Review:
Ali Ankeny, a 10th grade City High School student in Tucson, Arizona, is very stressed out about her school assignments, exams, and when she loses things. Ali wants to find ways to reduce stress by interviewing her classmates and friends for some ideas. This piece, How We Relax: Teenagers and Stress, is a vox pop of Ali classmates’ voices and ideas about ways to relieve stress. These ideas include taking naps, eating, laying down while cuddling with their pets, drinking tea, listening to music and so on. Ali shares some of these activities such as working out, doing yoga, and dancing.

Suggestions:
I think Ali’s voice draws her audience to listen to her podcast. By providing facts about stress and its impact on teenagers’ brain function, Ali draws her audience into the piece and makes them curious about what her story entails. I also like that Ali asks her friend to play a quick guitar song; that part adds a lot to the mood of the story and allows me to feel very relaxed and stressless.

Descriptive Words: Restful, Comfortable, and Mellow