How to Use A Mini Me Geology Igneous Rock Kit

 

Congratulations on your new igneous rock kit!  Your kit includes a hand magnifier and information cards to help you identify each igneous rock sample.  You can also use a small bowl of water to help identify your rocks because one of the samples floats.

 

 

Your Mini Me Geology hand magnifier has two different strengths – 3X and 6X.  The large area has a 3X magnification which means that the object you are looking at will appear to be three times its normal size.  The smaller area has a 6X magnification which means that the object you are looking at will appear to be six times its normal size.

 

To use your hand magnifier start by choosing an igneous rock sample.  Hold the rock on the opposite side of the hand magnifier from your eye.  Start by looking through the larger, 3X, area of the hand magnifier.  You can move the igneous rock or the hand magnifier until you can see clearly through the lens.  If you want to see certain parts of the sample even more closely, use the smaller 6X area and focus the lens in the same way.

 

The identification cards in your kit are designed to help you determine the name of each of your new igneous rock samples.  The information on each card will also provide you some fun facts about each igneous rock. 

 

To identify the igneous rock, examine the grain size and color first.  Samples that are very heavy or light weight or can float will also give you valuable clues to the rocks identity.  Remember to look at the photos on the identification cards too, but remember that most rocks can be more than one color and might look both light and dark.  You can use this information along with the hand lens and our identification flow chart to identify each igneous rock. 

 

You can also download and use our Igneous Rock ID Flow Chart for another fun way of identifying your rocks.  The download link is at the top of the page and details of how to use the chart are next.

 

 

We have designed this flow chart to help you identify your rocks.  To use our Igneous Rock Identification Flow Chart, it will be easiest if you print out your own copy first.  The flow chart moves from left to right, following the arrows.

 

Step 1:  Select an Igneous Rock - Choose an igneous rock that you want and place it on the “Igneous Rock to Identify” block.

 

Step 2:  Determine the Texture – Once you have chosen your rock, take a look at the texture.  The texture is the appearance of the crystals.  You will see that either the rock is:

 

            Glassy where the rock looks like a piece of colored glass

            Vesicular where the rock has no crystals but has many, many tiny holes

                            (these rocks are often very light weight)

Keep in mind that your rock may have more than one grain size.  It is very common to find some rocks with large crystal grains in a rock with fine crystal grains.  These types of rock will look like the large crystal grains are “floating” inside the rest of the rock.

 

Step 3:  Determine the Color – The next step is to decide the color of your igneous rock.  Some igneous rocks can be a more than one color so choose the color that most closely matches the overall color of your sample.  With color, you are looking for the color of most (more than half) of the crystal grains.

 

Step 4:  Test Special Features – Many of the special features can been seen by looking through your hand magnifier.  One of the rocks will float in water so ask your parents for a small bowl with some water for your test.  Sometimes, the special features are needed to identify your igneous rock, other times, the special features are simply fun to see. 

 

Follow these steps for each of your igneous rock samples until you have looked at them all.  Once you know the name of your rocks, you can read about the uses of the rocks and where in the world they can be found on your identification cards in the kit.  If you need help, grab an adult and give us a call!