What is the first part to come out of a bean seed?
Basic Understanding of Spoken English · TELPAS Grades 4–5 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 seeds. Then answer the questions.
From Seed to Sprout
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Show transcript
Mr. Anderson: Today we are going to plant bean seeds. A seed may look like a tiny pebble, but inside it there is a baby plant, waiting for the right time to grow.
Mr. Anderson: A seed needs water, air, and warmth to begin growing. When it gets these things, the seed swells up and its hard coat splits open. The first part to come out is the root. It grows down into the soil to take in water.
Mr. Anderson: Next, a small green shoot pushes up toward the light. Until the plant grows leaves and can make its own food from sunlight, it lives on food that was stored inside the seed.
Mr. Anderson: We will plant two cups of seeds and water them the same way. One cup will sit on our warm, sunny windowsill. The other will go in the refrigerator in the teachers' lounge. Each day, we will check both cups and write down what we see.
The question
Choose the best answer.
What is the first part to come out of a bean seed?
- the rootCorrect answer
- the leaves
- the shoot
- the flower
Why “the root” is correct
This tests sequence words in a science talk. The teacher says, "The first part to come out is the root," and then, "Next, a small green shoot pushes up." The shoot is the trap, because many people picture the green part first.
Why the other answers are wrong
- the leaves — Leaves come later, after the shoot pushes up.
- the shoot — The shoot comes next, after the root.
- the flower — Flowers are never mentioned.
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.