Hey Kids!Try this fun experiment to learn more about the weathering of rocks.You will need:
óPlastic Wrap
óClay
óWater
óNotebook
óCamera (optional)
Step 1:Take the water and wet the clay. Work the water into the clay with your hands until soft and moist.
Step 2:Divide the clay into two equal pieces and roll it into a ball, square or any other shape you like.
Step 3:Wrap each piece of clay in plastic wrap.
Step 4:Place one piece of clay into the freezer and leave the other piece on your table or counter.Let the clay stay in the freezer overnight.
Step 5:The next day, take the clay out of the freezer and unwrap both pieces.
Observe:
Do the clay pieces look different?If so, how?Hint:the clay from the freezer should have the some cracks.Examine the clay with a hand magnifier to get a closer look at the cracks.Write about your findings in a notebook and take pictures if you want.
Then, wrap each clay piece back up and put the one piece back into the freezer and repeat for several days.Observe the clay pieces each day and see how the cracks change over time.You are now a true Mini Me Geologist!
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Science education sometimes takes a back seat with the push of reading and math being so strong.But, science is a part of our daily life.Everything we do and deal with in life is science from cooking, playing ball, growing a garden and understanding how technologies work to watching a rain storm. Understanding science helps kids appreciate and relate to the world around them.
Elementary school is the perfect time to get kids interested in science when they are naturally curious. Science education fuels that curiosity and provides children with valuable ideas, skills, and potential future career choices. For example, scientists are an important part of the future of our world. Without them we would not be able to predict the weather or earthquakes, understand global warming, cure illnesses and take care of the sick, or have many of the products that enhance our lifestyles today.
Geology education teaches children about earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, and tsunamis arming them with knowledge and Earth processes that can protect their health and safety throughout their lives.Children with a basic understanding of rocks and minerals are able to translate that knowledge to a wide variety of activities and potential careers such as gardening, groundwater recovery, pollution control and clean-up, engineering, environmental research, oil and gas exploration and recovery, road construction, mining, energy production and jewelry manufacturing.
Mini Me Geology can be a valuable resource for parents and teachers who are interested in promoting science education with their children and students.Our rock and minerals kits give kids hands-on experience with the samples and help to teach reasoning and identification skills as they identify the samples.Our free geology education information, word puzzles, project ideas and experiments are designed to give children a better understanding of geology, while having a little fun too.Please visit our website www.MiniMeGeology.com for more information.
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Fluorite is a unique mineral that can be found in more colors than any other mineral including blue, red, purple, yellow, green or white. It is the example mineral with a hardness of 4 on the Mohs hardness scale.Fluorite has a white streak and a glassy luster.It is often formed in hydrothermal (hot water) veins within other rocks.Fluorite is often found with other minerals such as galena, calcite, quartz, sphalerite and borite.Crystals of fluorite can form in cube (squares) or octahedron (diamond) shapes.Fluorite is made of calcium fluoride and is used in the production of enamels, hydrofluoric acid, cooking utensils, telescopes and camera lenses.
Fluorite Trivia:
óFluorite crystals often grow together which is called twinning.
óFluorite crystals will fluoresce under ultraviolet light.
óJewelers sometimes facet fluorite crystals and use them as imitation diamond.
óIn addition to forming cubes and octahedrons, fluorite can occur in bands.
One of the most famous forms of banded fluorite is called Blue John and found in Derbyshire, United Kingdom.
A:Magma is the term used for liquid rock which forms deep below the Earth’s surface.Magma can be composed of many different things such as silicates, alkalis, iron and magnesium.The composition of the magma will determine the type of rocks which it will eventually form.
Q:What rocks are changed by high pressure and high temperature?
A:The change of a rock by high temperature and pressure is called metamorphism.This is the process by which metamorphic rocks are formed.Any rock can be changed by metamorphic processes.
Q:What term for metamorphic rock with banded texture?
A:You may be referring to “foliation” which is the layering within a metamorphic rock.Foliation occurs when there is a strong pressure applied to the rock in one direction, just like when you put your hands flat together and push.When this pressure is applied, certain minerals, like mica and chlorite, grow with their long direction perpendicular to the pressure.This make the rock appear with layering and/or banding.
