This lesson focuses on soil health and recognizing that soil is a living system.
The lesson also emphasizes that soil microbial activity, specifically decomposition activity, can be a good indicator of how alive and healthy a soil is.

This activity is an adaptation of a classic cotton strip test used to test soil
decomposition capacity. More recently the "Soil Your Undies" campaign led by various soil conservation groups has been a fun way for farmers to test their soil health by burying a pair of cotton underwear to see the decomposition activity of their soil.

View Lesson
Organization
University of Tennessee
Discipline
Life Sciences
Grade Level
3-5
6-8
9-12
Lesson Area
Soil Basics
Soil Biology
Lesson Type
Activity
Lesson Keywords
Soil Health
Decomposition
Decomposers

Next Generation Science Standards

Grade Discipline Core Idea
3-5 LS2.B: Cycles of matter and energy transfer in ecosystems

Matter cycles between the air and soil and among organisms as they live and die. 
6-8 LS2.B: Cycles of matter and energy transfer in ecosystems

The atoms that make up the organisms in an ecosystem are cycled repeatedly between the living and nonliving parts of the ecosystem. Food webs model how matter and energy are transferred among producers, consumers, and decomposers as the three groups interact within an ecosystem.
9-12 LS2.B: Cycles of matter and energy transfer in ecosystems

Photosynthesis and cellular respiration provide most of the energy for life processes. Only a fraction of matter consumed at the lower level of a food web is transferred up, resulting in fewer organisms at higher levels. At each link in an ecosystem elements are combined in different ways and matter and energy are conserved. Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are key components of the global carbon cycle.