A birdhouse is nailed into a tree 6 feet up from the ground. If the tree grows about 2 feet taller each year, where will the birdhouse be 25 years later?

Question

A.  50 feet
B.  56 feet
C.  26 feet
D.  6 feet
E.  4 feet

Clarify Question
· What is the key concept addressed by the question?
· What type of thinking is required?
· What key words does the question contain and what do they mean?

Gather Content
· What do you already know about a tree grows? How does it relate to the question?

Consider Possibilities
· What other information is related to the question? Which information is most useful?

Choose Answer
· Given what you now know, what information and/or problem solving approach is most likely to produce the correct answer?

Reflect on Process
· Did your problem-solving process lead you to the correct answer? If not, where did the process break down or lead you astray? How can you revise your approach to produce a more desirable result?

Answer 1

D.  6 feet

Clarify Question
· What is the key concept addressed by the question?
        o The mechanism of growth in a plant.
· What type of thinking is required?
            You must apply what you know about plant growth to a new situation.
· What key words does the question contain and what do they mean?
        o Tree, which is a perennial plant with an elongated stem and branches.
        o 25 years later, which means the tree will have changed in height.
        o 6 feet up from the ground, which is the original location on the stem/trunk for the birdhouse.

Gather Content
· What do you already know about a tree grows? How does it relate to the question?
        o Apical meristems cause an increase in plant height.
        o Apical meristems occur at the top of a plant.

Consider Possibilities
· What other information is related to the question? Which information is most useful?
        o Trees to not increase in height from the bottom up;  rather they grow at their upper margins.

Choose Answer
· Given what you now know, what information and/or problem solving approach is most likely to produce the correct answer?
        o To answer this question, you need to understand that increases in the height of plant occur from the top.  Any structures lower than the apical meristem do not change in elevation, even as the tree grows.  As long as the bird house is not placed at the top of a tree, it will not change in elevation, even as the tree grows.

Reflect on Process
· Did your problem-solving process lead you to the correct answer? If not, where did the process break down or lead you astray? How can you revise your approach to produce a more desirable result?

· Apply level:
o This question asked you to extrapolate the position of a birdhouse in a growing tree.   Answering this question correctly depended on your ability to use the mechanism of growth in a new situation.  If you got the correct answer, great job! If you got an incorrect answer, where did the process break down? Did you remember that the apical meristem is where increases in height occur, or that the apical meristem occurs at the top of a tree?   Did you have trouble extending the mechanism of plant growth to determine the correct answer?