Unit4 Future Living-Reading B-Critical Thinking 讲义-2025-2026学年高中英语沪外版选择性必修第一册

Unit 4 Future Living-Reading B-Critical Thinking 教学目标和重难点 教学目标 Language Competence: Master words and sentence patterns about future life, and use them to express predictions and comments. Cultural Awareness: Understand the impact of technological development on future life and form a rational view of cultural changes. Thinking Quality: Cultivate critical thinking to analyze and evaluate predictions about future life. Learning Ability: Improve autonomous and cooperative learning skills to explore and discuss future life topics actively. 教学重难点 Key Points: Grasp the main ideas and details of Reading B, master useful expressions for making predictions, and conduct simple critical analysis on future life predictions. Difficult Points: Infer the author’s attitude in the text, evaluate the rationality of predictions objectively, and express personal views logically in English. 教学过程 Step 1: Lead-in (Warm-up and Activation) The teacher starts the class by showing a short video about future life scenes, including robot housekeepers, lab-grown food, and skyscrapers connected by tunnels. After playing the video, the teacher asks two questions: “What did you see in the video? Do you think these scenes will come true in the future?” Then, the teacher invites 3-4 students to share their answers. After that, the teacher writes down key words mentioned by students on the blackboard, such as “robot-supported”, “lab-grown food”, “interconnected tunnels”, and connects these words with the topic of Reading B “2050” and Critical Thinking. Design Intention: The short video can quickly attract students’ attention and arouse their interest in the topic of future living, which is closely related to the content of Reading B. Asking questions and encouraging students to share can activate their prior knowledge and life experience about future life, lay a foundation for the subsequent reading and critical thinking activities. Writing down key words helps students sort out their ideas and establish a connection between their existing knowledge and the new lesson content. Step 2: Pre-reading (Vocabulary and Background Preparation) First, the teacher presents new words and phrases in Reading B that are essential for understanding the text and conducting critical thinking, such as “reliable”, “metallic”, “laboratory-grown”, “extinction”, “recycled air”, “identical skyscrapers” and useful expressions for making predictions, including “I believe/think/guess…”, “It is likely/possible that…”, “…will/may/might…”, “Hopefully,…”. For each new word and phrase, the teacher provides simple definitions and example sentences combined with future life scenarios, and asks students to read after the teacher to master their pronunciation and usage. For example, when teaching “reliable”, the teacher says: “A reliable helper is someone who can be trusted to do things well. In Reading B, Lina X15 is a reliable robot housekeeper.” Then, the teacher briefly introduces the background of the text: Reading B is a science fiction story set in 2050, which describes a teenager’s daily life in a future world with robots, lab-grown food and limited living space. The teacher reminds students: “When reading this story, please pay attention to the details of the future life described in the text and think about whether such a future is desirable.” Design Intention: Vocabulary is the foundation of reading and expression. By teaching key words and prediction-related expressions in advance, students can avoid difficulties in understanding the text and smoothly carry out subsequent reading and critical thinking activities. The brief background introduction helps students understand the genre and context of the text, guide them to read with a purpose, and lay the groundwork for inferring the author’s attitude and conducting critical evaluation later. Step 3: While-reading (Comprehension and Analysis) Activity 1: Skimming for Main Idea The teacher asks students to read the text quickly (skimming) and answer the following question: “What is the main content of the text?” After students finish reading, the teacher invites several students to share their answers, and then summarizes: “The text describes a teenager’s daily life in 2050, including robot housekeepers, lab-grown food, robot workers, and the living environment with skyscrapers and tunnels.” Then, the teacher asks another question: “What is the author’s attitude towards the future life described in the text? Is it positive, negative, or neutral?” Students are asked to give simple reasons based on the text. Design Intention: Skimming training helps students improve their ability to grasp the main idea of the text quickly. Asking about the author’s attitude guides students to read beyond the surface details and start thinking about the emotional tendency of the text, which is the preliminary step of critical thinking. It also helps students form a holistic understanding of the text. Activity 2: Scanning for Specific Details The teacher divides students into 4 groups and assigns each group a task: find details about one aspect of future life described in the text. The groups are assigned as follows: Group 1: Future Housework (robot housekeepers); Group 2: Future Food (lab-grown food); Group 3: Future Jobs (robot workers); Group 4: Future Environment (skyscrapers, tunnels, recycled air, extinct animals). Each group reads the text carefully (scanning) to find relevant details, and then fills in a simple form (presented by the teacher on the screen). After 5 minutes, each group sends a representative to share their findings, and the teacher corrects and supplements the details. For