Lesson Plans and Worksheets
It is very easy to quickly search a topic and get ideas from some of the lesson plans. For my student teaching seminar, we were required to share a web site that we have found helpful with the class. My professors, new and veteran teachers alike were all amazed by the resources provided by Lesson Planet and the ease in which they were obtained.
- Chelsea, MA
- 04-10-11
Soil Teacher Resources
Find teacher approved Soil educational resource ideas and activities
Students investigate botany by creating a soil separating device. In this plant life lesson plan, students identify the needs of plants and how important the right soil is in the growing process. Students define different soil types and create a soil separator in their classroom using hammers, plywood and soil samples.
Young geographers collect samples of different kinds of soil to match to the soil terms in Barry Rudner's rhyming book Filet of Soil: dirt, mud, dust, soot, etc. They start a glossary for the project on index cards or large sheets of paper and post them in the hall for others to see! Invite a younger class to the hall to hear verbal presentations of the cards! Special treat: Follow the links to inspiring community-building activities, discussion builders.
Begin with the third slide to help earth science learners investigate one of our most valuable natural resources: soil. Straightforward and fact-filled slides define soil, describe its formation and composition, and explore reclamation and conservation practices. This is most appropriate for high school or college-level geology courses when beginning a unit on soil science.
Your class can view a slide show including photographs of various human, natural, and capital resources found in the United States. They work in groups to sort pictures into 3 categories, and then complete a related Venn diagram.
A project-based learning plan focuses on landscapes in the community. After identifying problems, such as dead trees or misplaced automatic sprinklers, learners design solutions, contact local organizations to fix the problems, and do all the necessary work to correct the problems. A general outline of steps and resources needed to complete this project are provided.
Class members are each assigned a state's natural resource to research. In pairs, they engage in silent debates: they pass a paper back and forth, writing a line on each turn about why their resource is most important. At the end, partners report who won each debate in a survey of all the resources in a state. The lesson is designed for West Virginia, but the referenced text is not attached. Therefore, allow time for your learners to research natural resources on their own.
Students examine the importance of soil as a world resources. In this soil resources instructional activity, students participate in a demonstration that uses an apple to represent the portions of the world. They watch as the teacher divides the apple until there is 3% left which represents the area left to grow food. They carry out a discussion of the necessity to maintain open spaces.
Third and fourth graders inquire about genealogy by participating in an oral presentation. They conduct family surveys and research in order to identify their family ancestry and roots. Then they create pie charts regarding their ancestral background and share their newfound history with the class in an oral presentation. Much of the resource is focused on Louisiana cultural history, but could easily adapt to any region.
Students apply knowledge of soil, environmental impacts, economics, multiple human demands, and use given data for a proposed scenario in making land use decisions. They debate land use issues and/or scenarios and discuss a case study.
With resource links, a detailed procedure, embedded primary source documents, and a Readers Theater script, you're ready to teach! Re-enact historical events in order to boost historical perspective, discern main ideas, and draw inferences. Read a historical document containing various perspectives on Columbus' journey to find new land. Use those documents as the basis for a Readers Theater performance focused on British colonization and commerce.