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Life Underground

Life Underground
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This is San Antonio, Texas, USA.
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Just outside of San Antonio, there is a special cave. Let’s go there now.
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This is the special cave. It is called Bracken Cave.
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Scientists are going into Bracken Cave to work. Click play to go into the cave with them!
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Video trouble?
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Video trouble?
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Discuss. What do you notice about how the scientists are dressed? Why do you think they are dressed that way?
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The scientists wear special suits because they are studying something very stinky. Let’s go deeper into Bracken Cave. We can see what they are studying…
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The ground in Bracken Cave is completely covered in animal poo! Every part of the ground is covered. The scientists have to walk on the poo.
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There is so much poo in the cave. But each piece of poo is very, very tiny. It is the size of one piece of rice.
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The scientists are studying the poo in the cave. You are going to try to figure out what kind of an animal lives (and poos) here.
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Get a See-Think-Wonder Chart. Your teacher will add your ideas to the class chart.
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What do you see in the cave? Record your answers in the See column.
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What kind of animal do you think lives (and poos) in the cave? Record your answers in the Think column.
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What do you wonder about the animals that live in the cave? Record your answers in the Wonder column.
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You will write what you think lives in the cave on the Bracken Cave worksheet.
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Let’s see what two students think might live in the cave.
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Read what this student thinks. Then look at their paper.
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Read what this student thinks. Then look at their paper.
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Step
01/04
Now it’s your turn. Get a sheet. Write your name at the top.
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Next to “Drawing Number” write a “1.” You will learn new things about the cave later. When you do, you might make a new drawing.
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Now, write down what you think lives in the cave. Then, add a drawing.
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Save this paper. You can put it on a bulletin board for everyone to see, or just set it somewhere safe. You will look back at it after the next lesson.
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It's time to do some investigations! In this unit, you'll learn about all sorts of animals. This will help us understand the animals that live in Bracken Cave.

At the end of the unit, you will use everything you've learned in a fun project.

Have fun, and stay curious!

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Image & Video Credits

Mystery Science respects the intellectual property rights of the owners of visual assets. We make every effort to use images and videos under appropriate licenses from the owner or by reaching out to the owner to get explicit permission. If you are the owner of a visual and believe we are using it without permission, please contact us—we will reply promptly and make things right.

Other
Bat attempting to land on ceiling by Kenny Breuer and Sharon Swartz, Brown University
Bat being held by BLM Nevada
Bat sounds by lynnepublishing
Bat upside down by hermandesign2015
Bats flying out of Bracken Cave video by sobelone
Big brown bat by Matt Reinbold
Big brown bat audio by USGS
Email Outline by SpicyTruffel
Hanging bat by Pavel Kirillov
Individual Bat Poo by Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington
Mexican free-tailed bat by juancruzado
Mexican free-tailed bat audio by Bohn K, Schmidt-French B, Schwartz C, Smotherman M, Pollak G
Mexican free-tailed bat on rock by Bureau of Land Management
Outside Bracken Cave by Daniel Spiess
San Antonio by ZeChief , used under CC BY-SA
Videos Inside of Bracken Cave by Robert Garner
Yuma myotis audio by USGS
Yuma myotis bat by Daniel Neal
Credits

Activity Prep

Print Prep

Note: This lesson is part of this unit’s Anchor Layer. If you have the Anchor Layer turned on, we recommend teaching all lessons in the remainder of this unit in order.

The anchor phenomenon for this unit is a cave north of San Antonio, Texas, that has an unusually large amount of animal poo covering the cave floor. Throughout the unit, students gather details about the mysterious type of animal that lives there.

During the introduction, students generate observations and questions about the phenomenon and create an initial conceptual model to explain the phenomenon.

Students will gather clues during and after each lesson in this unit to help them improve their explanations. It is important to encourage students to recognize that even if they don't know the perfect answer yet, they are going to learn a lot throughout the unit and will have an opportunity to change or add to their first explanation.

Preview activity
Number of students:
Animal Adventures Teacher Guide teacher-only resource 1 per 98 students
Bat Rest Stop printout 1 per pair
Bracken Cave printout 1 per pair
See-Think-Wonder worksheet 1 per class
Prep Instructions

Before starting this lesson, review the unit Teacher Guide for an overview of the Animal Adventures Anchor Layer.

Set Up Your Classroom

Set up your classroom by creating a class "See-Think-Wonder" chart (the student version is linked above). We recommend using chart paper or a space on your board that won't be erased since you will revisit it throughout the unit. You may choose to only do a class chart, as opposed to a class chart in addition to each individual student completing a chart.

Prepare Worksheets

The Bracken Cave printouts are designed to be cut in half, as shown on the sheet itself. Each printed page will contain a copy for two students.

You will need a new copy of the Bracken Cave printout for the anchor phenomenon lesson, and after each of the first two lessons of the unit (three copies total for each student).

You will need the Bat Rest Stop worksheet after the third lesson in this unit. Each page is designed to be cut in half. Each printed page will contain a copy for two students.

Prepare a Place to Keep the Worksheets safe

Students will revisit their Bracken Cave worksheets as the unit progresses. If you are in a classroom, this is a great opportunity to make a bulletin board to display student work. This will make your student's thinking visible, and it will keep their sheets organized and ready to revisit as the unit progresses.

At the beginning of the unit, once students have completed the anchor phenomenon lesson, simply display their Bracken Cave worksheets on a bulletin board. At the end of the first lesson, they will complete a second version of the worksheet by applying what they learned in that lesson. Depending on the amount of space you have available, you can put each student's new worksheet next to or on top of the prior version. Repeat this for the second lesson, and each student will have a record of how their thinking evolved over the course of the unit.

Extend this lesson