TELPAS Practice

Where is north on most maps?

Basic Understanding of Spoken English · TELPAS Grade 3 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.

Listen to the teacher talk about social studies. Then answer the questions.

Reading a Map

Listen to Reading a Map0:48

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Show transcript

Mr. Turner: Today we are going to read a map. A map is a drawing of a place, as if you were looking down on it from the sky.

Mr. Turner: Look at the corner of the map. You will see a small shape with letters on it. It is called a compass rose. It shows the four directions: north, south, east, and west.

Mr. Turner: On most maps, north is at the top. So when you move your finger down the map, you are going south.

Mr. Turner: A map also has a key. The key tells what each little picture means. On our town map, a tiny tree means a park, and a book means a library.

The question

Choose the best answer.

Where is north on most maps?

  • At the bottom
  • At the topCorrect answer
  • On the left side
  • In the middle

Why “At the top” is correct

This tests catching a key fact that was said directly. The teacher says, “On most maps, north is at the top,” and adds that moving down the map means going south. A student who remembers only the word “down” might choose the bottom.

Why the other answers are wrong

  • At the bottom — The bottom is south; the teacher says moving down means going south.
  • On the left side — The teacher does not say north is on the left.
  • In the middle — The teacher does not say anything is in the middle of the map.

Practice more of this

More listening practice for Grade 3, or see the TELPAS practice test for 3rd 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.