Umair had just turned eleven years old. He had been given a smartphone by his parents as a present. Previously, if Umair wanted to use a smartphone, he had to borrow it from his elder sister. Since Umair had gotten his smartphone, he spent all his free time chatting with his friends or playing games. His mother did not like him using his smartphone so much, and she had asked him on numerous occasions to first complete his homework and then use it. But Umair did not listen to his mother. The smartphone remained in his hand even at meal times. He would not leave it even for a minute. Umair was an average student but now his grades started going down, because he had stopped studying. Soon the dates for his exams were announced. Even though he knew his exams were near, Umair did not give up using his smartphone for playing games and chatting. The days went by quickly and his exams got nearer. Soon his exams started.
Umair found a lot of the papers difficult and could not understand majority of the questions. He had not been a brilliant student but had managed to pass his exams. But this time he failed in mathematics and science and barely passed in other subjects. Umair’s mother was very upset, and when his father came home in the evening, he was also very angry. Umair himself was feeling embarrassed, because he had never failed before. Now after he had failed, the friends he used to chat and waste time with were making fun of him. His parents took away his smartphone. He felt quite lost without it. He understood that he had not passed the exams, because he had wasted his time on his smartphone. Umair did not want his parents to be disappointed in him, so he made his mind up to study hard. But he had forgotten most of what he had been taught at school. He did not know whom to ask for help and was quite worried.
That is when a brilliant idea occurred to him. Instead of playing games or chatting on his smartphone, he could download an app for mathematics and science on it and practice them. He went to his parents and shared his idea. At first, they did not agree. But when Umair promised to give them good results, he was allowed to have it for a short time every day only for practicing and understanding mathematics and science. Umair worked very hard. The app helped him to study well. Next time, Umair was well prepared for exams and didn’t find them difficult. When results came, he was amazed to see that his numbers were the highest in class. He had never gotten such high marks. The app in his smartphone had helped him not only to pass his exam but become smarter, too.
Fatima Imran Ahmed
11 years
Foundation Public School
Winner of Mega Writing Competition 2018
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