Which plant is the speaker describing?
Understand Spoken Words and Language Structures · TELPAS Grades 4–5 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 description. Then answer the question.
A Texas Plant
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This plant grows in dry, sunny parts of Texas. It has flat, green pads covered with sharp spines, and in the spring it grows bright yellow flowers. Some people even cook the young pads and eat them.
The question
Choose the best answer.
Which plant is the speaker describing?
- a bluebonnet
- a pecan tree
- a prickly pear cactusCorrect answer
- a sunflower
Why “a prickly pear cactus” is correct
The student has to combine several clues: dry places, flat green pads, sharp spines, and yellow flowers. Each wrong choice matches one clue, such as growing in Texas or having yellow flowers, but only the prickly pear fits them all. Words like pads and spines may be new, so the student must use the whole description.
Why the other answers are wrong
- a bluebonnet — Bluebonnets grow in Texas, but they have blue flowers and soft leaves, not flat pads with spines.
- a pecan tree — A pecan is a tall tree with nuts; it has no spiny pads.
- a sunflower — A sunflower has yellow flowers, but it has a tall stem and leaves, not flat pads with spines.
Practice more of this
More listening practice for Grades 4–5, or see the TELPAS practice test for 4th and 5th 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.