Charlotte's Web - Lesson 1: Infer and Deduce - PowerPoint

The first lesson in a series on 'Charlotte's Web' is designed to enhance students' skills in inferring and deducing information from texts. The lesson sets out clear objectives, which include creating a glossary of key terms related to novel study, understanding the meanings of 'infer' and 'deduce', and engaging with the book's blurb, cover image, and title to make predictions about the story. Students are encouraged to familiarise themselves with important literary terms such as 'infer', 'deduce', 'point', 'evidence', 'explain', 'author', 'annotation', 'character', 'theme', and 'assessment'. If they are unsure about any of these terms, they are advised to use a dictionary to find out their definitions, thereby building their vocabulary and comprehension skills.

During the lesson, students practice their deduction skills by examining an image and discussing what they can deduce from it, focusing on details such as setting and the actions of the subjects in the picture. They are then tasked with applying these skills to a series of images, recording their own interpretations, which have no right or wrong answers, fostering a sense of exploration and discussion. The activity culminates with an analysis of the front cover of 'Charlotte's Web', where students infer and deduce information about the book's genre, setting, and potential plot based on visual and textual clues. This process of making predictions is guided by a worksheet that prompts students to think critically about the book's title, cover, and blurb. The lesson concludes with a reflection and recap, allowing students to consider what they have learned.