example, Group 1 may find: “Lina X15, the family’s housekeeper robot, washes, irons and hangs up the uniform for the teenager; she used to be the teenager’s nanny and has been with the family all the time.” Group 4 may find: “The landscape is full of identical grey skyscrapers and interconnecting tunnels; people breathe recycled air; polar bears and elephants are extinct.” Design Intention: Scanning training helps students improve their ability to find specific information quickly and accurately. Group cooperation enables students to learn from each other, improve learning efficiency, and cultivate their cooperative learning ability. By sorting out details of different aspects of future life, students can have a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the text content, which provides sufficient materials for subsequent critical thinking activities. Activity 3: Close Reading for Deep Understanding The teacher guides students to read the text again carefully and focuses on several key sentences to analyze the author’s implied meaning. The key sentences include: 1. “Mum always talks about the old days when people had vegetable gardens and could go to the market to buy food. Animals actually lived in the wild and not in carefully controlled zoos. It’s all I’ve ever known.” 2. “I find it strange that even with all our technology, we couldn’t save them (polar bears and elephants).” 3. “We are children who have never been outside. I wonder what it’s like.” For each key sentence, the teacher asks guiding questions: For sentence 1: “What does the sentence imply about the author’s feeling towards the ‘old days’?” For sentence 2: “What does the author want to express by saying this? Does he think technology is perfect?” For sentence 3: “What kind of emotion does the teenager show? Is he satisfied with his current life?” Students are encouraged to discuss in pairs and then share their views. The teacher summarizes: “These sentences imply that the author is not completely satisfied with the future life in 2050. Although technology brings convenience, it also brings problems such as the loss of natural life and limited living space. The teenager’s confusion and curiosity also reflect the lack of warmth and freedom in this future world.” Design Intention: Close reading helps students dig into the implied meaning of the text and understand the author’s true attitude. Guiding questions can effectively guide students to think deeply, avoid superficial reading, and lay a solid foundation for the subsequent critical thinking link. Pair discussion provides students with more opportunities to express their views and improves their oral expression ability. Step 4: Critical Thinking (Discussion and Evaluation) Activity 1: Evaluate the Predictions in the Text The teacher writes down the four aspects of future life sorted out in the while-reading step on the blackboard, and asks students to discuss in groups: “Which prediction in the text do you think is the most likely to come true? Which one is the most desirable? And which one is the least desirable? Please give your reasons.” The teacher provides some guiding points: When evaluating “likelihood”, consider the current technological development level (e.g., robots are already used in some families and hospitals); when evaluating “desirability”, consider the impact on people’s life quality, the environment, and human emotions. Each group discusses for 8 minutes, and then each group selects a representative to share their group’s views. For example, some groups may think that “robot-supported life” is the most likely, because robots are already widely used in many fields, and technology is developing rapidly; some groups may think that “lab-grown food” is not desirable, because it may lack nutrition and the fun of growing and buying food; some groups may think that “extinct animals and recycled air” is the least desirable, because it means the destruction of the natural environment and the loss of human’s connection with nature. After each group shares, the teacher makes a comment: “Your views are all reasonable. When evaluating future predictions, we should combine objective facts (current technology) and subjective values (human needs and environmental protection), and form a rational and comprehensive view.” Design Intention: This activity is the core of the Critical Thinking part. It guides students to analyze and evaluate the predictions in the text from different angles, which can effectively cultivate their critical thinking ability. Group discussion allows students to exchange different views, broaden their thinking, and learn to respect different opinions. The teacher’s comment helps students sort out their thinking and form a scientific evaluation standard. Activity 2: Make Your Own Predictions The teacher says to students: “Based on the text and your own understanding of technological development and social changes, make your own predictions about future life. Your predictions should be both likely and desirable. You can choose one aspect (home, food, jobs, education, environment, etc.) and use the useful expressions we learned earlier to express your predictions.” Students are asked to write down their own predictions on the exercise book first, and then invite several students to share their works in front of the class. For example, a student may say: “I believe future homes will be environmentally friendly. They will be solar-powered and made of environmentally friendly materials, which can save energy and protect the environment. It is likely that we can control our homes with our voices, making our life more convenient.” Another student may say: “Hopefully, future education will be