Class Demonstration
Materials:
Put a little dirt in the bottom of the container. Place the food and water in the container on the dirt. Seal it up really well!! As a class observe the food as it decomposes. Take pictures of its progress every day. After it has completely decomposed take it outside and open up the seal. Observe as a class that the food changed from food to dirt. If you want the project to work faster then place the container in a warm place and provide air. But if you let in the air, it will stink!! Put the pictures on the computer and place them in a slideshow so that you can quickly watch the
dirt decompose!
- Clear container with a good seal
- Fruit and vegetables (banana peal, apple core, carrots, ect…)
- Other decomposing items (egg shells, bread, leaves, pine cones, ect...)
- Dirt
- Water
Put a little dirt in the bottom of the container. Place the food and water in the container on the dirt. Seal it up really well!! As a class observe the food as it decomposes. Take pictures of its progress every day. After it has completely decomposed take it outside and open up the seal. Observe as a class that the food changed from food to dirt. If you want the project to work faster then place the container in a warm place and provide air. But if you let in the air, it will stink!! Put the pictures on the computer and place them in a slideshow so that you can quickly watch the
dirt decompose!
Group Activity
Materials:
Discuss what the world is made of. Rock, dirt, and water.Set up two stations for students to go to investigate water, dirt, and rocks on Earth.
Station 1: Place soft rocks on a hard surface. Have students pound the rocks onto the hard surface. What happens? Does the rock change shapes? How does nature change the shape of rocks? Have students inspect the river rocks and compare them to the rough rocks. Have students place the soft rocks into a jar with clear water. Shake the jar around and see what happens. Is the water still clear? What happened?
Station 2: place dirt inside the foil pans. Tilt the pan and slowly dump the water into the dirt and let it run down. What happens? After the water creates paths in the dirt will the water go a different direction? Dump more water down the dirt and see what happens.
- Soft rocks
- River rocks
- Rough rocks
- Water
- Jar with a lid
- Pans (foil casserole pans work best)
- Dirt
Discuss what the world is made of. Rock, dirt, and water.Set up two stations for students to go to investigate water, dirt, and rocks on Earth.
Station 1: Place soft rocks on a hard surface. Have students pound the rocks onto the hard surface. What happens? Does the rock change shapes? How does nature change the shape of rocks? Have students inspect the river rocks and compare them to the rough rocks. Have students place the soft rocks into a jar with clear water. Shake the jar around and see what happens. Is the water still clear? What happened?
Station 2: place dirt inside the foil pans. Tilt the pan and slowly dump the water into the dirt and let it run down. What happens? After the water creates paths in the dirt will the water go a different direction? Dump more water down the dirt and see what happens.
Effective Questions to use
What is our world made of?
Is the world alive? why or why not?
What is stronger, Water, rock? Why?
Is the world alive? why or why not?
What is stronger, Water, rock? Why?