SmithsonianExplore
What Is a Biocube?
先猜：How many living things could pass through one small cube in a day? 看完后写出三种你原来没有想到的 organisms。
打开 Biocube 互动资源Unit 6
Backyard Discoveries
本单元围绕 6A In One Cubic Foot：观察脚下容易被忽略的小生命，读懂 nutrients 回到 soil 的过程， 再追踪 David Liittschwager 的 30-centimeter cube 调查。写作部分练习按时间顺序描写动物或植物的 life cycle。
词汇帮助：在页面中选中英文单词或词组（如 break down），即可查看英英释义。
Step 1
先把目光缩小到 one cubic foot
这些资源直接展示 biocube 的方法和发现。先猜数量，再观察，最后用 evidence 修正自己的猜测。
Field VideosObserve
Biocubes in Action
选一个 habitat。回答：Where was the cube placed, and what tool helped the team record tiny life?
观看实地调查Smithsonian StoryOcean
Marine Life in One Cubic Foot
看图找细节：Which creature surprises you most, and why can a tiny sample reveal high biodiversity?
打开海洋故事Warm Up (Prediction)
What tiny organisms might live under your feet?
There may be ants, beetles, worms, fungi, plant roots, and microorganisms in or just below the soil.
Why might small organisms be easy to miss but important?
They are hard to notice because many are tiny or hidden. They can still break down dead material, return nutrients to the soil, and support larger life.
Where would you place a cube: a backyard, riverbed, tree, cave, park, or mountain?
Answers will vary. A strong prediction names a place and a question, such as, “I would choose a city park to find out whether many species can live near roads and buildings.”
Step 2
精读 6A In One Cubic Foot
文章有两条主线：small organisms 为什么是 “the heart of life on Earth”，以及 scientists 怎样用一个 cube 让看不见的 biodiversity 变得可观察。
The Cycle of Life
Plants and animals dieThey fall to the groundOrganisms break down materialNutrients return to soilPlants get energyPlants support life
Main Idea
What is the main idea of the reading?
Tiny organisms are essential to life, but people know little about many of them, so a photographer and his team used small cubes to count and photograph them.
Why does E. O. Wilson call small organisms “the heart of life on Earth”?
They help recycle dead material into nutrients, give living plants energy, and support a healthy environment for animals and humans.
Where do most organisms on Earth live?
They live on the ground or just below it.
Sequence: How the Process Works
What happens after plants and animals die?
First, they fall to the ground. Later, tiny insects and other organisms break down the dead material.
What happens to the nutrients next?
The process eventually returns nutrients to the soil. Living plants use them for energy and can then support a healthy environment.
Which signal words does paragraph B use?
It uses when, later, eventually, and then to make the order clear.
The Cube Project
What did David Liittschwager and his team do?
They placed a green 30-centimeter cube on the ground or in water, then counted and photographed organisms that lived in or moved through it.
Why did Liittschwager call the organisms “little gems”?
He considered the discoveries valuable and precious, especially because many organisms were tiny and some species were new to science.
What was the project’s purpose?
Its purpose was to learn more about small organisms and show how much life can exist in a very small space.
Visual Evidence & Key Words
What do the two photo captions add to the main text?
They add specific evidence: over 600 creatures were photographed at the Moorea coral reef, and almost 125 species in Monteverde are found nowhere else on Earth.
Why was identifying the coral reef animals difficult?
Many of the animals were new species, so the team could not easily match them to organisms already known.
Explain organism, species, and region.
An organism is one living thing. A species is a group of similar living things. A region is a particular area of the world.
Step 3
质疑与评估：一个 cube 能说明多少？
教师用书给 6A 的 critical thinking 标签是 Applying Ideas。把文章方法搬到新地点，同时检查这个方法的 limits。
Applying IdeasEvaluating EvidenceFair Observation
Apply the Method
Where would you put a cube, and what exact question would you investigate?
I would put it under a tree in a city park and ask, “How many kinds of organisms use this shaded area during one day?”
What information should every team record?
Every team should record the location, cube size, date, time, weather, length of observation, organisms seen, and clear photos.
How can you observe without harming the habitat?
Move slowly, avoid removing living things, return any moved leaves or stones, keep a safe distance, and use photographs instead of collecting organisms.
Question the Evidence
Can one cube represent an entire forest or coral reef?
No. It is one small sample. Another spot, season, time, or weather condition may contain different organisms.
How could the team make its conclusion stronger?
It could study several cubes, repeat observations at different times, and compare results using the same method.
Does finding hundreds of organisms mean every organism was identified?
No. Counting, photographing, and identifying are different tasks. The article says many coral reef animals were new species, so identification was difficult.
