Forest soil communities and ecocystems

2. In the Soil - The puzzle game 
The puzzle game illustrates the mosaic-like nature 
of soil and its special characteristics  in three different habitats:  natural forest, clear-cut area, and human-made park.  These habitats have their own functions that shape the environment and affect species diversity and ecosystem functioning. The special characteristics and differences can first be studied by assembling the puzzle and  then combining the different functions with  their explanations into the habitat. 

The idea of the task is to first assemble each puzzle in small groups and then, depending on the level of difficulty, add names and/or explanations to the events shown in the pictures.  

Age: Suitable for all ages; as the group gets older, additional components (text cards) can be added to expand the theoretical content.
Time: about 45 minutes, depending on the age group. 

​Prepare before lesson: 
Print, cut out and laminate if necessary the needed materials for the task (each group needs one copy of each printout):
- Puzzle pictures with lines: Park, Clear-cut area, Natural forest.
OR
- Puzzle pictures without cutting lines: Park, Clear-cut area, Natural forest

You will also need: 
Events in the pictures, explanations and correct answers. 

Tips!
To avoid crafting, you can also ask the students to write explanations of the functions in their own notebooks.  Remember to color code/mark the pieces that belong to the same puzzle. We have used the same color codes as in the text explanations. 

You can also order ready-made puzzles by sending the files to a company that makes puzzles from your own  pictures. You will find numerous options by searching online. We  ordered ours from palapelit.com.

Step by step in class: 
  • Introduction to the topic: Begin by exploring the forest ecosystem - scientific background. 
  • Group work: The task is designed for group work, so divide the class into groups of 2–5 students. 
  • Start: The activity begins by assembling the natural forest puzzle. Once the puzzle is completed, depending on the group’s age/skill level, the groups will add title texts to the numbered sections of the picture (from the “events in the pictures” file).  If the students are in upper secondary school, they can match the numbered A4 sheet with the corresponding  title and explanation of the event. With younger pupils, you can move directly to the joint review after  assembling the puzzle. 
  • Joint review of the natural forest picture: Go through the events in the picture together, adapting the  discussion to the age level. 
  • Next, repeat the same working method for the park puzzle and finally for the clear-cut area puzzle. 
  • Final summary: It is especially important to compare all three soil habitats with each other. This way, students will notice what changes in the soil as a result of human impact. Focus on both the organisms and the   structural changes in the soil. 
    • ​​What was the soil like in the different pictures? What differences or similarities did you notice?
    • What kinds of organisms live in the different habitats? How are they doing?
    • Does soil soil disturbance affect the functioning and composition of biological communities? How do plant and animal communities in the soil affect the health of humans and other species?
Tip! 
The clear-cut puzzle can also be used as a differentiation tool, providing extra challenge for those who need 
it. 
​
Different age variations:
With preschoolers and lower primary school pupils, the puzzles are assembled in small groups and the events are discussed as a whole group.
Upper primary school pupils / lower secondary school students add the laminated event names to the pictures.
Upper secondary school students also match the longer explanations to the pictures on a separate sheet of paper.
​– – – – – – – – – – 

References:

* Allen, J., & Zheng, B.‑X. (2021, November 8–10). Are dogs altering microbial communities and contributing to antibiotic resistance in urban park soil bacteria? Poster presented at People and Planet – From Theory to Solutions conference. http://hdl.handle.net/10138/339552 
 
* Banerjee, S., & van der Heijden, M. G. A. (2023). Soil microbiomes and one health. Nature Reviews Microbiology, 21(1), 6–20. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41579-022-00779-w 

* Douglas, A. E. (2018). Fundamentals of microbiome science: How microbes shape animal biology. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt1ws7wc1 

* Francini, G., Hui, N., Jumpponen, A., Kotze, D. J., Romantschuk, M., Allen, J. A., & Setälä, H. (2018). Soil biota in boreal urban greenspace: Responses to plant type and age. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 118, 145–155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2017.11.019 
 
* Haahtela, T., Hanski, I., Von Hertzen, L., Jousilahti, P., Laatikainen, T., Mäkelä, M. J., Puska, P., Reijula, K., Saarinen, K., Vartiainen, E., Vasankari, T., & Virtanen, S. (2017). Luontoaskel tarttumattomien tulehdustautien torjumiseksi. Duodecim, 133(1), 19–26. https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe201704106035 

* Haahtela, T., Valovirta, E., Saarinen, K., Jantunen, J., Kauppi, P., Pelkonen, A., Lindström, I., Tommila, E., Petman, L., Ketola, T., Mäkinen-Kiljunen, S., Csonka, P., Hellemaa, P., Pajunen, S., Puolanne, M., Repo, I., Salava, A., Savolainen, J., Laatikainen, T., Linna, M., von Hertzen, L., Abdulla Hama Salih, K., Hannuksela, M., Vasankari, T., & Mäkelä, M. (2020). Kansallinen allergiaohjelma 2008–2018 muutti asenteita ja vähensi sairastavuutta. Suomen Lääkärilehti, 75(36), 1760–1769. https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2021041410424 

* Huhta, V. (toim.), & Hallanaro, E.-L. (toim.). (2019). Elämää maan kätköissä. Gaudeamus. 

* Jousset, A., Rochat, L., Péchy-Tarr, M., Métraux, J.-P., & Keel, C. (2009). Predators promote defence of rhizosphere bacterial populations by selective feeding on non-toxic cheaters. ISME Journal, 3, 666–674. https://doi.org/10.1038/ismej.2009.26 

* Orgiazzi, A., Bardgett, R., Barrios, E., Behan-Pelletier, V., Briones, M., Chotte, J.-L., Deyn, G. B., Eggleton, P., Fierer, N., Fraser, T. D., Hedlund, K., Jeffery, S., Johnson, N., Jones, A., Kandeler, E., Kaneko, N., Lavelle, P., Lemanceau, P., Miko, L., & Wall, D. (2016). Global soil biodiversity atlas. European Commission. https://doi.org/10.2788/799182 

* Piattoni, F., Leonardi, P., & Zambonelli, A. (2014). Viability and morphology of Tuber aestivum spores after passage through the gut of Sus scrofa. Mycorrhiza, 24(6), 495–500. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00572-014-0577-7 

​* Tammisto, I., Fernandez Garcia, D., Hemming, E., & Kaarlejärvi, E. (2025). Sammalkerroksen, metsikön iän ja metsälannoituksen vaikutus typen kiertoon boreaalisissa metsissä / The effects of bryophyte layer, forest age and fertilization on nitrogen cycling in boreal forests. In J. Heinonsalo, N. Kyöstilä, S. Mattbäck, J. Pumpanen, S. Selonen, T. Törmänen, S. Velmala, S. Virtanen & T. Zhou (Eds.), Pro Terra No. 77: Terve maaperä ekosysteemipalveluiden tarjoajana - XIII Maaperätieteiden päivien abstraktit (7.-8.1.2025). Suomen Maaperätieteiden Seura ry / Helsingin yliopisto, Maataloustieteiden osasto. https://www.salaojayhdistys.fi/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Pro_Terra_77_elektroninen_abstraktikirja-VALMIS.pdf 
 
* Vestberg, M., & Timonen, S. S. (toim.). (2018). Rihman kiertämät: Kasvien ja sienten erottamaton elämä. Mauritz Vestberg. 
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