📖 ReadingLevel 1Lesson 12
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What Happens Next?

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Learning Objectives

  • 1Use clues from the story to predict the most likely next event
  • 2Distinguish a reasonable prediction from an unlikely or random one
  • 3Explain a prediction using evidence from the text
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Mini Lesson

Good readers do not just follow the words — they also think ahead. They use clues in the story to guess what might come next. This is called making a prediction.

What is a prediction?

  • A prediction is a smart guess about what will happen next.
  • It is not a random guess — it is based on clues in the story.
  • A good prediction fits what the story has already told you.

How to make a prediction

  1. Read carefully. Pay attention to what the characters do and say.
  2. Spot the clues. Look for actions, feelings, or words that hint at what comes next.
  3. Think it through. Ask: "What makes sense here? What would happen in real life?"
  4. Choose the most likely option. The best prediction fits all the clues.

Example

  • Story clue: Jake saw dark clouds filling the sky. He had left his umbrella at home.
  • What happens next? → Jake gets wet in the rain — because the clues (dark clouds, no umbrella) both point that way.
Three-panel comic strip showing prediction of what happens nextThree panels in a row. Panel 1 shows an event. Panel 2 shows a consequence. Panel 3 shows a question mark — the reader predicts what will happen.What happens next?1Dark cloudsEvent2No umbrellaConsequence3?Predict!What now?Clues → Prediction
Three panels — event, consequence, then a predicted next event.
Clues in the story pointing to a predictionTwo thought-bubble clues at the top — dark clouds and no umbrella — with arrows pointing down to a prediction box that reads Jake will get wet.Clues in the story → PredictionClue 1Dark cloudsClue 2No umbrellaPredictionJake will get wet.Both clues point to the same answer!
Clue-thought-bubbles point to a prediction based on story evidence.
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Ask yourself: "What do the clues tell me? What makes the most sense to happen next?"

Vocabulary
Prediction
A smart guess about what will happen next, based on clues in the storye.g. "I think the tooth will fall out" — because the tooth wobbled and Ella bit an apple.
Clue
A detail in the story — an action, feeling, or word — that hints at the next evente.g. dark clouds, no umbrella, a wobbly tooth
Evidence
The part of the story a reader uses to support their predictione.g. "I know it will rain because the story says the sky is dark."
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← Lesson 11: Beginning, Middle, and EndLesson 13: Talking About Feelings in Stories →