What is the author's main purpose in writing this letter?
Analyze and Evaluate Information and Ideas · TELPAS Grades 8–9 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 letter. Then answer the questions.
A Crosswalk for Mesquite Road
Dear Members of the City Council,
My name is Hector Valdez, and I am in ninth grade at Ridgeview High School. I am writing to ask you to put a crosswalk with a flashing signal on Mesquite Road in front of Ridgeview Park.
Every afternoon, dozens of students cross Mesquite Road to get from school to the park, where many of us have soccer practice or wait for rides. The nearest crosswalk is at Oak Street, almost half a mile away. Almost nobody walks that far. Instead, students wait for a gap in traffic and run across four lanes.
Last month, my friends and I counted cars on Mesquite Road between 3:30 and 4:30 on five school days. We counted more than 400 cars an hour. On one afternoon alone, we saw students run between moving cars eleven times.
Some people say students should just walk to Oak Street. I agree that it would be safer. But people choose the shortest path, especially when they are carrying heavy backpacks and are late for practice. A rule that people do not follow does not protect anyone. A crosswalk where students actually cross would.
I understand that the city has a limited budget. But a crosswalk is a one-time cost, and hundreds of students would use it every week for years.
Please visit Mesquite Road on a school afternoon and see for yourselves. I would be glad to show you where we cross.
Sincerely, Héctor Valdez
The question
Choose the best answer.
What is the author's main purpose in writing this letter?
- To thank the council for a new crosswalk
- To describe soccer practice at the park
- To complain about how the city spends its budget
- To persuade the council to add a crosswalkCorrect answer
Why “To persuade the council to add a crosswalk” is correct
This question asks for the author's purpose. The second paragraph states it directly: "I am writing to ask you to put a crosswalk..." The rest of the letter gives reasons and answers objections, which are signs of persuasive writing.
Why the other answers are wrong
- To thank the council for a new crosswalk — The crosswalk does not exist yet; he is asking for it.
- To describe soccer practice at the park — Practice is only one reason students cross the road.
- To complain about how the city spends its budget — He mentions the budget only to answer a concern.
Practice more of this
More reading practice for Grades 8–9, or see the TELPAS practice test for 8th and 9th 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.