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Layers Of Soil - The Dr. Binocs Show | Best Learning Videos For Kids | Peekaboo Kidz

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Kids learn about the Earth science subject of soil including how it is formed, properties, horizons, layers, topsoil, bedrock, and facts about soil.

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Soil is like a cake made from lots of different things. Soil consists of crumbling rock or sand, clay, dead plant and animal remains, fungi and even manure. It also contains lots of tiny creatures, such as earthworms. Earthworms turn the plant and animal material into nutrients. They also dig through the soil, which lightens and loosens it so plants grow better.

Fun Facts About What is in Soil for Kids

The soil consists of several layers. The top layers of soil are rich in organic matter. These are the layers that are best for growing crops. Underneath are layers of soil that are hard or sandy. Beneath these layers is rock.

Volcanic soil is very rich because minerals in the volcanic break down in the soil.

Plants need nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, copper and other elements to grow.

Soil Vocabulary

All About Soil Video for Kids

Watch this awesome What's in Soil video for kids:

Soil Q&A

Question: Can humans change the soil?

Answer: When you add compost or manure to your garden, you're improving the soil's health. When humans strip away soil or use a lot of pesticides, they may damage the soil.

Enjoyed the Natural Science for Kids Soil info? Take the FREE & fun All About Soil quiz and download FREE Soil worksheet for kids. For lengthy info click here.

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Soil is like a cake made from lots of different things. Soil consists of crumbling rock or sand, clay, dead plant and animal remains, fungi and even manure. It also contains lots of tiny creatures, such as earthworms. Earthworms turn the plant and animal material into nutrients.

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Soils are complex mixtures of minerals, water, air, organic matter, and countless organisms that are the decaying remains of once-living things. It forms at the surface of land – it is the “skin of the earth.” Soil is capable of supporting plant life and is vital to life on earth. Soil, as formally defined in the Soil Science Society of America Glossary of Soil Science Terms, is:

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Soil is the loose material which forms the thin surface layer of Earth. Its formation is related to the parent Rock material, relief, climate, and vegetation. It is a mixture of many different things including rock, minerals, water and air. Soil also has living things and dead things in it. We call the living and dead things " organic matter". Soil is important for life on Earth.

Because soil holds water and nutrients, it is an ideal place for plants to grow. Soil holds the roots, and lets plants stand above the ground to collect the light they need to live. This helps plants grow. Fungi and bacteria also live in the soil. They eat the dead plants and animals. The broken down material becomes food for plants (nutrients).

Many animals dig into the soil and make the soil their home. The large animals use soil to make dens for sleeping and giving birth. The small animals live most of their life in the soil. Earthworms are famous for improving soil. This is because the holes they make let air go into the soil. The holes also let water go through.

The soil also has many microorganisms living in it. Many of them eat the organic material in the soil. They use oxygen and release carbon dioxide. They also release mineral nutrients into the soil.

Soil is different in different places on Earth. This is because the climate and rocks in the Earth are different in different places on Earth. Soils are usually thicker in places where ice sheets covered the ground during the Pleistocene ice ages. This is because the ice sheets ground the rock into powder as they slowly moved over the surface.

What soil is made of

Soil is made of four things.

1. It has rock pieces and the rocks are made of minerals,

2. It has dead and living things (organic matter, humus),

3. It has water.

4. It has air.

Soil has rock pieces made small by wind and rain and sun and snow. The rocks are made of minerals and some of the minerals dissolve in water. Some of the minerals dissolved in water can be used as food by plants. Soil also has dead and living things (organic matter) in it. When a plant dies, it is eaten by animals including bacteria in the soil. When the bacteria are done eating, what is left behind is called humus. When the bacteria die the plant food (minerals) goes back into the soil. A food for plants is called a "plant nutrient". There are many kinds of plant nutrients. Soil has many empty spaces. Half of the soil is space. The spaces are filled with water and air. Water can enter the spaces in the soil. Plants drink the water and the minerals in the water. Plant roots need air to live. If plant roots do not have air, the roots will die. If the plant roots die, the plant will die. A plant that dies is eaten by bacteria and becomes plant nutrients again.

