Tonight I had the great opportunity to join a Soil Science Webinar put on by the National Earth Science Teachers Association. The objective of the webinar was to dive into the basics of soil, including what soil is, the principles and process of soil, factors of soil formation, soil characteristics, and soil fertility. What was also really neat was that we were provided a lot of hands-on activities to take back with us to the classroom.
I found out about this webinar opportunity by being a part of the Ag Ed Discussion Board on Facebook. If you are not a part of this, I highly suggest you join because it is a really great environment to ask for advice, share resources, and fellowship about agriculture education. As a result, I signed up for the free webinar to help with my knowledge of soil science. As agricultural educators, we must constantly be searching for opportunities to improve our teaching and content knowledge so that we are providing rigorous and relevant content to our students at all times. This was one such opportunity.
The webinar was really great because it reinforced that I am teaching what I should be of soil science. There were multiples times during the presentation where I thought, "Oh my gosh, I teach that to my agriculture students." It felt really good and rewarding to know that I am teaching what is relevant and up-to-date in this content area. Additionally, I was presented with knew ways to teach information, such as the acronym CL. O. R. P. T, which stands for climate, organisms, relief, parent material, and time. This was a really catchy way to remember the factors that influence soil formation and something I will absolutely use in the future.
I took this picture during the webinar as the soil orders were a large part of my Soils 101 class at Penn State. This, though difficult information, could be value-added for students.
Another part of the presentation I really appreciated was how they were connecting soil science, biology, and chemistry together so well. The information I was provided is perfect for cross-curriculum collaboration between departments. Definitely something to think about for the future.
Lastly, all participants were provided with online resources that had activities and lessons regarding soil science for all students K-12. The website is www.soils4teachers.org and I would highly suggest taking the time to look around and discover new material to add to existing soil science curriculum.