Texas TEKS 3.10.B
The Standard
investigate and explain how soils such as sand and clay are formed by weathering of rock and by decomposition of plant and animal remains
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Science
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students examine sand, clay, rock pieces, and decayed material for clues about how soil forms. They explain that rocks break into smaller particles and dead organisms decompose into soil material.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students connect sand and clay particles to the weathering of rock. They also identify decomposed plant and animal remains as material that becomes part of soil.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think sand and clay are unrelated to rock or that clay is made only by people. They may confuse weathering, which breaks rock down, with erosion, which moves particles.
How to Assess It
- Show a picture of cracked rock beside decaying leaves. Ask students to explain how both could contribute to soil formation.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs sand, clay, weathered rock, and compost samples to inspect with hand lenses, then record particle size, texture, and visible remains.
Have students write how a rock and a dead leaf can both become soil, using evidence from sample observations.
Students sort picture cards into weathering, decomposition, or neither, then explain one disputed card to a partner.
Compare garden soil with playground sand and predict which would support beans better based on particle size and decomposed material.
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Printable 3.10.B Worksheet
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Related Standards
- 1.10.A
investigate and document the properties of particle size, shape, texture, and color and the components of different types of soils such as topsoil, clay, and sa...
- 1.10.B
investigate and describe how water can move rock and soil particles from one place to another;
- 2.10.A
investigate and describe how wind and water move soil and rock particles across the Earth's surface such as wind blowing sand into dunes on a beach or a river c...
- 5.10.B
model and describe the processes that led to the formation of sedimentary rocks and fossil fuels; and
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