S is for Soils! (Full Version)

A new, easy-to-read primer for the student and layperson by Ecologist Steven Apfelbaum and illustrated by Rob Dunlavey explores the value of soil to all life on Earth.

Today, with growing concern for dwindling resources, there is a new sense of urgency to better understand and care for soil (what many of us misguidedly call “dirt”) and our very real connection to it.  In fact, “our lives may depend on it.“

Written for high school and older students, and lay, business, and professional audiences, “S” is for Soil! and its cast of soil characters—the pointy-nosed “springtail” prominent among them—guides the reader with clarity and humor through the essential and often complex understandings about soil. 

“S” is for Soil! was produced in partnership with the Lower Sugar River Watershed Association.  A companion teacher’s guide entitled Digging into Soil: A Garden Practicum has been created by Kids Gardening of Burlington Vermont in cooperation with the authors and with LSRWA.

This book has been written for students in high school, for teachers, and general audiences wishing to learn more about soil.

This book has three secitons:

1) The basics: what you need to know to be a citizen of the earth

2) Expanded Understanding: what you should know.

3) My Soil Journal: how to document your journey with soil.

This book is dedicated to fellow Earthlings including the 95% of terrestrial life that resides in the soil -- our extended family.