Hands off My Phone! (An ELA audio drama)
[Music] [Applause]
Oh no, he didn't! That is so harsh. Hey, your dad took your phone away just for getting a D on the history test? Yup, my mind is blown. Mine too! I mean, that was an easy test. What? I can't believe you got a D! Hey, that's not really... and your dad is the school principal and he took your phone away? Whoa. You know, this isn't really helping. Your life is so bleak right now.
Well, thank you so much for your encouraging words! What did I say?
Hey, Jamela! Hey, friends! What's with the face of doom? Valentina, have you been eating those poisonous apples from the tree behind the bleachers again? My dad took my phone away.
Yikes! Glad I'm not you. Oh, what do I have to do to get some sympathy around here?
Sorry, what were you saying? Oh, never mind.
[Music]
Did you know about this? No? Well, this just gets better and better. Unbelievable! Did he just...? He did! I'm calling my lawyer!
You don't have a lawyer; you're 12 years old!
Oh yeah, but the point is, this is America, land of the free. What kind of freedom is this?
Well, Valentina, what? What are you going to do? Last time I checked, Mr. Rosario was still your dad. It was you flunking the history test that gave him this idea in the first place. Your problem; you figure it out.
Can you believe it? They confiscated my phone because I took it out for literally four seconds to check a text from my mom! That's just wrong! I mean, what if it was a serious emergency or something, right? I don't know how much longer I can take it. It's such an inconvenience to wait until after school to check my texts or contact my friends. Plus, now I have to write down my assignments, which takes forever! It was so much faster to just take a picture! Like, do they want us to go back to the Stone Age or what?
Hey, hey! I figured it out!
What?
Jamila said this was my problem, so I came up with a plan.
This better be good.
Oh, it's good! You know how my dad said that he was banning cell phones because research said they were distracting?
How could I forget! But what was he doing when he said that?
Being an evil dictator?
Nope! He was using reasons and evidence! And that is what we're going to do to you!
Means?
That's right! We're going to write an argumentative essay!
Is this a joke?
No, it's genius! You're a genius! Valentina will turn their own weapons against them and crush them mercilessly!
With what?
A topic sentence!
Exactly! But first, we've got to come up with a full list of points. So, are you guys going to help me or not?
I'm in!
Jamila?
Fine! But if this doesn't work, you're doing my homework for the next decade!
It's a deal! Now, let's do this!
[Music]