View largerHow to make a prediction
Knowing what a prediction is: clues from the story plus what you know, then checking as you read
1 page56 KB
Making Predictions Worksheets
Original short stories and texts where children use clues to predict what will happen, then read on to check.
Download the making predictions worksheets
2nd grade: What is a prediction?
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2nd grade: Predict and check
View all 2 pagesWhat will happen Next?
Choosing the prediction that the clues in a short story support
Answer key on page 2
2 pages50 KB
View all 2 pagesFind the clue
Finding the sentence in a short story that supports a prediction
Answer key on page 2
2 pages51 KB
View all 2 pagesPredict and check
Making a prediction with a clue at a stopping point, then checking it against what happens
Answer key on page 2
2 pages36 KB
3rd grade: Predict before you read
View all 2 pagesPredict from the cover
Predicting what a book will be about from its title, cover, and first sentence
Answer key on page 2
2 pages58 KB
3rd grade: Stop, predict, and check
4 pagesView all 4 pagesStop and Predict: the great hamster hunt
Stopping to predict with clues, then reading on to check the predictions
Answer key on page 4
4 pages58 KB
View all 2 pagesPredict and prove
Choosing the best-supported prediction and the clue that supports a prediction
Answer key on page 2
2 pages51 KB
View all 2 pagesPredict and check chart
Recording a prediction, its clue, and what really happened at two stopping points in a story
Answer key on page 2
2 pages38 KB
4th grade: Predictions with details
4 pagesView all 4 pagesStop and Predict: the midnight garden visitors
Making predictions with details at two stopping points, then checking them against the story
Answer key on page 4
4 pages59 KB
View all 2 pagesClues and predictions
Choosing the prediction best supported by details, and the detail that best supports a prediction
Answer key on page 2
2 pages51 KB
4th grade: Predicting in nonfiction
View all 2 pagesPredict in nonfiction
Predicting what a nonfiction section will tell from its heading, and what will happen in a simple science situation
Answer key on page 2
2 pages61 KB
View all 2 pagesPredict and Check: three cups of water
Predicting the result of a simple science test, then checking the prediction against the results and the reason
Answer key on page 2
2 pages39 KB
5th grade: Revising predictions
4 pagesView all 4 pagesStop and Predict: the man in the green house
Making, revising, and checking predictions about a character, quoting details from the story
Answer key on page 4
4 pages61 KB
View all 2 pagesRevise your prediction
Revising a prediction when a new detail changes what is likely to happen
Answer key on page 2
2 pages51 KB
5th grade: Predicting with text features and facts
View all 2 pagesPredict with text features and facts
Predicting what a section will explain from its heading, and the result of a science situation from known facts
Answer key on page 2
2 pages62 KB
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About these making predictions worksheets
A prediction is a smart guess about what will happen next, based on clues. Readers find clues in the title, the pictures, and what the characters do and say, and they add what they already know about how things usually go. For example, if a story says, "Dark clouds filled the sky, and thunder rumbled," and a girl grabs her raincoat, a good prediction is that it will rain soon. The clue is the dark clouds and thunder; what you know is that storms bring rain.
Predicting keeps children thinking while they read. They read ahead to find out whether they were right, and when new clues show up, they change their prediction to fit. A prediction that turns out wrong is not a mistake, as long as a clue supported it. Good readers check and revise all the way through a story.
These worksheets start in 2nd grade with an anchor chart, short "What will happen next?" stories, and a hunt for the clue that helped. In 3rd and 4th grade, children predict from book covers and first lines, read longer stop-and-predict stories in parts, and fill in predict-and-check charts. Older readers also predict in nonfiction, from headings and from simple science situations, and 5th graders practice revising a prediction when a new clue changes the picture.
Every story and text was written for these pages, and every sheet has an answer key. Where children write their own predictions, the key gives a sample and accepts any prediction that a clue from the text supports.
Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.1Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.3Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.1Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.1Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.1Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.1Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
How to use them
- Start with the anchor chart, or talk through one short example together: find the clue, say what you know, and make a prediction.
- On stop-and-predict stories, cover the rest of the text or fold the page so children really stop at each Stop box before they read on.
- After reading, go back to each prediction and ask: Was it right? Which clue led you there? What happened instead?
- Use the nonfiction pages before a science or social studies lesson, so children practice predicting from headings and facts.
Teaching tips
- Praise predictions that use clues, even when the story goes another way. The skill is reasoning from evidence, not guessing right.
- Ask for the clue every time: "What in the story made you think that?"
- Model your own thinking out loud while you read aloud: "I predict ... because ..."
- When a prediction turns out wrong, ask which new clue changed things. That is the start of revising.
Questions teachers and parents ask
What is a prediction in reading?
A prediction is a smart guess about what will happen next in a story or what a text will tell. Readers make predictions by putting together clues from the text, such as the title, pictures, and what characters do and say, with what they already know.
What if my child's prediction is wrong?
That is fine. A good prediction is one that a clue supports, not one that always comes true. The important part is checking it while reading and changing it when new clues appear. Our keys give sample predictions and accept any prediction backed by a clue.
How is a prediction different from an inference?
Both use clues plus what you know. An inference figures out something the author does not say about right now, like how a character feels. A prediction looks ahead to what will happen next or what a text will tell.
Can children predict in nonfiction too?
Yes. Readers predict what a section will explain from its heading, and what will happen in a science situation from facts they know, such as ice melting in the sun. The 4th and 5th grade pages practice both.