World of Soil Activity Zone

World of Soil Citizen Science Project

Calling all young scientists and curious families! Are you ready to dive into the amazing world beneath your feet? We need you to be a citizen scientist and conduct some fun experiments to help us understand how healthy the soils across Ireland are!

Why do we need your help?

Just like detectives need several clues to solve mysteries, scientists need plenty of information to understand what things might be affecting the health of Irish soils. Soil health can be influenced by lots of things like the weather, what kind of plants are growing on it, and if any chemicals were spread on the soil. That’s why we are asking for details about where and when you are conducting your experiments!

Here you will find some worksheets and instructions for two super cool science projects that we would like you to do.

Count your worms!

We want you to become a worm detective and discover what kind of worms are living in your soil.

By counting, identifying, and telling us about these worms, you’re helping us piece together a big puzzle about the health of soils across Ireland. Click here for the worksheet and start worming your way into soil science!

Soil your pants for soil health!

We have another fascinating and funny mission for you involving burying a pair of cotton underpants!

Just like doctors use stethoscopes to listen to our heartbeats, our cotton underpants can help us listen to the ‘heartbeat’ of the soil. The tiny creatures living in the soil love to nibble on the cotton, and the healthier the soil, the quicker they snack! By joining in and burying underpants, you’re becoming a soil scientist and helping us learn about how happy and healthy our soil is.