AAS Year 6 Reading practice: find the evidence before choosing.

Strong readers do more than recognise familiar words. They identify what the question asks, return to the relevant part of the text and test each answer against what the author actually gives them.

Use a four-step evidence-first method.

  1. Name the task. Is the question asking for a detail, an inference, the author's purpose or the meaning of a word in context?
  2. Find the relevant lines. Scan for the people, place, event or idea named in the question. Read a little before and after the matching words.
  3. Put evidence beside each likely option. An option may sound sensible but still add an idea the text does not support.
  4. Check the exact wording. Look for limiting words such as most, mainly, best and first.

This method is useful for independent practice because it makes a reader's thinking visible. If an answer is wrong, you can see whether the difficulty came from locating evidence, making an inference or checking the option precisely.

Worked example: what does the passage suggest?

Original short passage

Before sunrise, Mina carried a bucket to the community garden. The hose had been repaired the day before, but she filled the bucket anyway. By midday the wind had blown dust across the new seedlings, and the tap near the gate had stopped working again. Mina poured the water slowly around the smallest plants.

Question: What does the passage suggest about Mina?

  1. She dislikes working in the garden.
  2. She notices problems and prepares to help.
  3. She expects the plants to grow without water.
  4. She is waiting for someone to repair the hose.

Work it through: The question asks for an inference, so the answer may not appear as one exact sentence. Mina brings water even after the hose was repaired. When another tap fails, she can still water the smallest plants. Those actions support B: she notices a possible problem and prepares to help. A conflicts with her early effort; C conflicts with her watering; D is unsupported because she acts herself.

Self-check: can you separate evidence from a guess?

Read this original sentence: “Luca put his raincoat in his bag although the morning sky was clear; the weather app showed a dark band moving towards the oval.” Which statement has the best evidence?

  • A. Luca wants to lend his raincoat to a friend.
  • B. Luca expects rain later in the day.
  • C. Luca is unhappy about going to the oval.
  • D. Luca has lost his umbrella.

Check your thinking: The best answer is B. The dark band on the weather app explains the raincoat. Before looking at the answer, ask yourself: “Which exact detail rules out the other options?” If you cannot name one, return to the sentence before choosing.

Use the method in a wider plan.

Original SteadyMarks teaching examples for independent practice. Check the target school and AAS for current assessment arrangements.