An example of a soil core from Alaska. The dark brown soil on the left is very high in organics. The grey mineral soil on the right is that color because this soil is very wet, leaching out the organics and minerals which usually color soils.

introduction to soils

This unit was developed to teach high school students how soils develop and provides links between soils, climate, vegetation, and geology. It includes a field exercise where students can sample and characterize their local soil and relate different soil processes to their local environment.

teacher material

• Lesson Plan
• Lecture Material (Power Point slides)
• Student Handout Answer Key
• Puzzle Answer Key
• Examples of student field & lab sheets

student material

• Student Handout
• Puzzle Exercise
• Field & Lab Sheets

To get a reader for Microsoft Word (.doc) and Excel (.xls) files click here.