UNIT 10: MINERALS AND ROCKS (GEOSPHERE)

OBJECTIVES

1. To learn about minerals and their composition.

2. To talk about the physical properties of minerals.

3. To learn about the origin of rocks.4. To discuss the extraction and exploitation

of resources.

MINERALS

The Earth’s crust is made up of rocks. The rock is made up of minerals. A mineral is a solid substance with a definite

chemical composition. Silicates are minerals made up of oxygen and

silicon. The rest of minerals are called non-silicates.

ACTIVITIES

1.What’s a mineral?

2.What’s the difference between silicates and non-silicates?

The physical properties of minerals are characteristics which can be observed and determined easily.

Types: Mohs hardness scale Colour Luster Hardness Streak Fractures and cleavage

THE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF MINERALS

ACTIVITIES

3. What property does a mineral have if we can break it up easily into thin sheets?

4. What properties do you need to consider to describe a mineral?

5. What is the hardest mineral? And the weakest?

Rocks are aggregates of minerals which have been formed in a natural process.

TYPES OF ROCKS: Sedimentary rocks. Ex: Limestone and clay. Metamorphic rocks. Ex: Marble and slate Magmatic rocks. They can be: Plutonic rocks and

volcanic rocks. Ex: Granite and basalt.

ROCKS

ACTIVITIES

6. What are the rocks?

7.What types of rocks do you know?

8. Write down two minerals of each type of rock.

MINERALS:

1. Useful minerals are called ore. The waste from the extraction of minerals is called slag.

2. Minerals are used to make useful products. Ex: Gypsum to make plaster for medical purposes.

3.Minerals are used in jewellery. Ex: Gold, diamond, emerald.

ROCKS:

The rocks which are useful to human beings are called industrial rocks. Ex: bricks, pottery…

FOSSIL FUELS:

Coal and oil are used to produce energy.

Rocks and mineral are extracted from underground mines and surface mines.

THE RESOURCES OF THE GEOSPHERE

ACTIVITIES

9. How are rocks and minerals extracted?10. Match each resource of the geosphere

to its use:a)Coal 1. Oreb)Diamond 2. Bricksc)Galena 3.Plasterd)Gypsum 4.Sculpturese)Clay 5.Jewelleryf)Marble 6. Fuel