Name: _______________________________________________
Inferences Worksheet 5

Directions: Read each passage and then respond to the questions. Each question will ask you to make a logical inference based on textual details. Explain your answer by referencing the text.

Jenna was shocked when she opened the door to her apartment. There were long rips in the couch, as though someone ran knives down the front of it. A lamp was shattered on the floor. The picture frames were hanging crookedly, some of them had fallen off the wall completely and the door to her cat's travel cage was open. Not only that, but the door to the birdcage was swinging back and forth and there were feathers on the floor. She swore that she had locked her cat in the travel cage before she left for work. At first Jenna thought it might have been burglars. Oh no, she thought. Someone broke into my apartment, trashed the place, and stole my cat! Then she heard the cat meowing in her bedroom. She ran to the bedroom and saw the cat patting one of Jenna's favorite shoes with its claw. "That's it!" Jenna yelled. "I'm done with this." Then she threw the cat back into its travel cage and tried to shut the door, but the lock wouldn't catch. Jenna huffed and then grabbed some duct tape.

1. What happened to Jenna's apartment? _________________________________________________

How do you know this? 

2. Why is there an empty birdcage in Jenna's apartment? ____________________________________

How do you know this? 

3. What is Jenna going to do with the cat? ________________________________________________

How do you know this? 

"I'm home!" Earl shouted as he walked in the door. His wife Gail came bounding down the stairs. She hadn't seen him since he left to go on this silly fishing trip two weeks ago. "I missed you, Husband. Did you catch anything?" Gail reluctantly asked. She knew that Earl was not a very good fisherman. Earl scratched his head and responded, "You're not going to believe what I'm bringing home." Earl unzipped a cooler and pulled out several perfectly filleted salmon steaks. "Wow, Earl, I didn't know that you could fillet a fish like that." Earl looked around the room a little bit and scratched his head, "Uh, yeah, Jeff taught me how." Gail looked at him suspiciously. "Well, let me help you unpack." As Gail was helping Earl unpack his truck, she found a receipt from the grocery store. It was dated from this morning. What she saw was both disappointing and unsurprising.

4. What did Gail find on the receipt? ____________________________________________________

How do you know this? 

5. Why was Gail disappointed and unsurprised with what she saw? ____________________________

How do you know this? 

"Gus, I need to see you in my office," said Mr. Matthews. Gus nervously shut the door to Mr. Matthews' office behind him and took a seat. Mr. Matthews' office was so high up that Gus had to angle his chair awkwardly so that he wasn't staring out the window. Mr. Matthews pointed his finger at Gus and began talking, "You have been fitting in great over here, and that's one of the most important things you can do in this company." Gus let out a sigh of relief. Mr. Matthews continued speaking. "Gus, I want to invite you on a company trip. We will be taking a private jet to Colorado." Gus's eyes widened and his heart began thumping rapidly. "Wow, Mr. Matthews! I don't know what to say," Gus replied honestly. Mr. Matthews continued, "Then we will be climbing up a mountain to a private cabin." Gus loosened his tie a bit a gulped. He was hoping that it would be over but Mr. Matthews continued, "After completing some team building activities, we will take a hot air balloon ride over the mountains!" Gus's heart was now pounding so hard that he was worried that Mr. Matthews might see it thumping through his shirt. He was sweating excessively. Mr. Matthews slapped him on the shoulder, "So what do you say Gus?" Gus did not know what to say.

6. Why does the view from Mr. Matthews' office make Gus uncomfortable? _____________________

How do you know this? 

7. How does Gus really feel about his boss's invitation? Why does he feel this way? _______________

 __________________________________________________________________________________

How do you know this? 

8. Why is Gus reluctant to tell Mr. Matthews how he truly feels? ______________________________

How do you know this? 

Mike got out of the driver seat of the classic car. He looked at the mailbox and then at the bumper. The mailbox was smashed and bent. The shiny chrome bumper had a dent about the size of a football around the passenger side corner. Mike shook his head and got back in the driver seat. He knew what he had to do. He didn't want to do it, but he did. He drove back home and sat in the driveway for a few minutes, holding his head in his palms. Then Mike's dad came out of the house carrying a black garbage bag. He smiled and waved at Mike as he passed the driver side of the car. Then he looked again as he walked past the passenger side of the vehicle. His mouth dropped open and he let go of the garbage bag. 

9. In the text it says, "[Mike] knew what he had to do." What did Mike have to do? _______________

How do you know this? 

10. What is Mike going to tell his father and how will his father react? _________________________

How do you know this?