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Cold War
(1947-1991)
 The Berlin Wall Falls

The Berlin Wall Falls
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 6 to 8
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   5.59

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    crumbly, communism, communist, watchtower, crossing, presidential, lifetime, better, champagne, satellite, entire, democratic, collapse, immediately, itself, government
     content words:    Berlin Wall, East Berlin, West Berlin, East Germans, East Germany, West Germans, East German, United States, CIA Headquarters

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The Berlin Wall Falls
By Sharon Fabian 		  
1     If you visit Germany, you can stroll through the capital city of Berlin. You will see shops, restaurants, museums, government buildings, and homes. You will also see an unusual landmark - a double row of paving stones that draws a line down the middle of the city.
 
2     This line marks the place where the Berlin Wall once stood. It was built in 1961, and for 28 years it prevented people from crossing between East Berlin and West Berlin. To many people it represented the dividing line between the whole communist East and the whole democratic West.
 
3     What happened to the wall? It was torn down in an event that turned out to be maybe the biggest street party ever!
 
4     It started in 1989. Communism had begun to collapse, and East Germans were already beginning to leave their country by way of Hungary, which was no longer controlled by communists. East Germany was beginning to change too, and it had new government leaders.
 
5     One day in November 1989, the leaders held a press conference. During the press conference, they mentioned that travel restrictions from East Berlin were being lifted. Someone asked exactly when the restrictions would end. The reply: "Well, as far as I can see . . . immediately." Just like that, it was over. After 28 years, East and West Germans could travel to the other side.

Paragraphs 6 to 13:
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