Your own sentence has to say why it matters'?
Listen to a Classroom Conversation · ELPAC Grades 6–8 listening. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
A multiple-turn conversation between two speakers, followed by three questions.
Listen to the conversation between Ms. Villanueva and Theo. Then answer the questions.
Quotations in a Research Draft
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Ms. Villanueva: Theo, your draft on the Owens Valley aqueduct has strong sources, but two of your paragraphs are just quotations stitched together.
Theo: I thought using the sources was the point.
Ms. Villanueva: Using them is the point. Quoting them is not the same thing. A quotation shows what somebody else said. Your own sentence has to say why it matters.
Theo: So should I cut the quotations?
Ms. Villanueva: Keep the two strongest ones. After each one, add a sentence in your own words that connects it to your claim about the farmers. Bring me that revised page on Thursday, before you touch the rest of the essay.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What does Ms. Villanueva mean when she says, 'A quotation shows what somebody else said. Your own sentence has to say why it matters'?
- Theo has to explain, in his own words, how each quotation supports his argument.Correct answer
- Theo should stop quoting and put every source into his own words.
- Theo should quote longer passages so that the meaning is clear.
- Theo should move all of his quotations to the end of the essay.
Why “Theo has to explain, in his own words, how each quotation supports his argument.” is correct
This tests understanding of a speaker's point when it is made through a contrast rather than an instruction. The two sentences set a quotation against the writer's own sentence, and her next turn spells out the same idea as a concrete step: keep two quotations and add a sentence after each connecting it to the claim. Students who treat the contrast as a rejection of quoting altogether pick the wrong answer.
Why the other answers are wrong
- Theo should stop quoting and put every source into his own words. — She explicitly tells him to keep the two strongest quotations, so removing all of them is the opposite of her advice.
- Theo should quote longer passages so that the meaning is clear. — Her complaint is that the paragraphs already contain too much quoted material, not too little.
- Theo should move all of his quotations to the end of the essay. — Where the quotations sit is never the issue; what surrounds them is.
Practice more of this
More listening practice for Grades 6–8, or see the ELPAC practice test for grades 6–8. For other grades, see free ELPAC practice tests by grade.
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the California Department of Education or the official ELPAC program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published task formats.