INFER Thinking Routine

This teaching guide supports educators as they model the INFER Thinking Routine, an artifact analysis strategy that helps students engage deeply with visual sources by moving through five structured steps: Imagine, Notice, Find Differences, Evaluate, and Reimagine. Students begin by activating prior knowledge and surfacing assumptions, then analyze the artifact’s details and perspectives, compare their expectations with the source, and reflect on bias, context, and meaning.