K-State Research and Extensions
Crystal Shapes
Of quartz I love geology! The chapter offers five activities at three different levels. It features hands-on activities that cover crystal shapes, cleavage and fracture, hardness scale, specific gravity, and mineral identification....
Curated OER
Grow an Alum Crystal
What an exciting lab experiment to conduct with your high school chemistry class! Crystals are formed naturally in the environment. However, allow your blossoming chemists to create their own unique crystals using alum and water. You may...
Curated OER
Mineral Matters
Middle schoolers work in a team to use the ProScope Digital USB Microscope and a computer to collect microscopic images from a variety of mineral specimens. They compare specimens and determine how they are alike and different by...
Curated OER
Minerals of the Earth
Unearth this gem of a resource to use in your geology unit! With colorful images, bullet-point text, and links to related videos, it deals with the characteristics, properties, and identification of minerals. There are also slides...
Science Friday
Mineral Madness
Science does not need to be as hard as a rock. Pupils test 10 different minerals to determine their properties. The learners observe luster, streak, hardness, and fluorescence for each specimen. Afterwards, they compare and contrast the...
Curated OER
Minerals
A must-have for your geology library of resources, this PowerPoint walks viewers through the characteristics of minerals and each test used to help identify them. As you present this collection of slides, stop to demonstrate each quality...
Virginia Department of Education
Mineral Identification
What's the difference between a rock and a mineral? And what properties are used to identify minerals? The first installment of a five-part series on earth materials and processes prompts young scientists to identify a set of...
Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Rocks and Minerals in Our Lives
Young geologists discover the important role that rocks and minerals play in our everyday lives through this series of hands-on activities. Starting off with a lesson that defines the difference between plants, animals, and minerals,...
CK-12 Foundation
Mineral Formation: Evaporating Lake
Get crazy for crystals! Junior geologists learn the secrets of crystal formation through lecture, reading, and examples. Other topics include common ionic compounds found in fresh and salt water, the effects of location on forming...
Curated OER
Gumdrop Crystal Models
A great way to learn about molecular structures is to make a model. Gumdrops and toothpicks are used to construct crystal models. The models are based on theories of crystal shapes that occur because of positive and or negatively charged...
Curated OER
Mighty Minerals
Young scholars identify the characteristics of minerals. They complete proper identification tests and record the data in an organized fashion. They list important uses for minerals as well.
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
Review the difference between rocks and minerals using this resource. Learners identify and investigate the physical properties of these objects. They create a Venn diagram to compare and contrast types of rocks. This is a motivating way...
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
In this earth science worksheet, students use the clues given at the bottom of the sheet to solve the crossword puzzle on mineral and rocks. They identify the various types of rocks formed and specific examples of these rocks.
Curated OER
Scientific Method and Crystal Growth
Students conduct a hands-on experiment growing crystals to demonstrate the nature of science as inquiry. They discuss and test variables that affect crystal growth. They research mineral crystallization and mineral formation on the...
Curated OER
Crystal Growing
Young scholars grow crystals and document their observations by recording timeing and growth. Additional characteristics of crystals are observed under a black light, by growing under different conditions and mineral content is determined.
Curated OER
Virginia Rocks and Minerals
Learners explore, via a CD-ROM, the Virginia's five geological regions and discover the rocks and minerals located in each. In stone kits, they examine samples of rocks and minerals and answer questions about them. After discovering the...
Curated OER
EASY (AND CHEAP) CRYSTAL GROWING
Students grow salt crystals by making a saturated solution of table salt and let the solution sit around and evaporate.
Curated OER
Arkansas State Mineral: Quartz Mineral
The quartz crystals found in the mountains of Arkansas are among the purest and clearest in the world! This lesson has middle schoolers focus on this state mineral of Arkansas as they study the state's geography. A fun game is...
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
Take young geologists on an exploration of the collection of rocks and minerals that we call Earth with an upper-elementary science lesson. Through a series of class discussion and hands-on investigations, students learn about the three...
Smithsonian Institution
Watching Crystals Grow
Amazing science can sometimes happen right before your eyes! The class gets cozy as they watch crystals grow. They use Epsom salts, rocks, and food coloring to create crystals. They'll observe the entire process, documenting every step...
Curated OER
Mineral Identification Lab
In this mineral worksheet, students conduct mineral tests on unknown minerals and use the identification chart to determine which mineral they have tested. They test 5 unknown minerals and write the results of their tests in a chart.
Curated OER
Crystal Growing
Students explore the different phases of a crystal. In this mineral lesson students grow their own sugar crystals using a sugar recipe.
Curated OER
Mineral Scavenger Hunt
Students complete a scavenger hunt worksheet as they find examples in their classroom, at home, etc., of minerals. Excellent worksheet!
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
Students bring rocks and minerals from home to investigate in the classroom. In this rocks and minerals lesson plan, students observe all the rocks and minerals brought into the class and answer 7 questions about the features of the...