Activity

Growing Soil Microbes

Curated and Reviewed by Lesson Planet
This Growing Soil Microbes activity also includes:

View how microbes grow in soil. Class members first create a Winogradsky column to grow bacteria. They then set up the column of mud in a plastic bottle and include a food source for the microbes and observe the column of mud over the next several weeks, recording changes as they occur. Finally, the class participates in a discussion after it is clear that something is happening in the soil.

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Additional Tags
Instructional Ideas
  • Research the different processes going on in the column
  • Use soil from various locations and compare the bacteria growth
Classroom Considerations
  • The soil column with microbes will take about four weeks to develop
Pros
  • Includes pictures to show how the column should appear
  • Contains background information for the teacher
Cons
  • None