Garden Lessons: Soil Examinations (6th Grade)

Grades: 6th Grade

Time Needed: About an hour

Lesson Objective(s): Students examine and conduct an experiment with soil from different parts of the garden and surrounding areas

Supplies Needed

• Radish Seeds

• hand trowels

• Soil Observation & Parts of an Experiment worksheet

• Parts of an Experiment example/explanation sheet from Tes.Com

• Microscopes

• spray bottle

• potting soil, compost, & grass field soil

• 3 mason jars

• 3 cooking tins to plant in

• magnifying glasses

• 3 signs for separate tins and their types of soil/description of soils: Potting soil, compost, and Grass Field Soil

• Pencils

• Harmonica

Introduction (5 mins):

Explain instructions: We’re going to take soil from different parts of the garden and surrounding area and see what similarities and differences we can find

• Split class into 3 groups

  • demonstrate how to use trowel to collect soils into tin and glass jars

  • send groups off into different parts: compost pile, field across from garden, potting soil

Activity (40 mins)

• Students in 3 groups go to: compost pile, potting soil bag, and grassy field to collect soil samples

  • they put their samples in tin baking containers and a mason jar (filled halfway)

• Return to classroom.

• Place containers with different types of soil at three stations around classroom.

• Begin station rotations:

  • Pass out observation worksheets & discuss what kinds of observations we can make of the soil. Write on board what students come up with (for example: how wet/dry the soil is, how big the particles are, the color, the smell, how smooth/rough it feels, how compact it is, if there are any bugs in it, etc.)

  • Give students 10 minutes at each station to write observations on their Soil Observation worksheets- use hands, can use magnifying glasses, etc.

  • Also at that station, students can also look on their microscope at slides of soil examples. Also record cellular observations- what do you notice about the cells of these soil samples?

  • Review the observations with class- what did they notice? What was similar between the soils? What was different?

• Students at each station plant radish seeds. Demo how to plant, have students plant, then spray a total of 40 times for each tray, covering the whole tray with water so that the seeds are watered well.

• Wash hands

• Review Parts of an experiment example sheet. Students complete “parts of an experiment” worksheet while pass out snack

Wrap up:

• Review “parts of an experiment” sheet and student predictions

• Put water in jars, shake up, and explain that we’ll let them settle until next class

• Snack: Radish halves with olive oil & salt