Teen Brain Articles

Questions over “The Distracted Teenage Brain”

1. Write a one-paragraph summary of the article “The Distracted Teenage Brain” (5-6
sentences)

2. What does the word “entice” mean as used in paragraph 1? (highlight your answer)
A. to discourage
B. to inspire
C. to challenge
D. to attract

3. How does Vaidya suggest that teenagers overcome their tendency to become distracted?
(highlight your answer)
A. Use social media to trigger the reward system in their brains.
B. Use rewarding information to assist them when trying to concentrate.
C. Remove distractions and turn off the internet when trying to concentrate.
D. Remove distractions and turn off the internet to trigger the brain’s reward
system.

Questions over “WATCH OUT: CELL PHONES CAN BE ADDICTIVE”

1. Which of the following best summarizes the author’s purpose for writing this article?
(highlight your answer)
a. The author is trying to warn readers about the risks of excessive cell phone
usage.
b. The author is trying to challenge a widely accepted view that cell phone are
harmless.
c. The author wants to persuade university leaders to adopt policies that regulate
cell phone usage on college campuses
d. The author wants to express a neutral report about recent findings related to
cell phone addiction.

2. According to the article, addictions to certain behaviors occur when: (highlight your
answer)
a. People have no other options for ways to pass their time.
b. People repeatedly ignore signs that they are truly addicted to a behavior.
c. People rely on something to relieve their problems or uplift their mood.
d. People fail to read reports and research about addiction.

3. What are the costs and benefits of smartphone technology? Use evidence from this
text and your own experience in your answer. (ACE, 4 sentences)
Questions over both articles:

1. How could teens be more vulnerable to becoming addicted to their cell phones? Use
evidence from both articles to support your answer. (ACE 3 sentences)

2. Some schools have started requiring students to turn in their cell phones at the
beginning of the day and then the cell phones are returned to them at the end of the
day. Do you think this is a good idea? Use information from both articles and your own
experience to support your answer (ACE 5-6 sentences)