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A few weeks ago, I did an interview on Lowcountry Live, a local television show in Charleston, SC. I really appreciate Lowcountry Live having me on the show! Check out the video here:
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Pearls are a beautiful organic gemstone which is formed in a variety of colors and shapes.Pearls form inside of mollusk shells such as oysters and mussels.This unique gemstone is made of primarily the mineral aragonite.Aragonite is the mineral that lines the inside of the mollusk shell.An organic substance, called conchiolin, is also known to line the inside of the shell.When shell linings are made of aragonite and conchiolin together, it is called mother-of-pearl.
To form the gemstone pearl, a grain of sand must get trapped inside the mollusk shell.The aragonite forms in circles around the sand grain.It can take between 2 and 8 years for a large pearl to be formed.Fairly soft, pearls are a 3 on the Mohs hardness scale and have a white streak.The luster, “pearly,” is often used to describe the look of other minerals with similar outward appearance.Pearls can form in both freshwater and salt water and can be round and smooth to oblong and uneven.Common colors of pearls include white, cream and black; however, other colors such as blue, yellow, gray, green, light purple and mauve can also be found.
Read about more minerals, rocks and geology topics at Mini Me Geology’s “Dig Into Science” section of the website.
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Staurolite is a unique mineral which often forms cross-shaped twinned crystals.While staurolite is generally brown it has a colorless to grey streak and it is about as hard as quartz (7 to 7.5 on Mohs hardness scale).The name staurolite comes from the Greek word stauros which means “cross.”Staurolite forms in metamorphic rocks such as schists and gneisses.
Trivia:
Staurolite forms only in rocks which are metamorphosed within a narrow range of temperatures and pressures.
Because staurolite forms under specific conditions it is a good indicator mineral for determining the conditions under which a rocks forms.
Staurolite is found in Georgia, New Mexico, France and Brazil.
Twinned staurolite crystals can form a cross shape which are often made into jewelry. Shop for Staurolite crystals at Mini Me Geology today!
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Mini Me Geology is proud to announce our Create-A-Kit Rock and Mineral collections. Visit our website today and choose 15 of your favorite rocks and minerals. We will customize your kit with an identification card for each sample, a hand lens, and a streak plate if you choose minerals.Plus, we will personalize your collection with your selection of titles. So, create “Mark’s Mineral Collection” or “Samantha’s Samples” or anything else you can think of today! Create-a-Kit collections are great for holidays, birthdays, classrooms and homeschool families.
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OK, today I thought I would talk a little about Herkimer Diamonds. If you know what they are, you’ll probably agree with me that they are so cool!
Sorry!Herkimer Diamonds are not real diamonds.Herkimer Diamonds are actually quartz crystals that are naturally formed with points on both ends of the crystal.These crystals are somewhat rare because in order to form with these double points, the quartz must have very little contact with the surrounding rock while the crystal is being formed.The term Herkimer Diamond can only truly be used with samples found in Herkimer County, New York, although double point quartz crystals have been found in other locations throughout the world.
You can see a photo of some Herkimer Diamonds here.
For more great information on Geology, Rocks and Minerals check out the Mini Me Geology website and our Dig into Geology section for more great information, free project and experiment ideas and puzzles!
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One of the most interesting topics in geology is the Rock Cycle.The Rock Cycle is the method by which minerals are made into sedimentary and igneous rocks, which are then made into metamorphic rocks.The cycle continues when all of these sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks break down into mineral and small rock pieces and form new rocks.Are you still wondering what I’m talking about?Here is an example:The mineral quartz makes up common beach sand.That beach sand will, over time, form into a sandstone sedimentary rock.When a sandstone is buried and heated it becomes a quartzite metamorphic rock.The sandstone and quartzite can either be buried, melted and formed into part of a new igneous rock, like granite, or it can breakdown and form a new sedimentary rock such as conglomerate.
For more great information rocks, minerals and geology, visit the Dig into Geology section of our website.
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Staurolite
