Inferencing | Speech Therapy Goals and Activities

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Speech and Language Kids Podcast 19 min 1 speaker 6 chapters transcribed 15 hours ago

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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

Carrie Clark 0:00

Hey everybody, this is Carrie Clark, and you are listening to episode number 37 of the Speech and Language Kids Podcast. This is the podcast with resources and activities for speech therapists and parents of children with speech and language delays. I am Carrie Clark. I will be your host today, and today we are talking about inferences. We are talking about making inferences and using this as a part of speech therapy or as home practice. So I don't really have any announcements or additional information today except for thanks for listening. So we're gonna just jump right into the content. All right, so what is an inference? Well, I have a website set up or a web page set up for you guys that has all of this information, so don't feel like you need to write this down.

Carrie Clark 0:40

Um, but I and that is at speechandlanguage kids.com slash slash episode three seven. And that has a whole bunch of really good information. For you, including an infographic that I created that you can use to show your kids. It's basically just a picture with some words on it that explains what an inference is. So an inference is when you take clues from a text or a picture and you use your background knowledge, something that you already know, and you put those two pieces together to make an assumption of what has happened or what is happening. So let me give you an example. Let's say you walk up to a bathroom and there's a sign on the door that says out of order. From the text, you can gather the clue that someone has placed an out-of-order sign on the bathroom door.

Carrie Clark 1:23

You combine that with your background knowledge that the words out of order mean that something typically isn't working. And you also have background knowledge that the main working part of a bathroom is a toilet. So you combine those two parts together, and using those, You can reasonably assume that the toilet is not working and therefore they don't want anyone to use it. Now that is an inference. You have used your background knowledge. combined with the clue of the or the observation about the situation that's going on and made an inference. So what do we use inferences for? Well, inferences are very handy and we use them frequently throughout our day. Not only do we make inferences about a text that we are reading, which is something that is required in the schools, and we'll get to that in a moment.

Carrie Clark 2:06

Um, but we also use inferences to read our environment or make inferences about what's going on, and we use inferences to read other people to make assumptions on what they're thinking or feeling so we can change our behavior accordingly. So inferences are used for academics as well as for navigating our daily environment and social situations.

What is an inference and how is it defined for speech therapy?

Carrie Clark 2:30

I do want to mention real briefly before we go on about when inferences are important to work on, I do want to talk about the difference between an inference and a prediction. Okay, so an inference is something that is an assumption that is made about a past event or an event that is currently happening. If you make an assumption or a guess on what's about to happen, something that's in the future, you're actually making a prediction, not an inference. Another way to think about this is a prediction is something that you will be able to validate if you were right or wrong because it's about to happen. So you have a point in the future where you will know for sure. And inference is something that's a little more hazy and it's based on everyone's own background knowledge.

Carrie Clark 3:13

So there's not necessarily a right or a wrong, and it's not like you're going to find out very quickly as you would with. Yeah. So just a quick note, the difference between an inference and a prediction. Okay, so when do we work on inferences? Well, our students with language delays often have trouble with inferencing because it requires them to use language at a higher level than the straightforward way that they're used to using it. So for that reason, making inferences can be a good target for any kid with speech and language delays.

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Chapters

6 chapters

1 What is the main topic discussed in this episode? 0:00–2:30 2 What is an inference and how is it defined for speech therapy? 2:30–6:12 3 How can a bathroom “out of order” sign be used to teach inference skills? 6:12–9:25 4 Why are inferences important for everyday life and academic work? 9:25–12:24 5 What is the difference between an inference and a prediction? 12:24–16:50 6 When should children start meeting Common Core inference standards by grade level? 16:50–19:30

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Carrie Clark 18 min

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Topics in this episode

Speech and Language Kids podcast 1 Carrie Clark 2 IEP 2 Common Core State Standards 6 Garfield comic strip 1

