Mud, mud glorious mud

We have been continuing our scientific studies of rocks and soils in 3V by having a detailed look at soil.

We learnt that soil is important to life on earth - in fact, it is so important that without it, we wouldn't be able to survive!  But what is it actually made of?  3V conducted an experiment to find out.

First, we gathered some soil samples from the school grounds.  Then, we tested the soil by trying to roll it into a ball, and then trying to roll it into a sausage shape.  If the ball was dry and crumbly, that would mean the soil contained a lot of sand.  If it could easily be rolled into a sausage shape, that would mean it contained a lot of clay.  If it was somewhere in between, this would mean it was a loamy soil.

Once the class had tested their soil samples, we used an online tool to find out what scientists had to say about the type and quality of our local soil.  You can find out about your soil type by clicking on 

this link and putting your postcode into the search facility.

After we had looked at the soil type, we tried to separate our soil into different layers.  To do this, we put a sample of the soil into a jam jar, and filled the jar almost to the top with water.  We checked the lids were on tightly before shaking the jars to mix the contents, and then we waited for the mixture to settle.  

Almost immediately we could see the soil separate into different layers.  At the bottom, there were small stones and larger grains of sand.  On top of that there was a fine layer of silt, topped with a layer of lighter clay.  Floating on top of the water we could see organic matter that had not yet rotted down.

We left the jars overnight, and the results were even clearer!