There are many kinds of soil. Each kind of soil has big and small rocks in it and some humus. If rocks in a soil are as big as your fingers, we call those rocks "gravel". Smaller rocks are called sand. Very small rocks are called silt. Very, very small rocks are called clay. You can see sand with your eye. Sand feels rough between your toes. Silt rock is very small and you must use a lens to see silt. Silt rock is smooth between your toes. Clay rock is too small to see with a lens. To see the smallest things you must use a big microscope. You must use a big microscope to see clay too. Clay rock feels slippery between your toes. Most soils contain all kinds of small rocks. The three best rocks for making soil are sand, silt, and clay.

Every soil has different amounts of sand and silt and clay. The mix of sand and silt and clay is the " texture" of the soil. We can also say the mix has a "soil texture". A soil with a lot of sand is called a "sandy soil texture". A soil with a lot of silt is called a "silt soil texture". A soil with a lot of clay is called a "clay soil texture". Farmers like to grow food in the best soil. The best soil is half sand and some silt and a little clay. The organic matter found in the soil is not counted in the soil texture. Only the rocks are counted when we discover the soil texture. Soil texture is very important.

Clay and humus are special parts of the soil. They help keep water and plant food (plant nutrients) in the soil. Water and plant nutrients stick to clay and humus. Water sticks to all of the rock in the soil. But, water sticks best to clay. Water is taken into (absorbed) into humus like a sponge absorbs water. Humus holds a lot of water and plant nutrients. Clay and humus keep water and plant nutrients in the soil. Sand will hold only a little water in the soil. If the soil has too much sand, the water will flow down into the earth. The water that flows down takes plant nutrients down too. The plant roots can not get at the water and plant nutrients if they go too deep. It is best for soil to have a little bit of clay and humus in it for growing plants.

Soil structure (clumps)

The smallest parts of soil are sand and silt and clay. Those small parts join to make larger parts we call "clumps" or "aggregates". The clumps are made when sand and silt and clay stick together. The humus and clay and minerals in the soil are like glue. The glue sticks the sand and silt and clay together and makes clumps. The clumps make shapes by themselves. Some soils have small round clumps. Other soils have large, hard and flat clumps. The soil with small round clumps is best because it lets in air and water. A little glue is best. If the soil has only a little glue there will be space for water and air and the soil will be soft. If the soil has too much glue the soil will be hard. If the soil has no glue, there will be no space in the soil for air and water. A soil with no spaces is not healthy. Worms in the soil make a slippery glue. When worms make holes in the soil they leave some glue in the soil. Plant roots also make spaces in the soil. When the roots die they leave holes in the soil.

Soil horizons (layers)

A soil has a "soil texture" (sand and silt and clay) and it has organic matter mixed in it. But weather changes the soil. It is cold on the Earth near the north and south poles. It is hot near the equator of the Earth. Some places on Earth get a lot of rain and some places get no rain. Hot and wet weather make one kind of soil. Cold and dry weather make another kind of soil. Rain water makes small things in the soil move down with the water. When the things in the water get stuck in the soil those things make a layer in the soil. If you dig down into the soil you may find many layers in the soil. The layers may have different colors. The layers may have different "soil textures". The top part of the soil may have a lot of humus and sand. Below that layer there may be a layer of silt. Below that layer there may be a layer of clay.

The sand stays on the top because it is large. The silt goes down a little with the water and makes a layer because it is small. The silt is smaller than some of the spaces in the soil. The clay can go down even lower with the water because it is the smallest. The sand will make one layer, the silt will make another layer and the clay will make another layer. The humus can move down with the water and make a layer too. The silt and clay and humus can move down because of the spaces in the soil. But, the silt, clay, and humus will fill the spaces in the soil. When the spaces in the soil are closed, it makes it hard for air to go into the soil. Plant roots do not go where there is no air. When we dig down we find layers in the soil.

We call those layers "soil horizons". The top horizon may be an inch (25mm) thick. We call that layer the "O" horizon or sometimes "topsoil". The next layer (horizon) is the "B" horizon. The next lower layer of soil is the "C" horizon. The bottom layer has many rocks and may be called the bedrock or "R" horizon for "rock". Deep down, there is always bedrock. But you may have to dig down a mile (a km) or more. When the soil dries, the soil may shrink and cracks will form in the soil. The soil in the top layer may fall down into the cracks. This causes the layers of soil to be changed because they are mixed. There may be many types soil where you live or only one type of soil. Different rocks make different soil textures. Different weather makes the different soil textures different. And so, there are different soils all over the world.

