Mr. Mitchell says the extra quarter of a day "adds up." What does he mean?
Understand Spoken Words and Language Structures · TELPAS Grades 8–9 listening. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
Reporting category 1: follow spoken directions and understand words and phrases as they are used in speech. On the real test some of these ask the student to click on a picture.
Listen to the lesson.
Why We Have Leap Years
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Mr. Mitchell: Here's a question for you. Why does February sometimes have twenty-nine days? It comes down to how long it takes Earth to travel around the Sun.
Mr. Mitchell: We say a year is three hundred sixty-five days, but the real number is closer to three hundred sixty-five and a quarter. That extra quarter of a day doesn't sound like much, but it adds up. After four years, it's almost a whole day.
Mr. Mitchell: If we ignored it, the calendar would slowly drift away from the seasons. Over hundreds of years, the months would move out of their usual seasons. So about every four years, we add one day, February twenty-ninth, to keep the calendar in line with Earth. That's a leap year.
The question
Choose the best answer.
Mr. Mitchell says the extra quarter of a day "adds up." What does he mean?
- The numbers are easy to add together.
- Small amounts grow bigger over time.Correct answer
- The calendar is always correct.
- A quarter of a day is not important.
Why “Small amounts grow bigger over time.” is correct
This tests an everyday phrase in a lesson. When something "adds up," small amounts collect into something bigger. Mr. Mitchell explains it right away: after four years, the quarter days make almost a whole day.
Why the other answers are wrong
- The numbers are easy to add together. — He is not talking about doing math problems.
- The calendar is always correct. — He says the calendar would drift without a fix.
- A quarter of a day is not important. — He says it does not sound like much but does matter.
Practice more of this
More listening practice for Grades 8–9, or see the TELPAS practice test for 8th and 9th 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.