Abernethy Elementary School

The unit focuses on teaching the skill of careful observations. The students will be making observations and recording results constantly as they learn to be more detailed each time. The beginning lessons of this unit will focus on rocks; we will explore twelve different rocks, and their specific physical properties. How are they different? How are they the same? By the end of the “rock” lessons the physical properties the students should be aware of while making observations are:  Texture, color, weight, luster, layering, and shape.

They should also know this specific rock vocabulary: Sedimentary rock, metamorphic rock, igneous rock, erosion, layering, luster, and physical properties. One way that we are learning this vocabulary is by learning “The Rock Song”, ask your child about it and the actions that go along with it!

The second part of this unit focuses on minerals; we explore what a mineral is and how it is different than a rock. We talk about specific physical properties that minerals have. The students will be performing field tests to test the 12 minerals and their physical properties. Some of these tests will include the students doing a streak test to find out the minerals pure color, a scratch test using a penny and a nail to find out the hardness of the mineral, and a light test to find out the luster of the mineral and whether the mineral is translucent, transparent, or opaque. At the end of all of the observations we will see how minerals and rocks are used in our world today and how they were used in our past.

Here are some fun facts about rocks and minerals:

·         Did you know that the diamond is the hardest natural substance found on earth?

·         Did you know that quartz is one of the most common minerals on Earth?

·         Did you know that the first geologist on the moon was Harrison Schmitt who was part of the Apollo 17 mission? From the rock samples he collected, scientists have been able to learn many things about the moon.

·         Did you know that gold is so soft and easily worked that you could roll an ounce of it into a hair-thin wire 50 miles long?

·         Did you know that the Taj Mahal built between 1632 and 1654 in India is made entirely out of marble?

·         Did you know that geodes are dull balls of igneous or sedimentary rock on the outside, but contain beautiful crystals on the inside?

A funny joke!

How do rocks wash their clothes?

In the rock cycle

Here's something to explore:

Click on the link and look for the heading:  Mineralogy 4 Kids

Here's a great site from the US Geological Department.

You can select from many different topics on this site.