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Recorded23 Mar 2015

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Inferencing | Speech Therapy Goals and ActivitiesHow can we teach inferencing in speech therapy? What goals should we write for inferencing? An inference is when you use clues present (in text or in real life) along with your background knowledge to make a guess about something that’s not explicitly known. On this page, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about teaching inferencing skills to children and teens. We’ll provide you with sample IEP goals for inferencing as well as therapy activities to help teach it. Abstract Language CurriculumA Structured Program for Teaching Inferencing and Other Abstract Language Skills to Children and TeensView the Abstract Language CurriculumInferencing Goals for Speech Therapy:There are two main ways that we can work on inferencing in speech therapy: in text and in social contexts. Here are two sample inferencing goals for speech therapy: In Text: By the end of the reporting period, after reading a text, ______________________ will make an appropriate inference from the text and refer to details and examples in the text when explaining how he/she drew that inference on four of five observed opportunities. Social Inferencing: By the end of the reporting period, after reading, watching, or hearing a description of a social scenario (some including sarcasm), ______________________ will use social cues plus background information to make an appropriate inference of what has happened or is happening on four of five observed opportunities. Inferencing Activities for Speech TherapyWe can work on inferencing skills with children and teens through speech therapy activities. We start by simply explaining to them what an inference is and then providing them with activities that allow them to practice and demonstrate the skill in progressively harder contexts. What is an Inference? Clues from Text or Pictures + Background Knowledge = Assumption of what has happened or what is happening Let me give you an example. You walk up to the bathroom and see this: From this text, you gather the clue that someone has placed an “out of order” sign on the bathroom door. You combine this with your background knowledge that “out of order” means something typically isn’t working and the main working part of a bathroom is the toilet. Using these two parts, you can reasonably assume that the toilet is not working and they therefore do not want anyone to use it. That, my friend, is an inference. What Do We Use Inferences For? Inferences come in handy frequently throughout our day. Not only do we make inferences about text that we are reading, we also using inferences to “read” our environment and make inferences about what’s going on around us. Also, we use inferences to “read” other people and try to make assumptions on what they’re thinking or feeling so we can adjust our actions accordingly. Inference Vs. Prediction Keep in mind that inferences are made about past events or events that are currently happening. If you make an assumption or guess on what is about to happen (something in the future), you’re actually making a prediction, not an inference. Inferencing Step One: Making Inferences from Pictures Since it is typically easier to make an inference from a picture than from a text, we’ll start with that. Have the child look at a picture. You can find pictures in books that are good for inferencing or download the worksheets from our Curriculum. If you are using your own pictures, try to take pictures of things that are out of place or pictures that clearly define an event that just happened. How to Teach It: Take each picture and show it to the child. Ask the child to guess what is going on in the picture or what happened before the picture was taken. Then, talk to the child about what an inference is. You can say something like “an inference is when we find clues in the picture and combine them with our own background knowledge to make an assumption about what is happening or what just happened”. Then, show the child the picture again and talk through the inference that was made. For example, in the bathroom example above, you would explain to the child that the inference is that the toilet is broken. You figured that out because you used the clues from the picture (out of order sign) and combined that with your background knowledge that “out of order” means broken and the toilet is the main working part of the bathroom. Walk the child through several examples like that until the child can identify the two pieces that contribute to the inference on his or her own. Inferencing Step Two: Making Inferences from Text and Pictures Combined Since it can be quite the jump from making inferences about pictures to inferences about text only, I like to include an in between step where they make inferences about text and pictures combined. You can use children’s books that have a simple story along with pictures or something like a comic strip that uses text within a picture. Comic strips (like from your Sunday Funnies section of the newspaper) can be very good because they rely heavily on inferences to make the strips funny. Take this comic strip for example: Observations/Clues: The pets are running around like crazy. The owner says he wished he had the receipt for the pets. Background Knowledge: You need the receipt when you return something that you don’t want anymore. Inference: The owner wishes he could take back his pets sometimes. How To Teach It: For this step, read the text and look at the pictures with the child. Then, have them make an inference and back it up by telling you what in the text or pictures they used as clues/observations and what background knowledge they had to add to come up with their assumption. Inferencing Step Three: Making Inferences about Text