Context Clues
Making Inferences
Main Idea
Mix bag!
100

The family was going on a trip. Mother said, "We will leave soon." We had to hurry. It was a hectic morning. We had many things to do. The word hectic means: a. quiet b. busy c. rainy

b. busy

100

Pete called Ted Tuesday afternoon and invited him to come to his house after dinner to watch a movie. It had been a long, boring day, and Ted was excited to have something to do. After dinner, he hopped on his bike and pedaled over to Pete's house. The house was dark, and when he rang the bell, there was no answer. Ted turned around, hopped back on his bike, and rode home. Make an inference about why Ted rode home.

"Nobody was home"

100

There are many different kinds of bears in the world. Black bears live in North America. Grizzly bears also live in North America. They are very dangerous. The white Polar bear lives in the Arctic. The biggest bear is the Kodiak bear that is found in Alaska. What is the main idea of this text passage? A. Bears live in North America. B. Bears are dangerous. C. There are many kinds of bears.

C."There are many kinds of bears."

100

Angela wasn't sure whether to take Billy or Sam with her to the concert. Whichever friend she took, the other was sure to be jealous and CROSS.

What does CROSS mean?

Cross means angry or upset

200

after the detective spent all day studying the facts, he uncovered an important clue! Which sentence uses uncover in the same way as the above passage? a. She uncovered the casserole for the last five minutes. b. her friends were afraid she would uncover the secret of her surprise birthday party!

b: her friends were afraid she would uncover the secret of her surprise birthday party!

200

Sara walked into the large room. The woman behind the desk smiled at her. Sara looked around. There were hundreds of magazines in the room. There were thousands of books! Other children were in the room, sitting and reading books. Sara walked up to the woman. "Can you help me find a book?" she asked. Make an inference about where Sara is.

 "Sara is in the library"

200

Bats are fascinating animals. They are not birds, they are flying mammals. Some bats eat fruit, others eat insects. Bats are experts at flying. They use a system called echolocation to fly quickly in the dark. Which is the main idea of this text passage? A. Bats are flying mammals. B. Bats are fascinating animals. C. Some bats eat fruit.

A. "Bats are fascinating animals."

200

Niagara Falls is one of the most beautiful sights in North America.It is on the Niagra River about halfway between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.Niagara Falls is on the American and Canadian border.The American Falls is 167 feet high.On the Canadian side, the Horseshoe Falls is 161 feet high.What is the main idea of the paragraph?

Niagara Falls is one of the most beautiful sights in North America.

300

There was snow on the ground. A _____ wolf came out of the woods. He was thin and very weak. He hunted for food. He could not find any. The context shows the word that best fits in the blank space is: a. large b. gray c. hungry

c: hungry

300

Nina held the glass jar very carefully. The teacher told the students to be careful because the experiment could explode. Slowly, Nina poured the green liquid into a glass jar. She wiped the edge of the jar and set it on the table. Next, she picked up the tube of red liquid. She measured one drop of it. Nina then carefully added the red drop to the green liquid. Make an inference about the class Nina is in.

 "Nina is in science class"

300

Many types of bacteria are helpful. For example, some are able to take nitrogen from the air. They then put it into the soil. This makes the soil better for growing plants. Some bacteria are helpful in making cheese. Other bacteria are helpful in making vinegar. What is the main idea of this text passage? A. Bacteria puts nitrogen from the air into the soil. B. Bacteria helps make food. C. Some types of bacteria helps humans.

C. "Some types of bacteria helps humans."

300

An elephant's most DISTINCTIVE feature is its trunk. The long, snake-like trunk enables the elephant to smell, but it can also grab, hold, and pick things up.

What does DISTINCTIVE mean?

Distinctive means special

400

There are many people in the city who sell things. Some merchants sell food. Some sell clothes. I like the merchants who sell toys best. the word merchant means: a. people who sell things b. people who buy things c. people who throw things

a: people who sell things

400

There are many different ways of going to school. Some children go to school by radio. The teacher talks to the children over the radio. The children can talk back to the teacher. In some desert countries, children go to school in tents. They people move across the desert, carrying the tent school with them. In some hot countries, children go to school outside all year long. They do not sit in buildings. The sit on the grass. Make an inference about why children in hot countries go to school outside all year long.

 "It would be too hot to have school inside a building so they sit on the cool grass"

400

Our solar system is very large. It includes the eight planets that turn around the sun. These planets include Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. There are also hundreds of thousands of smaller planets in this system. They are called asteroids. Each asteroid is much smaller than any of the eight large planets. What is the main idea of this text passage? A. Our solar system is made up of the Sun, the nine large planets and many asteroids. B. Pluto used to be a planet but now is a dwarf planet. C. There are eight large planets in our solar system.

A."Our solar system is made up of the Sun, the nine large planets and many asteroids."

400

Lisa carefully examined the bug sitting on the leaf. She noticed that it had six legs and a hard shell. Lisa had never seen a bug like this before. She grabbed her magnifying glass and camera. What is the MOST LIKELY conclusion you can draw about Lisa? A. She is helpful. B. She is afraid of bugs. C. She is very curious. D. She likes to play soccer.

B. she is very curious

500

Sometimes people hurt animals. I think people should be tender and kind to animals. Most animals are nice. They do not hurt anyone. which word is a synonym for tender? a. mean b. loving c. angry

b: loving

500

Sparta and Athens were Greek cities. Long ago, the people of both cities sent their children to school. The children learned different things there. In Sparta, the children went to school outdoors. They learned how to jump and run. They learned how to dance. They learned how to play many different games. In Athens, only boys went to school. They learned how to read, write, and speak correctly. They learned how to count and use numbers. Make an inference about schooling for girls in Sparta and Athens.

"Girls went to school in Sparta but not in Athens"

500

Honeybees form large hives. There are thousands of bees in a hive. One bee is the queen. She lays the eggs. Some bees gather nectar and pollen from flowers to make honey. Other bees protect the hive. Some bees keep the hive clean. Still other bees help the queen. Each bee has a special job to do in the bee hive. What is the main idea of this text passage? A. Bees work together to make honey. B. Each bee has a job to do in a beehive. C. The queen is the most important bee.

B. "Each bee has a job to do in a beehive."

500

The shelves were piled high with boxes of every size and shape. Each group had a different picture and different bright colors. There were so many people – men and women, mothers with little children, teenagers putting more boxes on the shelves. Some of the people were talking together as they chose the boxes and cans that they wanted. Jeff was having a hard time remembering which one to buy. He knew that Tooli wouldn’t be happy if he brought home the wrong brand! He also knew that Tooli was probably getting very hungry! Where was Jeff?

At the grocery store?