Curated OER
Minerals of the Earth
Unearth this gem of a resource to use in your geology unit! With colorful images, bullet-point text, and links to related videos, it deals with the characteristics, properties, and identification of minerals. There are also slides...
Cal Recycle
Conserving Natural Resources
Trying to plan an engaging elementary science unit on natural resources? Conserve your energy! This five-part series of lessons and hands-on activities has exactly what you need to teach young scholars about the importance of conservation.
Curated OER
Our Natural Resources
Your class will learn about natural resources and man-made items and differentiate between them. They chart resources from seven pictures and explain how each natural resource is used.
Curated OER
Natural Resources Matter
This natural resources worksheet includes discussion activities about natural resources, 2 word searches, and a list of related books and videos.
Science Friday
Mineral Madness
Science does not need to be as hard as a rock. Pupils test 10 different minerals to determine their properties. The learners observe luster, streak, hardness, and fluorescence for each specimen. Afterwards, they compare and contrast the...
Curated OER
Minerals
A must-have for your geology library of resources, this PowerPoint walks viewers through the characteristics of minerals and each test used to help identify them. As you present this collection of slides, stop to demonstrate each quality...
Virginia Department of Education
Mineral Identification
What's the difference between a rock and a mineral? And what properties are used to identify minerals? The first installment of a five-part series on earth materials and processes prompts young scientists to identify a set of...
Brooklyn Children’s Museum
Rocks and Minerals in Our Lives
Young geologists discover the important role that rocks and minerals play in our everyday lives through this series of hands-on activities. Starting off with a lesson that defines the difference between plants, animals, and...
Curated OER
A Burst of Light: Mineral Use in Fireworks
Students examine the role of minerals in industries. They use minerals that are found in the grocery store to complete flame tests. They complete an experiment using fireworks.
CK-12 Foundation
Mineral Identification: Mineral Scratch Test
How can mineralogists tell a diamond in the rough from a chunk of table salt? Science scholars find out through an interactive that demonstrates the characteristics of minerals used for identification purposes. Topics include hardness,...
NSW Department Mineral Resources
Aboriginal Use of Raw Materials
What's the difference between base metals and precious metals? Experimenting with natural metals is an interesting way for kids to learn about the world around them. Use a resource that contains over 30 pages of worksheets and...
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
Review the difference between rocks and minerals using this resource. Learners identify and investigate the physical properties of these objects. They create a Venn diagram to compare and contrast types of rocks. This is a motivating way...
Curated OER
Renewable vs. Non-Renewable Resources
Fifth graders are introduced to the important topic of renewable, and non-renewable, resources. They are expected to be able to correctly categorize different types of resources as renewable or non-renewable. Another emphasis of this...
EngageNY
Close Reading and Viewing: Minerals and Metals
How easy is it to live off the land? Scholars read Minerals and Metals in Your Life and discuss how Canada's natural resources meet the needs of the people. Pupils watch a brief video and discuss the gist of the text and video. They...
EngageNY
Close Reading: “Natural Resources and the Canadian Economy”
Readers continue to learn how natural resources are important to Canada's economy. They read, annotate, and answer text-dependent questions about Natural Resources and the Canadian Economy. They then discuss key terms in the text.
Curated OER
Minerals and the Products of Mining
Students plot where minerals come from and have an awareness of how mineral use makes the world interdependent. They examine how to identify some sort of mineral products they use each day.
Curated OER
Identifying Minerals
Young scholars compare and constrast a wide variety of minerals and rocks. They test them for streak, luster, color and other characteristics. They view an exhibit and compare their answers to them.
Curated OER
Native Americans and Natural Resources
North American Indian civilizations had already been in place for over 10,000 years before the arrival of European settlers. Introduce your young historians to Indian tribes that lived in the Chesapeake region in the...
Curated OER
Mineral Mania
In this mineral learning exercise, students use an on line source to answer questions about minerals, about resources and their uses, about fireworks and about birthstones.
Curated OER
Natural Resources: Can We Use Them Forever? Grade 2
Bright colors and animation are great ways to attract a young students attention. Students are introduced to the concepts of renewable and non-renewable resources as they pose the question, will our resources be around forever? This...
Columbus City Schools
What is in that?
Invite your class to dig in to an engaging journey into the world of mining! Here you'll find the tools to equip young miners with knowledge of soil, rocks, and minerals, as well as types of mining operations. To round things out, the...
Curated OER
Mining in a Nutshell
Your class will love this geology-inspired set of activities that demonstrate the processes through which we are able to use mineral resources. They describe the major steps that a company must follow from initial discovery of a mineral...
Curated OER
Renewable vs. Non-Renewable Resources
Here's a fine lesson on renewable and non-renewable sources of energy for your 5th graders. In it, learners list a number of natural resources on the board, then try to sort the resources into appropriate categories. This helps them to...
Columbus City Schools
Rocking the Cycle!
Time to rock out! Discover the "life" cycle of the average rock using an illustrative stations lab and stimulating pairs game. Roll the dice to determine your fate: will it be melting in magma or chilling out to form igneous rock? The...