The third grade girls began this year in science by learning about the characteristics and the importance of soil. They examined and described the 3 types of soil: clay, sand, and humus. They tested them to see how sticky they were and learned how each is formed in nature.
They made columns of soil and passed water through them to determine which soil water would run through most easily.
The girls enjoyed examining rotting logs as they discovered the critters which were turning the log into humus.
After learning about the importance of soil, the girls did a final experiment to determine whether bare soil erodes more than grass-covered soil.
From their soil studies, the girls progressed to learning about the layers of the earth, plate tectonics, volcanoes, and earthquakes. Of course, it was fun and challenging to design an earthquake-proof house. Happily, most of our engineers successfully designed marshmallow and toothpick abodes to withstand the rigors of a vigorously quaking pan of Jello.