Related pages

Images for kids

A, B, and C represent the soil profile, a notation firstly coined by Vasily Dokuchaev (1846-1903), the father of pedology. Here, A is the topsoil; B is a regolith; C is a saprolite (a less-weathered regolith); the bottom-most layer represents the bedrock.

In Spanish: Suelo para niños

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Kids and gardeners give it a fair amount of respect, but to most everyone else, dirt is just beneath us. That's a shame really, because a single handful of dirt contains enough science lessons to fill a book!

Let's begin with a few terms. Call soil "dirt" in front of a soil scientist and you're likely to get an earful. But ask a group of soil scientists exactly what "soil" is and you might get as many answers as people. Still, "soil" is a more precise word for the earth under our feet than "dirt." Broadly speaking, soil is a mixture of inorganic particles weathered from bedrock and organic material, both alive and dead. The term "dirt" is a little like the term "weed"-it's soil where you don't want it, like under your fingernails or in paw-shaped splotches across your clean carpet.

Kinds of Soil
The inorganic particles in soil can be broken into three broad groups.
* Sand has a high ratio of large, granular particles.
* Silt is comprised mostly of medium-sized particles.
* Clay is mostly super-fine particles.
Soil is classified based upon the percentages of each material present, in addition to the percentage of organic material, which we discuss further below. It is also categorized according to the bedrock or "parent material" from which the particles originated.

Activity: What Kind of Soil?
You will need:
* Three quart jars with lids
* Soil from three different locations (do not use potting soil)
* Journals or record sheets for each student

Instructions:
* Fill the first jar about 1/3 full with soil from the first location, the second with soil from the second location, etc.
* Add water to nearly fill the jar and cap.
* Shake the jar thoroughly.
* Allow the contents to settle, undisturbed-overnight is best. The soil layers will fall out in roughly the following order (from bottom to top)-gravel, sand, silt, clay, organic material (which will be a top layer on the soil and/or floating on the top of the water). Not all material may be present in each sample.
* Have students look at each jar and draw/write their observations in their journals or on record sheets.

The Recipe for Soil
As I mentioned above, soil is partly composed of little bits of rock eroded over millennia from the underlying bedrock. What makes the top layer of Earth's crust different from a planet like Mars is all the organic material mixed in with the eroded rock, like decomposed leaves, proteins and minerals from the bodies of decayed animals, and earthworm poop (oh, sorry, I meant castings). Then there are the living things, from microscopic bacteria and rotifers to teeny nematodes to slightly less teeny springtails and mites. In this pair of activities, students have a chance to examine the components of soil and make observations.

Activity: Soil Observation, Part 1-Soil Composition
You will need:
* Soil samples, about 2 cups each (Try to take a sample from at least two or three different areas. Do not use potting soil.)
* Magnifying glasses, one for each station
* Tweezers, 1-2 for each station
* A container of some sort, one for each station
* Black and white paper, one sheet of each for each station
* Journals or record sheets for each student
* Disposable gloves (optional, see note)

Instructions:
1. Create 1-3 stations per soil sample, depending upon the size of your group.
2. At each station, tape down a sheet of white and a sheet of black paper. Place about 2 tablespoons of soil on each sheet. Place one magnifying glass at each station, along with 1-2 tweezers.
3. Invite groups of students to study each sample carefully and to note their observations with words and pictures in their journals or on their record sheets. For this activity, have them focus on the composition of the soil itself. Is it crumbly or clumpy? What does it smell like? Are their rocks? Leaves? Sticks?
4. Have students rotate through all soil samples and note the differences, if any, among the samples.
5. Have students carefully pour their dirt samples into their containers. If you are not moving on to the next activity, have them clean up and wash their hands.

Note: soil contains a legion of fungi and bacteria that are harmless to most people. However, if you have a student with allergies to any of these, you may want to have them avoid handling the samples or have them use gloves and avoid the "smell" test. Or, if you want to be extra cautious, have all kids use disposable gloves.

