What's under my feet?
2. Prepare to discuss
Ask students to think of a place where they could stand in their bare feet on Earth's natural surface and to name two earth materials that might be under their feet.
Provide time for them to think of a place and the earth materials.
Direct them to the last notebook page where they will find a few questions that will be the focus of their wrap-up discussion. [What's under my feet?].
Provide time for them to draw their place and to jot down responses to the questions. After they have had time for notebook writing, ask students to turn and talk to a neighbor about their place and their ideas.
Location, Location, Location: Just as Earth's surface has a great variety of conditions, the earth materials under our feet will vary with location. In fact, no two shovelfuls of soil will ever be identical — even if both are sand from adjacent locations. While it's possible that a soil sample would include the full variety of mineral sizes (pebbles, gravel, sand, silt, and clay), as well as some organic matter, these materials would not occur in exactly the same proportions.
