Teaching Tips

• Consider encouraging a class discussion about how climate change may impact stored thermal energy (how does moisture/compaction affect soil, how are temperature patterns changing, etc.)
• Consider taking the temperature profile in different substrates, sand, bare dirt, dirt with grass, dirt covered with small rocks or other ground cover.
• Run through the data collection part of the lesson in advance to get a sense of the varying temperatures. Also, it would be helpful to determine the location students will collect data.

About the Content

• Students learn about sunlight stored in the soil using two separate datasets, including data they collect as well as data provided. The provided data sets are high-resolution soil temperature profiles.
• Students measure air temperature and soil temperature at different depths and compare their findings.
• Additionally, students consider impacts of solar thermal energy in the natural world and for energy for humans (ground sourced geothermal heating systems & ground sourced heat pumps).
• Although this resource is well guided and hints at using energy-efficient designs, it does not relate content back to any strong messages or information about climate change science, such as the effect of climate change on soil radiation and surface temperatures, or changing seasonal patterns in temperature.
• Adding details about these effects and encouraging students to apply their knowledge more deeply to climate change concepts would greatly strengthen this activity.
• Passed initial science review - expert science review pending.

About the Pedagogy

• This resource includes both an educator and student guide with tips and tricks on extending the activity. Students are engaged with two introductory videos and supported in interpreting trends by using other experimental data to compare their own measurements.
• The lesson also offers the option to be completed online using a virtual lab.
• It begins with some background information and a short (5 minute video) which explains how to collect soil data.

• This resource engages students in using scientific data.
  See other data-rich activities

Technical Details/Ease of Use

• This resource is complete in scope and easy to use in most classrooms.
• The data in this file is located in an Excel spreadsheet, it was easy to access and all the links to other resources such as the video or handouts worked.
• Teacher prep time depends on whether the activity is completed indoors or outdoors and also depends on how many days/weeks/months the teacher has to complete the activity. The more time/data collected will make the lesson more interesting.

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