Inference Practice:
Exercise 2. Read each passage and respond to the questions. Make a logical
inference based on textual details and explain your answers by referencing
the text.
1. Crack! thunder struck and rain poured. Max stared blankly out the window, trying to
contain his emotions that raged like the weather. He was beginning to lose it. Dropping
the kite from his hand, Max broke out into full sobs. His mother comforted him, “There,
there, Max. We’ll just find something else to do.” She began to unpack the picnic basket
that was on the counter and offered him a sandwich. Max snapped, “I don’t wanna
sand-mich!” A flash from the sky lit up the living room. Boom! Mom sighed.
A. Why is Max upset?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. What was Mom planning on doing today?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
2. "William, don't forget your towel!" Mom shouted as she applied sunblock on the baby.
William threw the folding chairs in the back of the minivan and shouted through the
garage door, "OK Mom!" He then ran up and grabbed his towel. "Georgie!" William
shouted. There was no response. Mom packed the baby up into the car seat. "William,
can you help me with his umbrella?" William ran down the stairs, almost tripping over a
chew toy, and then he helped his mother load the large umbrella in the minivan. "Mom,
I can't find Georgie," William said. His mother shrugged and replied, "That's OK,
William. He probably shouldn't come with us anyway."
A. Where are Mom and William going?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. Who is Georgie?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
3. Mike got out of the driver seat of the classic car. He looked at the mailbox and then at
the bumper. The mailbox was smashed and bent. The shiny chrome bumper had a dent
about the size of a football around the passenger side. Mike shook his head and got back
in the driver seat. He knew what he had to do. He didn't want to do it, but he had to. He
drove back home and sat in the driveway for a few minutes, holding his head in his
hands. Mike's dad came out of the house carrying a black garbage bag. He smiled and
waved at Mike as he passed the driver side of the car. Then he looked again as he walked
past the passenger side of the vehicle. His mouth dropped open and he let go of the
garbage bag.
A. In the text it says, “[Mike] knew what he had to do.” What did Mike have to do?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. What is Mike going to tell his father and how will his father react?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
4. Brenda reached for the box of tissue. She blew her nose with a thunderous force and
then tried breathing through it again. It was still clogged. She stood up and got a head
rush that almost knocked her back down to the bed, but she regained her balance. As
she tottered over to the phone on her dresser, all of her muscles ached. She located the
contact labeled "Work" and pressed send. A couple of rings later, a familiar voice
answered the phone, "Happy Fun Land, this is Deidra speaking. How can I help you
have a happy fun day?" Brenda moaned, "Oh, Deidra, it's Brenda." Deidra responded
with pep, "Hey, Brenda! I can't wait to see you this afternoon." Brenda grunted and
replied, "Yeah, well, actually, I need to talk to the manager."
A. Why is Brenda moving so slowly?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. What is Brenda going to talk about with the manager?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
5. Shawn sat in his seat as the morning bell rang and released a big yawn. He rubbed his
eyes and could feel how baggy they were. He stretched as the teacher went to the front of
the class and began talking, "Good morning, students! I'll take attendance while you
start working on that test that I promised you." The class let out a collective groan, but
Shawn's eyes widened. He began rummaging through his backpack and pulled out a
crumpled notebook with part of the cover torn off it. He frantically rifled through the
pages, many of which were filled with just a few words or doodles. The teacher looked
directly at Shawn as he said, "OK, class, put your notes away and clear off your desks.
It's test time." Shawn began looking around the room frantically. He saw Cassie sitting
next to him. Shawn whispered, "Psst... Cassie." She turned to him with a scowl. His eyes
pleaded with hers. "Not gonna happen, Shawn," Cassie said loudly. This startled Shawn
and he jumped in his seat. The teacher looked at Shawn again, "No more talking class."
A. Was Shawn up late last night studying for the test?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. Why does Shawn suddenly liven up when the teacher announces the test?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
C. What did Shawn want from Cassie?
C-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
6. Mr. Johnson looked up at the sky. It was clear as far as the eye could see, except for
the cruel sun. The insatiable sun drained the land of all moisture. He cursed the sun. Mr.
Johnson ran his fingers through one of the rows of dirt and grabbed a handful. It was
bone dry, almost powdery. He let the dirt sift through his fingers and it turned to dust in
the wind. Mr. Johnson put his hands on his hips and surveyed the field. It was well
seeded, that he knew. He had seeded it himself, yet nothing sprang from the dirt. "Well,
there's only one thing left to do," he said to himself. Mr. Johnson headed to church.
A. What does Mr. Johnson do for a living?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. Why is Mr. Johnson cursing the sun?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
C. Why does Mr. Johnson go to church at the end of the passage?
C-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
7. “Gus, I need to see you in my office,” said Mr. Matthews. Gus nervously shut the door
to Mr. Matthews' office behind him and took a seat. Mr. Matthews' office was so high up
that Gus had to angle his chair awkwardly so that he couldn't see out of the window. Mr.
Matthews pointed his finger at Gus and began talking, "You have been fitting in great
over here, and that's one of the most important things you can do in this company." Gus
let out a sigh of relief. Mr. Matthews continued speaking. "Gus, I want to invite you on a
company trip. We will be taking a private jet to Colorado." Gus's eyes widened and his
heart began thumping rapidly. "Wow, Mr. Matthews! I don't know what to say," Gus
replied honestly. Mr. Matthews continued, "Then we will be climbing up a mountain to a
private cabin." Gus loosened his tie a bit and gulped. He was hoping that it would be
over but Mr. Matthews continued, "After completing some team building activities, we
will take a hot air balloon ride over the mountains!" Gus's heart was now pounding so
hard that he was worried that Mr. Matthews might see it thumping through his shirt. He
was sweating excessively. Mr. Matthews slapped him on the shoulder, "So what do you
say Gus?" Gus did not know what to say.
A. Why did Gus have to “angle his chair awkwardly”?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. How does Gus really feel about his boss’ invitation? Why does he feel this way?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
C. Why is Gus reluctant to tell Mr. Matthews how he truly feels?
C-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
8. Mr. Thomas sat on the front porch of his house in a bathrobe and bunny slippers with
his head in his hands. He was holding the daily newspaper. The sun shined brightly in
the sky. His neighbors were coming out of their houses and getting in their cars. Mr.
Thomas sighed. His neighbor Mr. Adkinson stepped out on his porch and saw Mr.
Thomas. "Did it again, huh?" said Mr. Adkinson. Mr. Thomas replied, "Yep." Mr.
Adkinson chuckled and said, "Here, Mr. Thomas, you can use my cell phone. I could
even keep a key over here if you wanted." Tom thankfully grabbed the cell phone and
called his wife. "Honey, I did it again." Mr. Adkinson heard Mrs. Thomas yelling at Mr.
Thomas. "Yes, dear. I'm so sorry. I'll see you soon," Mr. Thomas returned the phone,
sighed deeply, and ran his fingers through his hair.
A. What is the thing that Mr. Thomas “did again”?
A-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
B. Why will Mr. Thomas see Mrs. Thomas soon?
B-1. How do you know this? What in the text supports your answer?