Step 4
6A 文章思维导图
用图复述时，先讲 importance，再讲 process，最后讲 research method 和 discoveries。
mindmap
root((In One Cubic Foot))
"Tiny Organisms"
"On or below the ground"
"Often hidden"
"Heart of life on Earth"
"Cycle of Life"
"Plants and animals die"
"Small organisms break down material"
"Nutrients return to soil"
"Living plants get energy"
"Plants support a healthy environment"
"Cube Project"
"David Liittschwager"
"30-centimeter green cube"
"Count and photograph"
"Forest and coral reef"
"Discoveries"
"Over 600 creatures in Moorea"
"Many new species"
"Almost 125 unique species in Monteverde"
"Big Lesson"
"Small space can hold great biodiversity"
"One cube is still only a sample"
Can you retell the article in five sentences?
Many tiny organisms live on or below the ground and are easy to miss. They break down dead material, return nutrients to the soil, and support living plants. David Liittschwager used a 30-centimeter cube to study this hidden life. His team counted and photographed hundreds of organisms in forests and water. Their discoveries show rich biodiversity, although each cube is only one small sample.
Step 5
Writing Prep：研究一个 animal 或 plant life cycle
先选对象，再画 stages。不要一开始就写完整句子；每个 stage 只记 “name + change + need + next step”。
AnimalButterfly
Butterfly Life Cycle
研究 egg → larva → pupa → adult。问题：What changes completely inside the chrysalis?
Florida Museum 资料AnimalFrog
Interactive Frog Life Cycle
研究 egg → tadpole → froglet → adult。问题：When do legs and lungs develop?
Australian Museum 互动图PlantFlowering Plant
Stages of a Plant’s Life Cycle
研究 seed → germination → growth → flower → fruit → new seeds。问题：How do flowers help produce the next generation?
BBC Bitesize 资料启发式问题：资料里可以寻找什么？
- Where and how does the life cycle begin?
- What is each stage called?
- What hatches, germinates, or emerges?
- How does its body or shape change?
- What does it eat or need at each stage?
- What event starts the next stage?
- How long does a stage last? Does this vary?
- What dangers might it face?
- When is it mature enough to reproduce?
- How does the final stage begin a new cycle?
Research Rule：哪些信息不能猜？
Do not invent stage names, food, habitat, or timing. Check at least one reliable source. If timing changes with species, temperature, or season, use careful language such as usually, often, about, or may.
Step 6
Writing：按时间顺序描写 life cycle
Writing Prompt (80–120 words)
Choose one animal or plant. Describe its life cycle in chronological order. Use accurate stage names and at least four sequence connectors.
- Overview: Name the organism and number of main stages.
- Beginning: Explain how life starts—with an egg, seed, or another form.
- Growth: Describe what appears, eats, grows, or develops.
- Change and Maturity: Explain the biggest transformation and the adult stage.
- Cycle Again: Show how a new generation begins.
Sentence Starters
The life cycle of a/an … has … main stages.
First, … / At the beginning, …
Once …, it … / During this stage, …
Over time, … / Eventually, …
Finally, …, so the cycle begins again.
Reference Essay 97 words
The life cycle of a monarch butterfly has four main stages. First, an adult female lays a tiny egg on a milkweed leaf. A few days later, a caterpillar hatches and begins eating. As it grows, it sheds its skin several times. Next, the caterpillar forms a chrysalis. Inside, its body gradually transforms. After about two weeks, an adult butterfly emerges and lets its wings dry. Then it flies away to drink nectar and find a mate. Finally, the female lays new eggs on milkweed. In this way, one generation ends and the remarkable cycle begins again.
范文的时间线在哪里？
First opens the cycle; a few days later moves to hatching; as shows change during growth; next introduces the chrysalis; after moves to the adult; and finally restarts the cycle.
Sequence Connectors 连接词
开始：
firstfirst of allto begin withat the beginninginitially
推进下一步：
nextthenafter thatafterwardlatera few days later
连接两个事件：
whenonceas soon asbeforeafterduring this stagewhilemeanwhile
缓慢变化与结束：
graduallyover timeeventuallyfinallyin the endthe cycle begins again
Tip: Use while or meanwhile only for events happening at the same time. Avoid vague and so on when you can name the exact next stage.
Advanced but Useful Vocabulary
- stage — one period in a process
- hatch — come out of an egg
- larva — a young animal before its adult form
- shed — lose an old outer covering
- pupa / chrysalis — the stage in which a butterfly transforms
- emerge — come out and become visible
- germinate — begin to grow from a seed
- seedling — a very young plant
- bud / bloom — form a flower / open into a flower
- pollinate — move pollen so a plant can make seeds
- disperse — spread seeds to new places
- transform — change greatly in form
- mature — become fully developed
- reproduce — produce a new generation
Final Check：交稿前检查什么？
- Is every stage in the correct order?
- Did I use present simple for general facts?
- Did I use at least four connectors without repeating then every time?
- Did I explain real changes instead of only listing stage names?
- Did I show how the cycle begins again?
- Is my paragraph between 80 and 120 words?