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Earthworks
Earth System Science for Secondary Teachers
Soil Study Implementation
Who: Middle School
Why: To improve baseline understanding of interactions and soil quality
Where: Anywhere - on or off campus
When: Anytime of the year
Materials: Low tech activity: Microscopes, sieves, trowels, baggies, lamp, critter identification guides, collection dishes
Potential Constraints: Minimal barriers
What: Soil identification, soil parents, organics on and in the soil, recovery
Connections Between Other Sciences: Include weather, pollution problem, geology, water sources, organism, air pollution, human influences, latitude, longitude, and altitude.
Extensions: Soil Identification, soil parents, organics on and in the soil, recovery
Resources:
Description and Sampling of Contaminated Soils, Second Edition, J.R. Boulding
Soil Sampling and Methods of Analysis, M.R. Carter
Grant Ideas: Local and District Grants, Soil Conservation, DNR, DHEC, Conservation Districts, EPA, FHA, Boy Scouts, Local Industry, Wal-Mart - Green Project, Forestry, DOT
Tree Coring Implementation
Barbara Cook (Earthworks 2000)
What:
a). What is the relationship of the age of a tree vs. the diameter?
b). What extreme climatic factors are recorded in the annual rings.
When: Early fall toward the end of a plant unit.
Where: On school grounds including our nature trail.
Why: Same as what, also, to learn the process of the coring trees, counting rings, analyzing ring size, and using climate reports to identify extreme climate factors in the tree's history. Identify trees.
Who: 7th grade science classes.
How:
- Each lab group of 4 students will core 2 trees.
- Using a tree guide identify the trees they are coring
- Count and mark annual rings.Indicate on graph paper lean years and years of a lot of growth
- On overhead transparency transfer your data, placing an ìNî for little growth and a ìWî for great growth.
- Overlay transparencies and have the class come up with years of similarities.
- Research the climate history of our area to see if ring size would/could indicate extreme climatic occurrences
- Record identified trees and age in the schools nature trail workbook back to top
Macroinvertebrate Diversity
Barbara Cook (Earthworks 1999)
Teach students ways of gathering water samples for investigation. Use observation skills to record environmental factors and mapping
Identify macroinvertebrates
Give students practice in using various skills needed in research
Middle school age children
Staff development during summer camps
1/2 day activity school year
1/2 day activity
Future research after school or Saturday with teachers equipment from: Water Conservation District, industry, colleges, other schools, public utilities
We get to go OUTSIDE!
Class time is extended
After charting diversity, play the "devil's advocate" in a classroom discussion.
Students are to come up with new directions for research.
The whole activity encompasses many distinct objectives.
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About Us
Barbara Cook (Earthworks 2001)