more personalized. Students can learn according to their own interests and learning progress with the help of artificial intelligence, and there will be more opportunities to learn outdoors, getting close to nature.” After students share, the teacher comments on their predictions, focusing on the rationality of the predictions and the correct use of words and expressions, and gives positive encouragement: “Your predictions are creative and reasonable. You have not only considered the development of technology but also paid attention to human needs and environmental protection, which reflects your positive attitude towards the future.” Design Intention: This activity guides students to transfer the knowledge and thinking methods they have learned to practice, which can improve their ability to use language to express personal views and cultivate their innovative thinking. Writing down predictions helps students organize their ideas and improve their writing ability. Sharing and commenting can enhance students’ confidence in expression and promote mutual learning. Activity 3: Debate on “Technology and Future Life” The teacher divides students into two groups: the positive group (Technology will make future life better) and the negative group (Technology will bring more problems to future life). The teacher explains the debate rules: each group has 3 minutes to state their views, then 5 minutes to debate, and finally 2 minutes for each group to make a summary. The teacher provides some debate points for reference: Positive group: Technology brings convenience (robot housekeepers, intelligent homes), improves work efficiency (robot workers), solves environmental problems (solar energy, recycling); Negative group: Technology leads to unemployment (robots replace human workers), destroys the natural environment (extinct animals, polluted air), reduces human communication (over-reliance on robots). During the debate, the teacher guides students to use the knowledge and expressions learned in the lesson, and reminds them to listen to the opposite group’s views carefully and refute them rationally. After the debate, the teacher makes a summary: “Both groups have put forward reasonable views. Technology is a double-edged sword. It can bring convenience and progress to human life, but it may also bring some problems. What we need to do is to use technology reasonably, make it serve human beings better, and avoid its negative impact.” Design Intention: Debate is an effective way to cultivate critical thinking and oral expression ability. It allows students to think from different perspectives, improve their ability to argue and refute, and also deepen their understanding of the relationship between technology and future life. The teacher’s guidance and summary help students form a comprehensive and objective view of technology, which conforms to the requirements of cultural awareness and thinking quality in core literacy. Step 5: Consolidation and Application The teacher assigns a task: Ask students to write a short passage (80-100 words) about their views on future life. The passage should include: 1. One prediction about future life that you think is likely and desirable; 2. The reasons for this prediction; 3. Your feelings about this future life. Students are required to use the new words and useful expressions learned in the lesson. While students are writing, the teacher walks around the classroom to provide help for students who have difficulties, such as guiding them to organize their ideas, correcting wrong words and sentences. After students finish writing, the teacher collects some works, reads them out in class, and makes comments, focusing on the content, logic, and language usage. For excellent works, the teacher praises them and invites the students to share their writing ideas; for works with problems, the teacher points out the problems and gives suggestions for improvement. Design Intention: This activity integrates reading, speaking, and writing, helping students consolidate the knowledge and skills learned in the lesson. Writing can improve students’ ability to organize language and express views in a logical way. The teacher’s guidance and comments can help students find their own problems and improve their writing level effectively. Step 6: Summary and Homework First, the teacher summarizes the whole lesson with students: “In today’s class, we read the science fiction story ‘2050’, understood the details of future life described in the text, inferred the author’s attitude, and conducted critical thinking activities such as evaluating predictions, making our own predictions, and debating. We also mastered some new words and useful expressions about future life. Through this lesson, we not only improved our language ability but also learned to think rationally about the future and technology.” Then, the teacher assigns homework: 1. Recite the new words and useful expressions learned in the lesson; 2. Polish the short passage written in the consolidation step and hand it in the next class; 3. Discuss with your family or friends about their predictions of future life and write down their views (in English, 50-60 words). Design Intention: Summary helps students sort out the key content of the lesson and strengthen their memory. Homework is an extension of classroom teaching, which can help students consolidate the knowledge and skills learned, and also connect classroom learning with real life, improving their ability to use English in real scenarios. Discussing with family and friends can also expand students’ thinking and enhance their interest in learning. 1 / 1 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 学科网（北京）股份有限公司 $