1. Grade 6 Science Current Events
Current Events completed assignment will be due on September 20th
Presentations (1 minute) will take place on
October 3rd

3. Current events MUST be SCIENCE related!!!!

4. Let’s see the difference between a well written current event and a poorly written one.

5. First Things First…
YOU MUST FILL OUT THE TOP PART! FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN A LOSS OF POINTS!!!
1. Date of Article (must be published on or after August 1, 2017): 8/11/2017  
2. Source (circle one):
The Home News Tribune Newsela
The Star Ledger The Sentinel
National Geographic for Kids
3. Title of Article: Poland's Mysterious 'Crooked Forest'  

6. Complete #’s 4-6 BEFORE reading the article.
Follow Instructions…
Complete #’s 4-6 BEFORE reading the article.

7. Poland's Mysterious 'Crooked Forest' By Meera Dolasia on 10/11/2011

8. I don’t know anything about Poland.
4. Prepare your mind for reading the article. Write down what you know about all of the main words in the title. Do not make a prediction or summary on the article.
Poorly written response
I don’t know anything about Poland.
Well written response
I know that Poland is a country in Europe. I also know that a mystery involves some type of situation that must be solved so there must be clues somewhere to help figure out why the trees are crooked. Trees usually grow straight to get sunlight.

9. Why are the trees in Poland crooked?
5. Write a well-developed question you have about the article based on the title. Do not simply turn the title into a question.
Poland's Mysterious 'Crooked Forest'
Poorly written response
Why are the trees in Poland crooked?
Well Written response
What does the term “crooked forest” mean? Why is this a mystery? Is the shape of the entire forest crooked or are the trees crooked?

10. 6. Your article MUST contain at least one visual aid
6. Your article MUST contain at least one visual aid. In the box below, circle all visual aid categories found in your article and write what you learned from each in your own words.
Poorly written response
Picture with a caption: I learned that there are crooked trees in Poland
Well written response
Picture with a caption: I learned that many of the trees in this forest are crooked. They all bend in the same direction and on the same curve. There is nothing holding the trees in place.

11. Follow Instructions…
Now, read the article.

12. Poland's Mysterious 'Crooked Forest' By Meera Dolasia on 10/11/2011

13. Take a stroll inside the pine forest near Gryfino in Northwest Poland and you will feel like you were just transported to Harry Potter's 'Forbidden Forest' - thanks to the 400 eerily curved pine trees.
The odd part is that the pine trees surrounding this tiny area, dubbed 'Crooked Forest' are all straight as arrows - Just the way they are supposed to be. So how did these specimens turn out so cool-looking?

14. While nobody knows for sure, the theory is that the trees are shaped this way, thanks to human intervention, with the saplings allowed to grow for about ten years and then pinned down in a way that they emerge with a 90° bend, before straightening out again. Some locals, who were alive at the time, believe it was the handiwork of special carpenters from the German special forces in the 1930's - for use in boat hulls and furniture. But, the trees were never harvested because of the chaos created when the World War 2 broke out in 1939.

15. However, the expert lumberjacks of the Gryfino forest disagree - Given that pine trees are not good for either furniture or boat hulls, they think that the trees in this area just naturally grew in this eerie manner. Whatever the real reason, we sure are glad they are here for all of us to enjoy!
Resources: Dailymail.co.uk, news.discovery.com

16. Facts: Crooked trees have been found in a forest in Poland.
7. Scientific writing has combinations of fact, speculation, and reasoned judgement. Circle all components found in your article in the box provided. Using your article, write an example for each circled component. You will definitely have one, possibly two or three depending on the article's contents.
Poorly Written Example
Facts: The trees are crooked.
Well written Example
Facts: Crooked trees have been found in a forest in Poland.
Reasoned Judgement: “Some locals, who were alive at the time, believe it was the handiwork of special carpenters from the German special forces in the 1930's - for use in boat hulls and furniture. But, the trees were never harvested because of the chaos created when the World War 2 broke out in 1939.”

17. Forest - A large group of trees.
8. Choose one domain specific vocabulary word (science vocabulary word) from your article. Define it using your own words.
Poorly written response
Forest - A large group of trees.
Well written response
Sapling - a sapling a a smaller, younger tree. It is easily bent and vulnerable to damage.

18. 9. Using no more than seven sentences fully explain, in your own words, the central idea of the article. Include important details such as who, what, when, where and why.
Poorly Written Example
This article is about a forest that has trees that have grown crooked. It is important because it is strange.
Well written Example
This article tells about a forest in Poland. The trees in the forest have all grown first to the side, then straight up. All of the other trees in the surrounding forest have grown straight. This has left a mystery to be solved about the crooked trees. Some believe that people strapped down the trees in their first ten years of life then left them to grow on their own. They think that the wood was to be used in making hulls of ships and for furniture around the time of World War I. It would be interesting to see if scientists can solve the mystery.

19. On the Presentation Day
Each student will be given ONE MINUTE to present.
We will move QUICKLY so be ready when it’s your turn. You will present the information below and I STRONGLY suggest you write the information on an index card so you stay within your allotted time and on topic. Going off topic will cause you to lose points.
Title of Article
An explanation of the article so the audience could understand the central idea including who, what, when, where and why as needed.