Inferring Lessons

This week the students continued to work on building their inferring skills.  After having studied many texts such as Follow the Drinking Gourd and learning about the Underground Railroad the students examined the book The Patchwork Path.  Students had already learned that in order to escape on the Underground Railroad, slaves used secret maps that were hidden in songs and symbols in quilt squares. Before reading this text, the students did a picture walk of the book.  Drawing from the pictures and their background knowledge, the students inferred what each quilt square in the book represented.  They needed to use evidence from their picture or their background knowledge to back up their predictions.

Following The Patchwork Path Lesson, the students examined the book Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt.  During this lesson the students paid close attention to the actions taken by the main character Clara in the book.  We stopped reading this book half-way through.  Based on their prior knowledge gained from the books they had read on The Underground Railroad the students were asked to infer what further actions Clara would take.  They needed to use evidence from the story and background knowledge to back up their predictions.