Rocks and Minerals

Unit Review Sheet

Facts and Definitions

Lesson 1: Mineral Madness

• Minerals are nonliving solids found in nature made up of a unique mix of chemical elements.
• Two or more minerals combine to form a rock.
• Geology is the study of the Earth's materials and their history.
• We find similarities and differences among minerals by conducting tests on qualities such as streak (the color the mineral produces when rubbed on glass or tile), hardness, reaction to acids, and magnetism.

Lesson 2: Rocks Rock!

• Magma is hot, melted (molten) rock below the Earth's surface.
• Igneous rock is formed by the solidification and cooling of magma.
• Sedimentary rocks are formed when small pieces of rock, called sediment, pile on top of one another and are pressed together until they harden.
• Metamorphic rocks are formed from rocks that have undergone extreme heat and pressure deep within the Earth.
• Weathering is the breaking of rocks into smaller pieces, often by wind, water, or extreme temperature.
• Erosion is when processes like water or wind carry worn-away rocks (sediment) from one place to another.
• The rock cycle is a process where, over time, rocks can change from one form to another (igneous to sedimentary, for example).

Lesson 3: Fun with Rocks

• Mohs's scale measures how hard a mineral is (on a scale of 1 to 10).
• Minerals that break in a predictable pattern are said to have cleavage. Minerals that break randomly are said to fracture.

Lesson 4: Crystals

• A crystal is the repeating pattern of a mineral.
• Each mineral has a unique crystal habit, which is the shape of its crystals.
• Geodes form in pockets inside hardened lava that fill with fluids, and the minerals in the fluids form crystals.

Lesson 5: Volcanoes and Earthquakes

• The Earth has three layers — the crust is the outer-most layer, the mantle is the soft middle layer, and the core is the center of the Earth.
• A volcano is a mountain that erupts as lava flows from a crack on the Earth's surface or on the ocean floor.
• The Earth's crust is broken up into several sections called tectonic plates.
• An earthquake is a shaking of the ground caused by tectonic plate movement.

Lesson 6: Fun with Fossils

• A paleontologist is a scientist who studies forms of life that existed in the past, as represented by their fossils.
• A fossil is the remains or traces of a once-living thing that is preserved in rocks.
• Fossils provide evidence about the plants and animals that lived long ago, and scientists learn about the history of the Earth by studying fossils.

Final Project: Paleontologist RAFT

• [none]