How did Ethan's grandmother help him?
Basic Understanding of Spoken English · TELPAS Grades 6–7 listening. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
Reporting category 2: understand the main points and important details of spoken stories and informational passages, about everyday life and school subjects.
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Tamales at Grandma's
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Every December, Ethan's family gathered at his grandmother's house to make tamales. This year, for the first time, she told him he was old enough to help at the big kitchen table instead of just watching.
She showed him how to spread masa on a corn husk with the back of a spoon. Ethan worked fast, piling on thick layers so he could finish more than his cousins. When his grandmother checked his husks, she shook her head and laughed. The masa was so thick that there was no room for the filling, and the husks would not fold closed.
She did not take over. Instead, she placed her hand over his and spread the masa again, slowly, until it was as thin as a tortilla. His next tamale took much longer, but it folded perfectly.
Late in the afternoon, Ethan's little cousin Mateo sat down next to him and reached for a husk. Ethan picked up a spoon and said, "Here, let me show you how Grandma does it."
The question
Choose the best answer.
How did Ethan's grandmother help him?
- She finished the tamales for him.
- She put her hand over his to guide it.Correct answer
- She told him to go and watch his cousins first.
- She gave him a bigger spoon to use.
Why “She put her hand over his to guide it.” is correct
This asks what a character did. The story says his grandmother "placed her hand over his and spread the masa again, slowly." The sentence right before it, "She did not take over," rules out the most tempting wrong choice. Students need to understand "take over" as a phrase meaning to do the job yourself.
Why the other answers are wrong
- She finished the tamales for him. — The story says, "She did not take over."
- She told him to go and watch his cousins first. — His cousins are mentioned only as people he wanted to beat.
- She gave him a bigger spoon to use. — No new spoon is mentioned.
Practice more of this
More listening practice for Grades 6–7, or see the TELPAS practice test for 6th and 7th 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.