Ponderosa Pine Forests: Duff and Forest Fires

This lesson gives students a hands-on science and math experience with the duff layer in a ponderosa pine forest. Students will explore a sample to identify what is found in it, measure the width of the duff layer and calculate an average, and examine how humans can increase this duff layer and increase forest fires. Students will then use their knowledge to write about what they have learned in an informative essay.