What lesson does Jenny learn in this story?
Analyze and Evaluate Information and Ideas · TELPAS Grade 3 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.
Jenny’s Triangle
Jenny wanted to play the drums in the third-grade music show. But on the first day of practice, Mr. Parker handed her a small metal triangle and a thin metal stick.
Jenny frowned. “It only makes one sound,” she whispered to her friend Paloma.
For two weeks, Jenny practiced with the band. She learned to count the beats and wait. Her triangle played only once, at the very end of the song, after the drums stopped.
On the night of the show, the gym was full of families. When the drums stopped, the room was silent. Jenny tapped the triangle. Ting! The bright sound rang across the whole gym.
After the show, Jenny’s dad hugged her. “I could hear you all the way from the back row,” he said. Jenny smiled. One sound had been enough.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What lesson does Jenny learn in this story?
- The drums are the best instrument.
- A small part can still be important.Correct answer
- It is better to practice alone.
- A big gym is the best place for a show.
Why “A small part can still be important.” is correct
This asks for the theme of the whole story. At first Jenny is unhappy because the triangle “only makes one sound,” but at the show that one sound is heard across the gym and her dad notices it. Her last thought, “One sound had been enough,” shows what she has learned.
Why the other answers are wrong
- The drums are the best instrument. — The story ends with the triangle being heard, not with praise for the drums.
- It is better to practice alone. — Jenny practices with the band, and the story never compares practicing alone.
- A big gym is the best place for a show. — The gym is only the setting; the story is not about places for shows.
Practice more of this
More reading 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.