Activities for Making Predictions

In First Grade, we need to focus on helping our students build a foundation for life-long learning. An essential starting place is learning to read and comprehend what is being read. We already talked about identifying the main idea and key details and visualizing in the last posts. We will discuss another important link in reading comprehension, making and adjusting predictions. We will define and discuss 3 fun and engaging ways to teach this important skill. Next, we will identify struggles typical first graders might encounter and how we can keep kids engaged with activities for making predictions outside of the classroom.

Making Predictions — Learn all about this skill and score some free printables at the end.

What Exactly Is Making And Adjusting Predictions?

Making and adjusting predictions is an essential part of reading comprehension. Most of us do it without even thinking while reading. By picking up a book, magazine, newspaper, or even start scrolling articles on the Internet, we have an idea what we’re reading about. Predictions are ideas we have of what might happen next in the piece we are reading.

Predicting allows students to understand the story better. Activities for making predictions should connect to what they are reading, and interact with the text.

For young learners, predictions are usually as simple as looking at the front cover or hearing the title of a written piece and deciding what the story may be about. Then we read to see if our predictions were right or not. Halfway through, you and your first graders may want to stop reading and ask if any students want to change their predictions based on what has already been read.

For more ideas to teach important reading comprehension strategies for young learners, I would encourage you to check out this article on Reading Strategies for Comprehension: 15 Strategies You Must Teach Students to Master.

3 Fun And Engaging Ways To Teach Making And Adjusting Predictions In 1st Grade

Take a picture walk. Before reading a story, take a picture walk with your students. Simply look through the pictures and make predictions about the story.
Stop and adjust predictions. Read part of the story, then stop. Take a moment for students to adjust their predictions.
See how accurate the predictions were. At the end of the story, take a moment to discuss how accurate your students’ predictions were. Discuss how their strategy may change in predicting the next story they read.

Don’t forget about the importance of retelling stories, too. After students have learned about making and adjusting predictions, it’s great to retell stories for even more practice with reading comprehension. Be sure to revisit my blog on Retelling of a Story: 3 Tips Guaranteed to boost Comprehension.

What Struggles Might First Graders Have With Making And Adjusting Predictions?

Young learners in general have a tendency to get stuck on one idea or another. Your students may base predictions on previous stories they have read. Get them to imagine all possibilities. It is okay if you help by posing questions for them to consider: What if this person is mad/sad/happy? What if they were hungry? What if they were best friends? What if it were rainy/sunny/cold/hot outside? How might these things change your prediction?

No matter what the story is about, you can help your students to expand their predictions by asking questions. For our young learners, first, second, and third grade, there are great resources available in the form of Reading Comprehension Mini Lessons. Activities for making predictions and adjusting them should go along with common core standards and will help reinforce reading comprehension strategies.

How Can We Keep Kids Engaged At Home?

Practicing activities for making predictions makes perfect. We know that our students won’t get enough practice at school, so partnering with home life is the perfect solution. Encourage your students to practice their reading comprehension skills at home. Making and adjusting predictions is easy to do with a parent or guardian at home. Your students will love sharing what they are learning with their loved ones at home.