Erosion Demonstration: Comparing Grass, Dead Leaves, and Soil

Positives

• This video provides a straightforward and engaging demonstration of how erosion works. 
• This resource provides links to additional resources and provides an example of an experiment that students could easily do in their classroom. 

Additional Prerequisites

• It may be helpful for students to have a basic understanding of the concept of erosion and how plants "drink" water. 
• The PBS link in the article is broken. 

Differentiation

• This experiment could be replicated in a classroom or teachers might choose to use the link to other Fun Science Demos referenced in the article. 
• The article provides a link to 14 other videos about erosion that could be used for extension activities. 
• Language arts classes could write a few sentences that compare and contrast the water runoff from the three containers, being sure to explain why the process works differently.
  
• Science classes could work in groups to research how human activities are impacting the land, rates of erosion, and our Earth. 
• Other resources on this topic include this video about slowing coastal erosion and this video which provides an overview of soil science.