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Activity
K-State Research and Extensions

Crystal Shapes

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
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....
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Lesson Plan
Science Friday

Mineral Madness

For Teachers 6th - 8th
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...
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Lesson Plan
Virginia Department of Education

Mineral Identification

For Teachers 9th - 12th
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...
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Activity
It's About Time

The Changing Geography of Your Community

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Lead your class in exploring their local communities as well as the general environment. As they determine continental distributions by investigating minerals, rocks, and fossils located in their local region, pupils construct a...
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Lesson Plan
University of New Orleans

Rock Cycle and Rocks Lab

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Science rocks! Explore three types of rocks and the rock cycle with an igneous rocks experiment. Pupils discuss textures, composition, and learn how melts are formed from the Earth's crust. They weigh materials using a scientific scale...
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Unit Plan
Core Knowledge Foundation

Rocks & Minerals

For Teachers 4th - 7th Standards
Take young geologists on an exploration of the rock cycle with this six-lesson earth science unit on rocks and minerals. Through a series of discussions, demonstrations, and hands-on investigations your class will learn about the...
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Unit Plan
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Brooklyn Children’s Museum

Rocks and Minerals in Our Lives

For Teachers K - 6th Standards
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,...
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Unit Plan
Curated OER

Rock On! Featuring the Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic Trio!

For Teachers 1st - 3rd Standards
Get your classroom rocking with this four-lesson earth science unit. Through a series of shared reading activities and hands-on investigations, young geologists learn about the three types of rocks and the unique properties of each.
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PPT
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Curated OER

Minerals of the Earth

For Teachers 5th - 7th
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...
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Interactive
Scholastic

Study Jams! Minerals

For Students 4th - 8th
All that glitters is not gold! In this nine-slide show, your mineralogists gain insight on the formation and properties of the building blocks of rocks. Beautiful and sparkling photographs make the presentation pleasing to the eye, and...
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Lab Resource
Central Bucks School District

Igneous Rocks Lab

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Searching for a simple igneous rocks experiment to assist pupils with rock classification based on texture and composition? In the activity, pupils view multiple rocks in various ways to determine texture and composition. They then...
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Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Rocks and Minerals

For Teachers 4th - 7th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rocks and Minerals Unit

For Teachers 6th - 7th
Students test and identify minerals according to their physical properties. In this mineral analysis lesson, students brainstorm ways to identify rocks and list their ideas on chart paper. Students study samples in pairs and identify the...
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Organizer
Curated OER

Mineral Properties

For Students 6th - 8th
In this earth science worksheet, students look at the properties that are common to identifying minerals and the types of observations one can make.
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Activity
San Diego Natural History Museum

San Diego Natural History Museum: Mineral Matters: Grow Your Own Crystals

For Students 3rd - 8th
Here are step-by-step instructions on how to create crystals. This is a great experiment for students to use in learning about the structure and formation of crystals.
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Lesson Plan
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Education: Minerals, Crystals, and Gems

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Through this series of three lessons, learners will gain an understanding of the basics of mineral science. In their investigation they will also work through the scientific process as they practice their observation skills, form...
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Website
Other

Mineralogical Society of America: Mineral Identification Key: Mineral Properties

For Students 9th - 10th
Scientists classify minerals based on a set of physical properties. Each of these properties is described in detail.
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Article
Children's Museum

Children's Museum of Indianapolis: Golden Cube Geo Mysteries

For Students 3rd - 8th
Learn how to test a material by using the five main properties of minerals to identify it at this interactive site.
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Unit Plan
Vision Learning

Visionlearning: Earth Science: Rocks and Minerals: Defining Minerals

For Students 9th - 10th
Instructional module focusing on minerals. Discussion includes chemical composition, chemical structure, and the formation process. The site also includes an interactive practice quiz and links relating to the topic.
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Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: Minerals and Rocks

For Teachers 4th
Explore the differences between minerals and rocks.
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Handout
San Diego Natural History Museum

San Diego Natural History Museum: Mineral Matters: Hardness

For Students 9th - 10th
Identifying a mineral by hardness? This website explains how to use the Mohs' hardness scale and provides examples.
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Graphic
James Madison University

James Madison University: Mineral Hardness and Cleavage

For Students 9th - 10th
An explanation of the Mohs Hardness scale is followed by illustrations of crystal structures and cleavage.
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Graphic
James Madison University

James Madison University: Mineral Luster

For Students 9th - 10th
Mineral photos depicting metallic and non-metallic luster. Includes shiny, glassy, and earthy examples.
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Graphic
Other

Webmineral.com: Mineral Luster

For Students 9th - 10th
This site lists thirty different terms for describing the luster of minerals.