Handout
University of Oxford (UK)

The Learning Zone: Minerals

For Students K - 1st
In this interactive you will learn about minerals--how to identify them and how you use them in your everyday life.
Handout
Other

Scienceviews.com: Minerals and Their Uses

For Students 9th - 10th
Every segment of society uses minerals and mineral resources everyday. The roads we ride or drive on and the buildings we live learn and work in all contain minerals. Below is a selected list of commonly used metallic and nonmetallic...
Handout
Other

Florida Dept. Of Education: Conservation of Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

For Students 9th - 10th
In this learning module, students learn to differentiate between renewable and nonrenewable resources, and identify resources that fit into each category. It explains the environmental effects of using nonrenewable resources, such as...
Interactive
Other

Oresome Resources: Mining Helps Make Your House Interactive

For Students 9th - 10th
An interactive activity for you to find out how much your lifestyle depends on mining. Students select household items and learn facts about their chemical nature, properties and uses, their origins in the Earth, mining, and production.
Unit Plan
American Geosciences Institute

American Geosciences Institute: Materials and Minerals

For Students 9th - 10th
Seven hands-on lessons module that allows students to learn about materials and minerals. These inquiry-based explorations investigate properties of materials, where mineral deposits can be found, how deposits are formed, how minerals...
Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: Department of Mineral Sciences

For Students 9th - 10th
Useful interface and gateway into the research collections of the Department of Mineral Sciences at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. Find information, image galleries, exhibits, specimens, and related resources about...
Handout
US Geological Survey

U.s. Geological Survey: Lead Soft and Easy to Cast [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
This detailed resource teaches about lead and the important role it plays in the national economy, national security, and lives of Americans every day. Discover how we use lead, where it comes from, and where future lead supplies might...
Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Primary Source: Boomtimes: 20th Century Mining Mojave Desert

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This collection uses primary sources to explore twentieth-century mining in the Mojave Desert.
Primary
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: When Miners Strike: West Virginia Coal Mining Labor History

For Students 9th - 10th
This collection uses primary sources to explore coal mining and labor in West Virginia.
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Engineering for the Earth

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young students are introduced to the complex systems of the Earth through numerous lessons on its natural resources, processes, weather, climate and landforms. Key earth science topics include rocks, soils and minerals, water and natural...
Website
US Environmental Protection Agency

Epa: Land, Waste, and Cleanup Topics

For Students 9th - 10th
This site is loaded with information on solid waste and hazardous waste. It includes industries' effects on the environment, waste programs, treatment, control, pollution prevention, recycling, and cleanup programs.
Website
Amethyst Galleries

Amethyst Galleries: Minerals by Name

For Students 9th - 10th
Use this resource to look up any mineral by name to see its picture along with history, class, uses, related minerals, and physical properties. Just choose from this alphabetically sorted list of minerals.
Interactive
Other

Mineralogical Society of America: Minerals in Your House

For Students 9th - 10th
Discover what minerals can be found at your home with this interactive resource. Explore this virtual house and you'll find minerals in common household objects.
Website
Amethyst Galleries

Amethyst Galleries: Mineral Gallery: Zircon

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource provides general information on zircon, including hardness, color, and uses.
Handout
US Geological Survey

Usgs: Perlite Statistics and Information

For Students 9th - 10th
The USGS presents Perlite statistics and information. Includes annual publications, contacts, and resources.
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Geoethics Forums

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students experience the Geoethics Forums format by exploring a case study which explores the use of rare Earth minerals for green and clean technology.
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Geoethics Forums: The Grey Side of Green

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Using the Geoethics Forums format, students are presented with a case study which explores the use of strategic minerals for green and clean technology.
Handout
Amethyst Galleries

Amethyst Galleries: Mineral Gallery: Sapphire, the Non Red Variety of Corundum

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource provides general information on sapphire, including hardness, color, and uses.
Handout
Amethyst Galleries

Amethyst Galleries: Mineral Gallery: Opal

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource provides general information on opal, including color, hardness, uses, and pictures.
Activity
US Geological Survey

Usgs: Materials Flow and Sustainability [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
This site is a fact sheet that uses illustrations to review the steps minerals go through to be made into useable products, and also how some materials can be recycled and returned to the environment.
Handout
State Library of North Carolina

N Cpedia: Coal

For Students 9th - 10th
Coal in North Carolina is limited to two belts of Triassic sediment: the sporadic Dan River belt and the larger Deep River belt, which runs along the Deep River in Lee, Moore, and Chatham Counties. Read on to learn about the uses and...
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Rock Your World!

For Students 3rd
Travel to the Grand Canyon with gophers and learn that if rocks can tell stories, so can YOU! Practice using two different kinds of questions: comparative and descriptive, and learn that during reading time, there is no such thing as a...
Unit Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Asbestos Hazard Assessment

For Students 9th - 10th
This interactive site introduces students to concepts related to asbestos and how geologists analyze asbestos in building materials. The site is divided into three components: the geology of asbestos, identifying asbestos in the lab, and...
Handout
Corrosion Source

Corrosion Source: Manganese

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource presents a good summary of the history, properties, sources, uses and handling concerns of manganese. Also contains some basic data.