Grade 3 · Science · Unit 8 of 15
Soil Is Alive
What soil is made of and who lives in it.
What your child practises
Soil as a mix of rock particles, air, water and once-living material, and as a habitat that plants and animals change.
Alberta Curriculum learning outcome: 3ES1.7 · what soil is made of, who lives in it and how it changes
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
An ant colony lives in soil. Soil is the ants'…
🐜- rainfall
- cloud
- food chain
- habitat
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habitat
Hint: A habitat meets an animal's needs.
Question 2
A gardener adds compost to soil. Why?
🧑🌾- it adds nutrients and helps hold water
- to make it hard
- to remove plants
- to lower the temperature
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it adds nutrients and helps hold water
Hint: Compost is rotted plant material.
Question 3
If you rub soil between your fingers and it feels gritty, it probably has a lot of…
🏖️- water
- sand
- sugar
- metal
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sand
Hint: Sand feels rough and gritty.
Question 4
Why do Alberta's prairies have some of the best farm soil?
🌾- there are no plants
- grasses added dark, rich humus over many years
- it is all clay
- it never rains
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grasses added dark, rich humus over many years
Hint: Prairie grasses have deep roots and added organic matter for thousands of years.
Question 5
Which can change soil over time?
🔄- only the Moon
- only magnets
- only paper
- plants, animals, wind and water
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plants, animals, wind and water
Hint: Soil is always changing.
Question 6
A farmer's field has less topsoil each year. What could be happening?
🌬️- wind or water is carrying it away
- more worms are growing
- the soil is turning into sunshine
- the Moon is pulling it
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wind or water is carrying it away
Hint: Topsoil is the richest layer, and erosion can remove it.