What teenage brains can teach us about thinking creatively

Read the following paragraph from the section "Families, Environments Contribute To Brain Development."

That doesn't mean lifting all limits on teenage behavior or waving away risks entirely. But parents and educators can start by understanding that some risks are crucial for learning and creating, Williams and other researchers say.

How does using the word "understanding" affect the tone of the paragraph?

• It creates a more scholarly tone.

• It creates a more sympathetic tone.

• It creates a more sentimental tone.

• It creates a more serious tone.

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CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

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CCSS.RL.5.4

Read the following sentence from the introduction [paragraphs 1-4].

For years, adults have regarded teens as impulsive and emotionally uncontrolled.

Which two words would BEST replace "impulsive" and "uncontrolled" in the sentence above?

• sudden; unable

• spontaneous; instinctive

• decisive; unprepared

• reckless; unstable

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CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RI.7.4

CCSS.RI.8.4

Read the following claim.

Teenagers should not be trusted to make decisions for themselves.

How would Joanna Lee Williams MOST likely respond to this claim?

• Most teenagers do not have the capacity to make important decisions about their future.

• Taking risks and learning to exercise judgment are important aspects of learning to be an adult.

• Parents should give teens the chance to decide things on their own if they are mature enough.

• Teens develop their capacity to make decisions based on well-defined parental expectations.

What is the author's purpose for writing this article?

• to explain how many past beliefs about teen neurology have been disproven

• to illustrate that many common adolescent behaviors are complex, and little understood

• to explain how neurology can help adults teach, relate to and learn better from teens

• to illustrate that adolescents have contributed more to society than they get credit for

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CCSS.RI.6.6

CCSS.RI.7.6

CCSS.RI.7.9

CCSS.RI.8.6

CCSS.RL.7.6