Why does Mateo say "Same time next year" and mean it?
Analyze and Evaluate Information and Ideas · TELPAS Grades 4–5 reading. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
Reporting category 3: make inferences, draw conclusions, and think about why the author wrote a text and how it is built.
Read the passage. Then answer the questions.
The Pecan Harvest
Every November, the pecan tree in Grandma Rosa’s backyard dropped its nuts all over the grass. And every November, Grandma Rosa handed Mateo a bucket.
“Fill it to the top,” she said, “and we will have enough for pies at Thanksgiving.”
Mateo groaned. Picking up pecans was tedious work. He had to bend down again and again, and each nut made only a tiny click when it landed in the bucket. After ten minutes, the bottom of the bucket was barely covered.
Then Grandma Rosa came out of the shed with an old wire tool on a long handle. She rolled it across the grass, and the pecans popped up inside the wire basket. “Your grandfather made this,” she said. “He hated bending down too.”
Mateo laughed and took the handle. He rolled it back and forth under the tree, and soon the bucket was half full. Grandma Rosa sat on the porch step and told him about the year Grandpa had tried to sell pecans at the farmers market and had eaten more than he sold.
By the time the sun went down, the bucket was full. Mateo’s back did not hurt at all, and he knew three new stories about a grandfather he had never met.
“Same time next year?” Grandma Rosa asked.
“Same time next year,” Mateo said, and he meant it.
The question
Choose the best answer.
Why does Mateo say "Same time next year" and mean it?
- He wants to sell pecans at the farmers market next year, like Grandpa did.
- He wants to take his grandfather’s tool home with him.
- He enjoyed working with his grandmother and hearing her stories.Correct answer
- His grandmother promised to pay him next November.
Why “He enjoyed working with his grandmother and hearing her stories.” is correct
This tests inferring a character’s reason. The story does not say why Mateo wants to come back, but paragraph 6 points to what changed: his back did not hurt, and he "knew three new stories about a grandfather he had never met." The time with Grandma Rosa and her stories is what made the afternoon worth repeating.
Why the other answers are wrong
- He wants to sell pecans at the farmers market next year, like Grandpa did. — Selling pecans was Grandpa’s idea in one of the stories, not Mateo’s plan.
- He wants to take his grandfather’s tool home with him. — Nothing in the story says Mateo wants to keep the tool.
- His grandmother promised to pay him next November. — Grandma Rosa never mentions paying him.
Practice more of this
More reading practice for Grades 4–5, or see the TELPAS practice test for 4th and 5th grade.
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Texas Education Agency or the official TELPAS program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published test design.