Get thinking … How did you use soil this morning before you arrived at school?

Ideas: Soil grew the crops (wheat and grains) used in your breakfast cereal Soil grew the crops (cotton) used to make your clothes Soil was used as a foundation to build our roads, houses, and schools

Soil impacts our lives daily

Did you know? Humans depend on soil for food (supports plant and animal life) It appears soil is everywhere, but it is not! Water and wind erosion constantly reduce the amount of soil we can use.

Making Soil The process of soil formation takes hundreds of thousands of years

Making Soil Soil forms from broken down weathered rock that mixes with surface materials.

Soil on Earth The continental crust is covered by soil.

Soil on Earth Ingredients in soils vary around the Earth.

Drawing Make a table in your notebook like the one below, make sure you have big squares! Soil is a mixture of:

Drawing In each box write… Box 1: Sediment (weathered rock particles) largest amount Box 2: Humus (decomposed organic matter from plants and animals) Box 3: Minerals (building blocks of rocks) Box 4:Bacteria and fungi (decomposers) Box 5: Water Box 6: Air

Soil on Earth How much of Earth's crust contains usable soil?

Soil on Earth On the next page, draw a picture of the Earth make it big enough to cover most of the page

Follow along… As we complete each step, mark off the amount of unusable crust found on the Earth’s surface Write each statement

The Earth’s Unusable Crust Step 1: Mark out three-fourths of the Earth (this represents the fact that 75 percent of the Earth is water) Write: 75% of Earth’s is covered by water

The Earth’s Unusable Crust Step 2: Of the remaining 25%, half is composed of deserts, mountains, bogs, cities, and other areas that do not have usable soil. Write: 12.5% of Earth is deserts, mountains, and cities

The Earth’s Unusable Crust Step 3: Of the small slice you have left, 75 percent has temperatures and weather conditions that prevent it from being used for cultivation. Write: 9.375% of Earth has temperatures too hot or cold (weather)

The Earth’s Unusable Crust Add up all unusable amounts…. 75% % % = % That only leaves 3.125% usable soil on the Earth’s surface!!!!!

So, How much is Usable? Write: 3.125% of the Earth’s surface contains usable soil!

Mr. Parr Soil Song HeiTKE HeiTKE

Soil Diagram Cut out the picture provided and glue it into your notebook.

Write in Upper Left Soil ingredients are different: 1. Parent rock (original rock from which soil was formed) 2. Climate (temperatures, rainfall) 3. Organisms found (worms, insects, rodents) 4. Bacteria and fungi (decomposers)

Write in Upper Right Soils have different: 1. Textures (size & type of particles) 2. pH’s (acid/base 1-14) 3. Fertility (minerals/nutrients) 4. Moisture (water) levels 5. Erosion rates

Write in Bottom Left Soil Texture: Sand (largest particle size, feels gritty) Silt (medium particle size, feels smooth or floury) Clay (smallest particle size, feels sticky)

Label picture: Soil horizons (layers) A horizon: topsoil (surface layer); high in humus (organics) B horizon: subsoil, high in minerals and clay, lower in organics C horizon: larger rock fragments on top of parent rock (bedrock)

Soil Horizons (layers)

Remember, soils are different! These different properties lead to a variety of soils types: Some soils can support structures and plant growth while some can not!

Soil Stories Video detail/soils/edu/?cid=nrcs142p2_ detail/soils/edu/?cid=nrcs142p2_054316