Reading between the lines (inference)

James decodes brilliantly (phonics L7). The 7+ comprehension tests inference — understanding what the story hints at but doesn't say. This is his biggest reading growth area.

In kid words

Sometimes a story doesn't tell you everything — it gives you clues, and you're a detective. If it says "Tom pulled up his hood and splashed to school," it never says "it was raining" — but you know it was. That's reading between the lines.

Worked example

Read this together:

Mia hid behind the sofa and put her hands over her ears. The doorbell had a deep, loud BONG.

Ask: How do you think Mia feels? How do you know?

model it "I think Mia feels scared — because she's hiding and covering her ears. The story didn't say 'scared', I worked it out from the clues."

The magic question to keep using: "How do you know?" It pushes him from guessing to evidence.

Exercises

📄 Printable: Reading between the lines worksheet.

Warm-up · clue detective

Read each line; ask the question.

"Sam's tummy rumbled and he stared at the biscuits." — What does Sam want?
"The dog wagged its tail and ran to the door with its lead." — What does the dog think is about to happen?

Answers

1. He's hungry / wants a biscuit (clue: tummy rumbled, staring at biscuits). 2. A walk (clue: lead + running to the door).

Core · feelings + evidence

Leo opened his report. He read it twice, then ran downstairs shouting, "Mum! Mum!" with the biggest smile.

Ask: How does Leo feel? then the key follow-up: How do you know? (Aim for him to point to "biggest smile" / "ran shouting".)

Stretch · what happens next?

At bedtime, pause before the page turn and ask "What do you think will happen — and why?" Any answer backed by a clue from the story counts as a win.

Play it

Games that build this Picture detective: look at a picture-book illustration and ask "what just happened here? what's about to happen?"
Guess Who and Outfoxed build the same "use clues to work it out" muscle — see the games index.

Watch for (grown-up note)

He already answers literal questions ("what happened?"). The lift is "why / how do you feel / how do you know?". It's fine if he needs a prompt at first — note that in the log; needing no prompt is the progress marker. Keep bedtime reading joyful; one good question per story is plenty.

Words we used

Glossary: inference, sight word.

Note for the log

In log/, jot: did he give a reason ("because…") unprompted? Which book?