Material to launch exploration of Earth's soil and its important role. View a one-hour video, accompanied by details on soil horizons and soil formation, and ideas for bringing this topic into the classroom.

The element lead is a neurotoxin that is particularly dangerous to young children. Among other uses, lead compounds were common paint additives until being phased out for safer titanium-based additives beginning in the 1960's. Lead...

Help Detective Le Plant dig for clues in the soil to solve this case. You'll need to find out what soil is, why it is important, and in what kinds of soil plants grow.

Plants need nutrients to grow, those nutrients come from the soil, and nutrients can be added to soil to help plants grow better.

Understand how the components of soil effect plant growth.

In this comprehensive interactive tutorial you will investigate the area of forensic science and how the various types of evidence differ. Learn what types of crimes involve glass and soil and what ways these types of evidence are...

Everybody knows that worms are good for the soil, but not everybody knows why. Here's a project that investigates just one of the ways earthworms improve the earth.

Students measure the permeability of different types of soils, compare results and realize the importance of size, voids and density in permeability response.

Against the backdrop of the devastating 1930's Dust Bowl, this video segment adapted from Interactive NOVA profiles an organic farmer and the techniques he uses to conserve topsoil.

This site is an online science curriculum on how to grow plants on the Moon. There are six lessons that have a glossary also included. There are movies that demonstrate concepts, and teacher resources. The sites topics cover, the Earth,...

In this interactive tutorial, you will learn about the types of weathering and erosion that rocks and landforms undergo. This will lead to a discussion of soil and the types of soil. Lastly, you will learn about mass movements of soil,...

In this arts integrated unit, 3rd graders will explore Rocks and Soil. These projects focus on bringing multiple art forms to the Earth Sciences for third graders. Students will focus on comparing and contrasting the 3 types of rocks, as...

Information on the land uses, plants, wildlife, habitats and soil. There are literature citings at the bottom of the page.

WormWatch is a Canadian program that uses volunteers to observe changes in the earthworms in their environments, and submit their observations. Monitoring earthworms provides valuable information about the health of local soils so that...

[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about biochar, an ancient idea with some present day uses. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.

Earthquake damage can be intensified in areas that are subject to soil liquefaction. For example, in these areas, soil movement may cause foundations to collapse, while structures in nearby areas built on more stable soil or bedrock may...

Here's a project for studying compression waves in different soil types. It uses a homemade wave tank for solids, with a frequency generator, amplifier, and loudspeaker as the vibration source. There are lots of interesting possibilities...

Archaeologists study artifacts and soil and they use post holes to determine just how old the layers of soil is. Based on the location of post holes, archaeologists can determine if they are finding a house, or a wall or even a fort....

Discusses the chemistry of nitrate, the negative agricultural effects of too much nitrate in soil and in water sources, its toxicity to plants and livestock, and the impact on human health.

A large collection of lessons on prairie agriculture for Pre-K to Grade 12, organized into grade level groups. They cover such topics as foods that come from agriculture, animal farming, soils, and environmental issues. These lessons on...

Students learn about contact stress and its applications in engineering. They are introduced to the concept of heavy loads, such as buildings, elephants, people and traffic, and learn how those heavy loads apply contact stress. Through...

This site has a colorful display of information about Maine. It contains a map, pictures, a list of state symbols, and links to related information.

This site has a colorful display of information about Michigan. It contains a map, pictures, a list of state symbols, and links to related information.

This site has a colorful display of information about Minnesota. It contains a map, pictures, a list of state symbols, and links to related information.