New
New
Year 11
Edexcel

Making inferences from two non-fiction texts

I can use inference to explain complexities in writers’ attitudes.

New
New
Year 11
Edexcel

Making inferences from two non-fiction texts

I can use inference to explain complexities in writers’ attitudes.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Writers convey their meaning through explicit statements and implicit suggestion.
  2. The reader makes inferences in order to discover the more nuanced meanings.
  3. Inference involves zooming in on the connotations of chosen words.
  4. Font styles can also be a subtle way of communicating ideas.

Keywords

  • Immersive - deep absorption or interest in topic or place

  • Explicit - clear and obvious

  • Implicit - suggested or hinted at

  • Destitute - extremely poor

Common misconception

Students think that attitudes are often strong and one dimensional.

Encourage them to think about how it is possible for a book or a film to be both frightening and enjoyable.

Ask students to look at how capitalisation, italicisation, underlining and using bold can change the tone of a word.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You need access to the opening of Bill Bryson’s travel book ‘Notes From A Small Island’. A copy of the extract from George Orwell’s ‘Down and Out in Paris and London’ in the additional materials.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
What do we mean when we say that writing is in italics?
text that is in a different colour
Correct answer: text that slopes to the right
text that is written in capitals
text that is written in a different font
Q2.
Match the capital cities with their country.
Correct Answer:Rome ,Italy

Italy

Correct Answer:London,England

England

Correct Answer:Paris ,France

France

Correct Answer:Berlin ,Germany

Germany

Q3.
What is the best synonym for optimism?
Correct answer: hope
confidence
pessimism
realism
Q4.
What are we doing when we make inferences from a text?
memorising key information for using later
evaluating the quality of the writer's work
Correct answer: drawing conclusions based on the text and background knowledge
critically evaluating the writer's argument
Q5.
What does the phrase 'down and out' mean?
extreme physical ill health
Correct answer: a state of extreme poverty
extreme distress or sadness
extreme tiredness
Q6.
What are we doing when we zoom in on a word?
Correct answer: examining the word closely for connotations and meanings
moving the word to the centre of the page
making the word into the title of an article
carefully considering how the word works within a sentence

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the words with their synonyms.
Correct Answer:immersive ,absorbing

absorbing

Correct Answer:explicit,clear

clear

Correct Answer:implicit,hinted at

hinted at

Correct Answer:destitute,poverty stricken

poverty stricken

Q2.
Which of the following is the best example of optimistic language?
Correct answer: "something of the spirit of the rue du Coq d'Or"
"desolate cries of street hawkers"
"sour reek of the refuse-carts"
"fairly rackety place"
Q3.
Which of the following is the best definition of immersive journalism?
war reporting especially when it includes interviews with soldiers
crime reporting that reveals lots of background information
journalism that is similar to fiction
Correct answer: journalism where the writer lives the experience being reported
Q4.
Where was Bill Bryson born?
Correct Answer: The United States, America , the US, US, United States
Q5.
Which of the following are associated with implicit meanings?
first impressions
Correct answer: second thoughts
Correct answer: open to interpretation
clearly stated
Q6.
Match the words with their likely connotations.
Correct Answer:fog,hidden

hidden

Correct Answer:shuttered ,kept out

kept out

Correct Answer:dark ,supernatural

supernatural

Correct Answer:silence ,deserted

deserted

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