Finally! We’ve made it to the actual skill that kids are expected to use in school. These children must read a grade level text (literature and informational) and then make inferences based on the information provided. The child you’re working with may not be ready for something on grade level yet so you may have to adapt this skill down at first. Start with steps one and two from this tutorial before you go into this step because you want them to have a good working knowledge of what an inference is and how to come up with one. How to Teach It: Show the child a few sentences that are written down that could lead to an inference. Ask the child to read the text and then make an inference about what just happened or what is currently happening. Once the child has made his inference, have him circle or underline the parts of the sentence that he used for clues/observations and then have him write down what background knowledge he added to come up with his inference. For example, here is the sentence: “Johnny walked into the room and saw a birthday cake with his name on it, presents, and all of his friends standing around the table”. Inference: It is Johnny’s birthday. Observations/Clues: “Johnny walked into the room and saw a birthday cake with his name on it, presents, and all of his friends standing around the table”. Background Knowledge: You get presents and a birthday cake with your name on it when it’s your birthday. Once you have done several examples like this and the child is able to come up with an inference and tell you how he got there, you’re ready to gradually increase the difficulty level of the text. Work your way up to being able to do this in the readings or texts that the child has been assigned for his classes. Provide support for the child by walking him through the steps of picking out the clues and adding background knowledge as needed. Inferencing Step Four: Using Inferences for Social Skills If you are working with a child who purely needs to use inferencing for reading activities, you can stop here. However, many children with social problems also need help with making inferences in social situations. If a child doesn’t understand how to “read” a situation to figure out how to act or “read” a person’s body language to get a good idea of what’s going on, they may need some inferencing help. Children who have trouble with this skill are often having difficulty with both parts of the formula. Let’s look at an example. Johnny starts talking to Fred about trains. Johnny loves trains so he tells Fred everything that he knows about trains. He has been talking about trains for 5 minutes. Fred starts to look at his watch and tap his foot. He starts looking around and he stops responding to what Johnny is saying. Johnny keeps talking anyway. Know anyone like that? Well, poor Johnny has a few problems here. Chances are, he doesn’t notice that Fred looks disinterested. He hasn’t noticed him looking at his watch or tapping his foot. Furthermore, Johnny doesn’t even know that those signs typically mean that someone is not interested. So even if Johnny had noticed Fred looking around, he doesn’t have the background knowledge to tell him that when someone starts looking around, they aren’t interested in what you’re saying. How to Teach It: In order to teach making inferences for social skills, you need to teach the child not only to start paying attention and making observations, but also to know what to look for. You must give the child the background knowledge necessary to know what nonverbal behaviors mean. Start by choosing one social skill that the child has trouble with, like knowing when someone is no longer interested in what he has to say. Teach the child what to look for (what observations or clues to look for) and then teach him what those clues mean. Role play situations where you demonstrate the clues for the child and the child has to recognize them. Then, you’ll also need to teach the child what to do when he notices those signs, like ask the other person a question about himself or herself. Practice those situations and then take the child to a situation where those kinds of things may happen and signal him to pay attention to the clues when you see them arise. You can also video tape interactions and play them back to the child to help him see the clues when they arise. Listen to the Podcast Version of this Info: A Structured Curriculum for Teaching Inferencing and Other Abstract Language SkillsLooking for a pre-made program that will teach inferencing skills and other abstract language skills? We have a Curriculum complete with therapy materials, training videos, support, and AI-powered material generators. Subscribe today to access our Abstract Language Curriculum along with all of our other Curriculums and resources. Abstract Language CurriculumA Structured Program for Teaching Inferencing and Other Abstract Language Skills to Children and TeensView the Abstract Language CurriculumAbout the Author: Carrie Clark, MA CCC-SLPHi, I’m Carrie! I’m a speech-language pathologist from Columbia, Missouri, USA. I’ve worked with children and teenagers of all ages in schools, preschools, and even my own private practice. I love digging through the research on speech and language topics and breaking it down into step-by-step plans for my followers. Fun Fact: I play the cello. I took lessons for cello and piano for most of my childhood, though I’m way better at cello than I ever got a piano. I also taught myself guitar as an adult. I have a super fun bright blue electric guitar that I get out every once in a while and play around on. And then I curse the fact that since I don’t play consistently, I don’t have my callouses built up. Connect with Me: The post Inferencing | Speech Therapy Goals and Activities appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

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