Get the Dirt on Soil

Downloadable booklet with lesson plans for various topics on soils

The critical zone (CZ) is the thin veneer of the earth we inhabit and utilize. It encompasses everything between the top of the tree canopy to below our groundwater, including the air, the water, the organisms, the soil and the rock, and all of the interactions between them. The CZ sustains life on earth and provides food, shelter, forage, and fuel and other services that are essential to human well-being. However, soils as building blocks and as integral components of this zone remain poorly appreciated, acknowledged, and understood.

This booklet contains a compilation of lesson plans that integrate CZ science, specifically emphasizing soils, with hands-on activities based in the arts and technology to make concepts and curricula more accessible to school-aged children. It is intended to help educators present aspects of the CZ to middle school students, but can be tailored to other age groups as well.

Each section covers a separate topic, with background information, questions to pose to students, interactive, hands-on moments, and larger activities meant to explore specific concepts in more detail. The last section provides a list of the applicable middle school content standards, suggestions for enhancing each section, and a list of additional resources educators can refer to for the activities and concepts presented, as well as ways to modify some activities for different grade levels.

Please feel free to download and use this content. If you have any questions or observe any errors please let us know!

Production of educational content and material was supported by the NSF INTERN through the NSF RC CZO Cooperative Agreement #EAR-1331872.