New
New
Year 3

Healthy soil (non-statutory Climate Change & Sustainability)

I can describe that soil contains water and nutrients for plants and that the climate can affect these.

New
New
Year 3

Healthy soil (non-statutory Climate Change & Sustainability)

I can describe that soil contains water and nutrients for plants and that the climate can affect these.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The weather describes outside conditions over a few weeks and the climate describes conditions over many years.
  2. Earth’s climate is gradually changing. The climate is getting warmer more quickly now than a hundred years ago.
  3. Changes in the climate can affect how much water, nutrients and air are in soil and how well plants can grow.
  4. Too much rain (flooding) or not enough rain can affect how well crops grow.
  5. If soil is too wet or dry this can affect how well animals help mix soil and break down organic matter to add nutrients.

Keywords

  • Weather - Weather is rain, wind, sun or other conditions you get at a particular time or place.

  • Climate - The climate of a place is the kind of weather a place usually has over many years.

  • Soil - Soil is ground up rock mixed up with plant and animal remains.

  • Nutrient - A nutrient is any substance that plants or animals need in order to live and grow.

  • Flooding - Flooding is the covering or submerging of normally dry land with a large amount of water.

Common misconception

Children may be confused by the difference between the words weather and climate.

By identifying types of weather in the early part of the lesson, you can then help pupils to understand climate by discussing how typical types of weather remain over a long period.

Use the countries your children come from to get some personal experience of the weather and climate these countries have to engage all the learners.
Teacher tip

Equipment

No additional equipment needed.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Rain, sun, wind, snow, hail stones, fog, thunder and lightning are all types of ...
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: weather, weather.
Q2.
Which of these are types of soil?
An image in a quiz
granite
Correct answer: clay
Correct answer: loam
sandstone
Correct answer: sandy
Q3.
Which of these does soil provide?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: it provides a material to support plant roots
it provides a home for people to live
Correct answer: it provides nutrients for healthy plant growth
Correct answer: it provides a home for small animals to live
it provides nutrients for people to eat
Q4.
Which of these processes helps soils to form?
An image in a quiz
melting
magnetism
Correct answer: erosion
growth
Correct answer: weathering
Q5.
How long does it take for soils to form?
a few hours
a few days
many months
Correct answer: many years
Q6.
What is it called if we have too much rain that doesn't drain away leaving a large amount of land covered in lots of water?
An image in a quiz
a drought
Correct answer: a flood
a drain
a puddle
Q4 CC-BY-2.0 Jim McDougall

6 Questions

Q1.
Which options below are examples of types of weather?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: rain
Correct answer: snow
flood
Correct answer: wind
drought
Q2.
In what way is Earth’s climate gradually changing?
Correct answer: The climate is getting warmer more quickly now than a hundred years ago.
The climate is getting colder more quickly now than a hundred years ago.
The climate is not changing, it is the same as a hundred years ago.
Q3.
Climate describes weather conditions over ...
An image in a quiz
a few days.
a couple of weeks.
a few hours.
Correct answer: many years.
Q4.
What do changes in the climate affect?
An image in a quiz
how much water there is in your bath
Correct answer: how much water there is in soil
Correct answer: how well plants grow
how well you grow
Correct answer: how many nutrients there are in soil
Q5.
Flooding or not enough rain can affect how well crops grow. What are crops?
An image in a quiz
A crop is a deciduous or evergreen tree.
Correct answer: A crop is a plant that is grown in large amounts.
A crop is a plant that is grown in a pot indoors.
Q6.
Which of these animals in the soil may be affected if soil is either too wet or dry?
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: earthworm
whale
dog
Correct answer: mite
Correct answer: springtail