Dirt Camp

Grades: 1-3
Number of Students: Up to 30
Contact Hours: 12+
Additional Resources: Flyer

Make Like a Mole and Dig into Dirt Camp!

In Dirt Camp, young learners collaborate, reflect and problem-solve their way through a hands-on exploration of the origins and make-up of dirt. Build like a beaver. Tunnel like an ant. Burrow like a crayfish. Experience how techniques from animal, insect, plant and even fungi friends help humans to construct and cultivate. Delve into the differences between dirt and soil and apply this loamy lore to design an ideal farm. Through a multi-subject integration approach, learners will delight in rolling up their sleeves to experiment, engineer and excavate.

Subject Targets:

Earth Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Engineering Design
Math
English Language Arts

Each Activity Includes:

Schedule
Materials List
Topic Background Information
Step-By-Step Directions
Optional Extension Activities

Curriculum Topics:

Properties of Dirt
Mudshakes and Dirt Art
Weathering
Soil Erosion
pH Testing of Soil for Farming
Animal Soil Engineers Above and Below Ground
Bug Hunt: Tunnelers, Decomposers and Hunters
The Wood Wide Web and Fungi
Malian Mudcloths
Engineering with Dirt
Build an Adobe Farm

Complete Program Includes:

Dirt Camp comes with all the supplies needed for 30 students to complete 12 one-hour activities:

Instructor Guide: 1
Printed Student Journals: 31
Burrowing Animal Cut-Outs: 31
Bug Guides: 6
Sheet of Labels: 1
Curriculum Digital Download: 1
Large Storage Tub: 1
Small Storage Tub: 1
Hard Plastic Containers (6 quart): 6
#2 Pencils (12 pk): 3
Baking Soda (8 oz box): 1
Blank Paper (8 1/2" x 11", 500 sheets): 1
Clay (8 lb bucket): 1
Children's Scissors: 5
Colored Pencils (12 pk): 5
Deli Containers with Lids (16 oz, 50 pk): 1
Food Coloring (4 color pack): 1
Garden Lime (6.75 lb): 1
Ice Cube Trays: 10
Lava Rock (10 cups): 1
Magnifying Glasses: 10
Markers (8 pk): 1
Masking Tape Roll: 1
Measuring Cup: 1
Paintbrushes (30 pk): 1
Paper Cups (4 oz): 20
Paper Plates: 100
Paper Towel Roll: 1
Pea Gravel (10 cups): 1
Pencil Sharpeners: 6
PH Strips (200 pk): 1
Pipettes: 50
Pitchers: 5
Popsicle Sticks (1000 pk): 1
Rulers: 5
Silt (32 oz): 1
Skittles (2.17 oz): 1
Sphagnum Peat Moss (10 quarts): 1
Spoons: 50
Straws: 250
Sugar Cubes (1 lb): 1
Table Covers: 6
Toilet Paper Roll: 1
Topsoil (18 quarts): 1
Vinegar (1 quart): 1
White Liquid Glue (4 oz): 7
Ziploc Bags (1 gallon): 5

Note: Educators will need to purchase 20 lbs of sand separately.

Standards & Alignment:

Habits of Mind:

16 thinking habits developed by Art Costa and Bena Kallick to empower students to succeed in a 21st-century learning environment.

Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations
Creating, Imagining, and Innovating
Finding Humor
Gathering Data Through All Senses
Listening with Understanding and Empathy
Managing Impulsivity
Persisting
Remaining Open to Continuous Learning
Responding with Wonderment and Awe
Striving for Accuracy
Taking Responsible Risks
Thinking & Communicating with Clarity and Precision
Thinking About Thinking
Thinking Flexibly
Thinking Interdependently

21st Century Skills:

A set of widely-applicable abilities essential for success in the information age.

Communication and Collaboration
Creativity and Innovation
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Flexibility and Adaptability
Initiative and Self-Direction
Information, Media, and Technology Literacy
Leadership and Responsibility
Productivity and Accountability
Social and Cross-Cultural Skills

Common Core State Standards for Mathematics:

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.1.G.A.2: Compose two-dimensional shapes (rectangles, squares, trapezoids, triangles, half-circles, and quarter-circles) or three-dimensional shapes (cubes, right rectangular prisms, right circular cones, and right circular cylinders) to create a composite shape, and compose new shapes from the composite shape.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.1.MD.A.1: Order three objects by length; compare the lengths of two objects indirectly by using a third object.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.G.A.1: Recognize and draw shapes having specified attributes, such as a given number of angles or a given number of equal faces. Identify triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, hexagons, and cubes.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.MD.A.1: Measure the length of an object by selecting and using appropriate tools such as rulers, yardsticks, meter sticks, and measuring tapes.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.2.MD.A.4: Measure to determine how much longer one object is than another, expressing the length difference in terms of a standard length unit.

Next Generation Science Standards:

K-ESS3-1: Natural Resources
K-2-ETS1-1: Engineering Design
K-2-ETS1-2: Engineering Design
K-2-ETS1-3: Engineering Design
1-LS1-1: Structure and Function
1-LS1-2: Growth and Development
2-ESS2-1: Engineering Earth's Systems
2-LS4-1: Biodiversity
2-PS1-1: Investigating Properties of Matter
2-PS1-2: Analyzing Properties of Matter
3-ESS3-1: Natural Hazards
3-LS2-1: Ecosystem Interactions
3-LS4-3: Adaptation
3-LS4-4: Ecosystem Dynamics
NGSS Core Idea ESS1.C: The History of Planet Earth
NGSS Core Idea ESS2.C: The Roles of Water in Earth’s Surface Processes.
NGSS Core Idea LS1.A: Structure and Function
NGSS Core Idea LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics
NGSS Core Idea LS4.C: Adaptation
NGSS Core Idea PS1.A: Structure and Properties of Matter
NGSS Core Idea PS1.B: Chemical Reactions

* Next Generation Science Standards and NGSS is a registered trademark of WestEd. Neither WestEd nor the lead states and partners that developed the Next Generation Science Standards were involved in the production of this product, and do not endorse it.