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Soil Formations, Changes, and Landforms Study Guide
Formation of Soil 3.7A
Student Expectation
The student is expected to explore and record how soils are formed by weathering of rock and the
decomposition of plant and animal remains.
Vocabulary
Soil: a substance found on the earth’s surface (or the ground); the dirt that helps plants grow
Weathering: the breaking up of rock into smaller pieces
Decomposition, Decay (or Decompose),: the breakdown of plant or animal remains; to decay (takes
time)
Rock: made up of minerals; the hard parts of earth’s surface
Plant and Animal Remains: when plants or animals die, their remains decompose to help form soil
Key Concepts
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Key Concept 1: Weathering is the process that breaks down Earth’s rocks into smaller and
smaller pieces over time.
Key Concept 2: Soils are made up of small pieces of weathered rock.
Key Concept 3: Soil contains many substances including decomposed plant and animal remains.
Key Concept 4: The materials in soil, or soil type, are different in different areas.
Fundamental Questions
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What is weathering?
What is soil made of?
How are soils different in different areas?
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Soil Formations, Changes, and Landforms Study Guide
Earth’s Forces 3.7B
Student Expectation
The student is expected to investigate rapid changes on Earth's surface such as volcanic eruptions,
earthquakes, and landslides.
Vocabulary
Rapid change: a change the happens quickly
Volcanic eruption: when hot lava and/or ash begins coming out of a volcano
Earthquake: when Earth’s plates grind against each other
Landslide: an event in which rocks and/or mud slide down along a mountainside slope due ato gravity
Key Concepts
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Key Concept 1: Large forces can change the Earth's surface rapidly.
Key Concept 2: Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes can cause rapid changes on Earth’s surface
such as creating new land, making cracks in the crust, or changing landforms.
Key Concept 3: Landslides can cause rapid change to Earth’s surface such as rocks and debris
falling from a rock face.
Fundamental Questions
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What are some forces that can cause rapid changes to the Earth’s surface?
What are the effects of rapid changes to the Earth’s surface?
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Soil Formations, Changes, and Landforms Study Guide
Earth’s Landforms 3.7C
Student Expectation
The student is expected to identify and compare different landforms, including mountains, hills,
valleys and plains.
Vocabulary
Landform: a natural formation on earth’s surface
Mountain: a large mound of rocks that form a peak; generally very large formations
Hill: a mound of rocks and soil that form rounded tops; generally smaller than mountains
Valley: an open area between hills or mountains; can often be found with rivers #owing
through them
Plains: large flat areas of land
Key Concepts
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Key Concept 1: A landform is a natural geographic structure on the Earth’s surface.
Key Concept 2: Landforms, including mountains, hills, valleys, and plains, have specific
characteristics.
Key Concept 3: Landforms can look very different but can be formed by similar processes.
Key Concept 4: We can compare different landforms based on their characteristics.
Fundamental Questions
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What is a landform?
What are examples of landforms and the processes that created them?
What are some characteristics we can use to compare landforms?
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