to inform, emphasize, evaluate, or persuade?
 Do you have more than one purpose?
 Knowing your purpose influences your content and
organization.
We know that we have a similar class. We are
comparing two women from two different
stories.
An effective comparison and contrast essay
does not just detail what is similar and
different between two items. Instead, a strong
comparison and contrast essay has a purpose
that drives the piece. For an example of pieces
that have a larger purpose, revisit the “Guns
and Cameras” essay that we read earlier.

49. Pre-Writing-Developing your thesis
 Having a thesis, fixes your direction and establishes your central point.
 You are less likely to waver or stray off topic during your research if you have a thesis.
 Your thesis and introductory paragraph will address the “So What” of your paper, and help to
reassure your audience that your paper is about more than the similarities and differences
between the two elements in your topic.

50. Pre-Writing-Developing your points of comparison
Block Organisation
Topic: Solar vs Wind Energy
BLOCK ONE: SOLAR ENERGY
Point 1 Cost
Point 2 Efficiency
Point 3 Convenience
Point 4 Maintenance Requirements
Point 5 Environmental Impact
BLOCK TWO: WIND ENERGY
Point 1 Cost
Point 2 Efficiency
Point 3 Convenience
Point 4 Maintenance
Point 5 Environmental Impact
Notice they are both from
the same class.
Notice that the author
has chosen points that
can be discussed for
both types of energy

51. PRE-WRITING- DEVELOPING YOUR POINTS OF COMPARISON
Point-by-Point Organisation
Topic: Solar Energy vs Wind Energy
Points Subject 1 Subject 2
POINT 1: Cost Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 2: Efficiency Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 3: Convenience Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 4: Maintenance
Requirements
Solar energy Wind energy
POINT 5:
Environmental Impact
Solar energy Wind energy

52. Pre-Writing:Draw a Conclusion from your
Comparison
 Only after you have gathered information and made your comparisons will you be ready to decide
on a conclusion.
 When drawing your essay to its conclusion, remember your purpose in writing, the claim made in
your thesis statement, and your audience and emphasis.
 In the conclusion, you may draw your audience to one side of your compare and contrast essay.
 For example, in the essay “Guns and Cameras,” Barbara Bowman draws her audience
towards cameras with her persuasive statements in the conclusion and at certain points in her
essay.