Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

5-10 minutes

Tune In: Water and soil - it’s more than mud!

20 minutes

Find Out: What is the role of soil in the water cycle?

30+ minutes

Take Action: Testing soil and water (additional time may be required to create posters)

5 minutes

Reflection

Tune In: Water and soil - it’s more than mud!

Step 1

Begin this lesson by setting the scene for students:

Ask students to put on their soil scientist lab coats. Today we will be taking a deeper dive into what’s under our feet and how what’s underground impacts us.

Step 2

Watch this video with your students, and do a See Think Wonder with them.

what did you see in the video?
what does this video make you think about?
what does this video make you wonder?

Through your discussion, explain the following:

most plants need water to grow and be healthy (some need a lot, some need very little)
our soil also needs water to keep it healthy. Healthy soil isn’t just about water, though; it’s also about the organisms that live in the soil, and it’s about the air that’s in the soil. When there is air in the soil, the water can move more easily through the soil and reach the places where it’s needed. Some organisms - like worms and ants - burrow through the soil and loosen it, which makes it easier for the water to move through the soil. Also, the roots of plants can push through the soil and loosen the soil, creating passages of air that allow the water to pass through.
there is also a close relationship between soil organisms and water in the soil; some soil organisms - like nematodes and tardigrades - live in the thin films of water surrounding soil particles, so without water, these organisms would struggle to survive.

Find Out: What is the role of soil in the water cycle?

Step 1

Project the water cycle image on the board (or create your own).

Invite students to share their thoughts and questions about the water cycle.

You can use the Background To The Water Cycle information to clarify any questions.

Step 2

Then invite students to come up to the board and show the places where they think the water cycle might relate to the soil.

Through your discussion, explain to students that water that falls as precipitation infiltrates into the soil and travels into the groundwater. This will then travel into lakes and the sea. Plants can help the water to infiltrate into the soil.

Step 3

Now share the following image with students:

Invite students to share what they see in this image. Explain to students that this is an image of a flood along the Murray River in South Australia.

Then pose the following question:

if soil absorbs water, why might we get flooding?

Invite students to suggest their answers. Through your discussion, lead students to the following ideas:

healthy soils have fungi, microorganisms and organic matter which help the soil retain (hold) water. Poor soils don’t have this life in them, and the water runs straight through the soil without being captured
even healthy soil can get too much water! Many floods happen because so much rain falls from the sky at one time. Water soaking into the soil is a relatively slow process, and when a lot of rain falls, it can’t get absorbed into the soil before it runs away and causes a flood
ideally, we want the soil to be able to hold onto a bit of water for the plants and organisms and to let some go that will drain down into the groundwater and flow through the water cycle
if soils are too compacted, the water can’t penetrate the soil and runs away. When it does this, it can carry away nutrients, organic matter, and the other things we’ve talked about that can improve soil health.

In the next part of this lesson, students will investigate compacted soils in more detail and how they interact with water.

Take Action: Testing soil and water

Step 1

Invite students to gather around the workstation where you will conduct your soil and water experiments. You can use one or both of the following experiments, depending on time and resources:

Extension: If you are collecting fresh soil samples, you can ask some students to collect samples and some students to test the compaction of the soil at different sites using the experiment below.

Step 3

Putting your regenerative grower hats on, you will now create a scientific poster that describes the results of your experiment. The aim of this poster will be to show people which soil types are healthiest in terms of soil retention and, therefore, which type of soil would be best for starting a regenerative garden.

Differentiation: Students could work independently or in pairs to create their posters.

The poster should include the following:

details about the different types of soils
the predictions about each type of soil and how it would interact with water
what the experiments showed (including how the results compared to the predictions)
which soil they would recommend for planting a regenerative garden in.

This rubric is available to support students in creating their posters.

Differentiation: Students requiring extension could include information about the volume of water that was collected from each soil type, representing this information as a graph or chart. This could help to satisfy the numeracy requirements for this lesson.

Reflection

Invite students to reflect on this lesson using the following questions:

as a soil scientist, why might it be important to examine the soil before planting in it?
how do soils that are compacted or not able to retain water very well affect the way that plants grow?

Differentiated learning

We trust that teachers are the best equipped to know how to cater to the diversity in their classes. At Cool, we incorporate a variety of differentiation strategies into each lesson. Firstly, each lesson in this unit appeals to an array of different learning preferences. Learning activities can be completed in a number of different ways - if a student feels more comfortable speaking rather than writing, there are opportunities to accommodate this.

In lessons that feature group work or learning stations, we trust that teachers will use their discretion in knowing how to best organise their students in accordance with positive working relationships and ability. Graphic organisers and scaffolds are often included so students can ‘visually think’ and keep a record of their work. While our lessons are designed to be 55 - 60 minutes in length, we trust that teachers will manipulate lesson and segment times according to the needs of their students.

Soil and the Water Cycle

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Summary

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