Activity: Soil Observation, Part 2-Who Lives Here?
Instructions:
1. If you have access to microscopes and a little extra time, prepare a slide or two ahead of time so students can view some soil creatures under a microscope.
2. If you have not already done so for the previous activity, create 1-3 stations per soil sample. See instructions 1-2 above, except place about ½ cup of soil in the container at each station instead of placing dirt on the sheets.
3. Have students carefully sift a small amount of dirt through their screen or sieve onto the black paper and onto the white paper. Have them study any living creatures and note their observations.
4. Have students rotate through all soil samples noting the creatures present in each sample.
5. Have students carefully pour their dirt samples into their containers, clean up and thoroughly wash their hands.

Additional Resources
If you'd like to extend your exploration of soil, here are some resources chock full of ideas for further exploration.

Books
* My favorite new dirt book is Muddy Max: The Mystery of Marsh Creek, by Elizabeth Rusch. Though Max's adventure is fiction, this graphic novel is stuffed with all kinds of ooey, gooey dirt facts. The activities in the back can be used to teach science, history, and even art!
* Another great resource is One Small Square: Backyard, by Donald M. Silver. There are only a couple of pages that specifically address soil, but he manages to pack in a ton of information.
* I also recommend The Dirt on Dirt, by Paulette Bourgeois. This book also addresses much more than just soil composition and inhabitants, including erosion, fossilization, plate tectonics, and the chemistry of getting clean.

Websites
* "Soil Education Resources" from the National Association of Conservation Districts:
o http://www.nacdnet.org/education/soils
* "Dig Deeper" from the Soil Science Society of America:
o http://www.soils4kids.org/
* "From the Ground Up: The Science of Soil" from the Nutrients for Life Foundation
o http://www.thescienceofsoil.com/

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Kids and gardeners give it a fair amount of respect, but to most everyone else, dirt is just beneath us. That's a shame really, because a single handful of dirt contains enough science lessons to fill a book! Let's begin with a few terms. Call soil "dirt" in front of a soil scientist and you're likely to get an earful.

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We will discuss about the different layers of soil and their formation. We know plants grow and depend on soil. Animals depend on plants and we depend on plants and animals both. Thus all the living things depend on soil. No life is possible on the earth without soil.

Soil is not only needed for plants but we too use it for so many things, like building kachcha houses, making clay utensils clay-toys, bricks etc.

Our earth is composed mainly of soil. There are three main layers of soil. If we dig deep into the ground the layers may be differentiated. The top-layer of the soil, about 25 cm deep is dark in colour, soft and full of manures. Plants grow in this layer. It is called top-soil.

Just below the top-soil there is sub-soil. It is light coloured layer. This layer is thick and full of sand and gravels. The bottom layer is called bed-rock as it is made of solid rocks.

Soil is formed from rocks. The rocks get heated in day time by the sun and they cool at night. Due to repeated heating and cooling the rocks crack and break into small pieces. These small pieces further break into tiny pieces due to the flowing water of rivers and rivulets. The tiny pieces are transported to far off places by river water and wind. In due course the tiny pieces are turned into powder and soil is formed. Decayed plants and dead animals mix with the soil and form humus. Rotten dung, leaves of plants and other such things increase the humus in the soil.

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Layers of Soil | Three main Layers of Soil | Different Layers Soil | Bed-rock

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We will discuss about the different layers of soil and their formation. We know plants grow and depend on soil. Animals depend on plants and we depend on plants and animals both. Thus all the living things depend on soil. No life is possible on the earth without soil.

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Soil Profile ,Soil Layers - Video for  Kids

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Layers of Soil | #aumsum #kids #science #education #children

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Soil Types & Soil Horizons (Profile ) Unit for Kids

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Visit http://www.makemegenius.com ,watch all Science & other educational videos for kids for free.

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Science - Soil Formation and soil layers - English

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Soil Formation | #aumsum #kids #science #education #children

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The Soil Profile - Kids Science Experiments

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Soil Erosion Lesson for Kids -Know more about it!

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Soil  Erosion - Materials Around Us (CBSE Grade : 5 Environmental Science)

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Science - Soil Erosion and Conservation - English

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Soils are complex mixtures of minerals, water, air, organic matter, and countless organisms that are the decaying remains of once-living things. It forms at the surface of land – it is the “skin of the earth.” Soil is capable of supporting plant life and is vital to life on earth. Soil, as formally defined in the Soil Science Society of America Glossary of Soil Science Terms, is: