Predicting is an essential reading strategy. It allows learners to utilize info from the text to anticipate what will happen in the story. When making predictions, learners envision what will come next in the text, based on their prior knowledge. Predicting encourages kids to think ahead and ask questions actively. It also allows learners to understand the story better, connect to what they are reading, and interact with the text.

Making predictions is also a useful strategy to improve reading comprehension. Learners can make predictions about a story based on what they have already heard, read, or seen. This, in turn, will allow learners to become actively involved in the reading process. To decide if their predictions are correct, learners should be required to reread portions of the text to remember facts about the story’s characters or events.

Picture walks can operate as a tool to organize info within a story, expanding a kid’s comprehension. During a picture walk, learners can activate their prior knowledge and connect the story’s visual images to their individual experiences.

Learners can also utilize a graphic organizer to predict the outcome of a story. Learners can do this by identifying clues within the text to predict how characters might behave and how the story’s problems will be solved. When using a graphic organizer, learners can stay engaged in the story as they logically capture their thoughts. Educators need to encourage kids to record clues that either support or deny their predictions. Teachers can also allow learners to revise their predictions to reflect on the clues that are found within the text.

Making predictions encourages readers to utilize critical thinking and problem-solving skills.  Readers are given a chance to reflect and assess the text, thus extracting deeper meaning and comprehension skills. Learners will also be interested in the reading content when they connect their prior knowledge with the new info being learned.

Content Area Examples

Reading

There are several activities that educators can incorporate within their class, allowing learners to make predictions effectively. To introduce this reading strategy, educators can hand out photographs from either a newspaper or a magazine. Learners will then predict with the evidence from the picture, their prior knowledge, or examples from their experiences.

Teachers can also create a prediction pail. When introducing a new story, learners first take a picture walk and then make a prediction based on the title, illustrations, and diagrams. This allows learners to utilize clues and evidence from the text to make accurate predictions. The kids then write their predictions on a slip of paper and put them in the pail. Next, learners read the story within their small reading groups. After the story is completed, they can share their predictions and connect to the other shared responses.

Math

Learners can make predictions based on patterns. When looking at a problem or example, learners will recognize distinct designs/outlines through repetition and observation. From this info, learners will be able to predict the data they collected to confirm their answers as they justify their reasoning.

Science

Predicting can be used in science when learners experiment. For example, learners may be studying a unit on plants and predict what might happen to a plant’s growth if the amount of water rises. Based on their observations, learners will predict what might happen next as they collect data and support their answers with evidence.