Curated OER
You've Got to Be Cool to Make Igneous Rocks
Students describe how igneous rocks are formed, design a classification system to group igneous rocks and develop a controlled experiment to prove that the rate of cooling affects the size of the crystals.
Curated OER
Rocks, Minerals, and Erosion
Students identify and describe rocks that contain records of the earth's history and explain how they were formed. They formulate questions about and identify needs and problems related to objects and events in the environment, and...
Curated OER
The Rock Cycle
Students explore the concept of the rock cycle. In this geology lesson plan, students identify, classify, and observe three different types of rocks. Students then list and char the characteristics of their rocks.
Curated OER
Rocks Lesson Plan
Students become familiar with the characteristics of rocks and use them to sort. In this rocks lesson plan, students view a video, then try to identify various rock samples.
Curated OER
Rocks and Minerals
Students identify how weathering and erosion effect the Earth's surface. In this weathering and rocks lesson, students study various types of rocks in water and brainstorm ways the Earth's surface changes. Students view an interactive...
Curated OER
Rocks
Students use their five senses to experience different types of rocks. In groups, they compare and contrast the information they collected. They observe rocks in their local community and describe their uses to the class.
Curated OER
Geology: How to Make a Rock
Second graders examine the various kinds of rocks and make a flipbook about them. They draw pictures of the rocks and write several sentences about how each type of rock is made. They discover the differences in the rocks by making...
Curated OER
How to Make a Rock
Second graders watch demonstrations and conduct experiments that show the three different types of rocks: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.
Curated OER
Rocks and Their Properties: Day 5
Students demonstrate their knowledge of rock formation processes in varied ways by sharing their cooperative research projects with the class. They generate well-framed questions in response to each presentation.
Curated OER
How Can We Tell The Hardness of Rocks?
Students complete a lab activity. In this hardness of rocks instructional activity, students observe and touch various rock samples. Students determine if they can make a scratch mark on any of the rock samples and use the Internet to...
It's About Time
Volcanic History of Your Community
Did you know there are 20 volcanoes erupting at any given time? Pupils look at various igneous rocks, read local geologic maps, and determine if their area has a history of volcanic activity. A reading passage and analysis questions...
Curated OER
Sediment Sleuths
Are you looking for a good, solid lesson on sedimentary rocks? This one, produced by the Illinois State Museum, is just such a lesson. Middle schoolers identify common rocks and minerals by analyzing sediments from local water sources....
Curated OER
Volcanoes: Fourth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Young geologists begin exploring volcanoes of different structures and states: active, extinct, or dormant. During the lab, they make three models and compare different types of volcanoes, including composite, cinder cone, and shield....
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Molecular Genetics of Color Mutations in Rock Pocket Mice
Can you identify mutations just by viewing DNA sequences? Scholars apply prior knowledge of DNA sequences to do just that in an engaging activity. They transcribe and translate genes, thus identifying the locations of mutations. Then,...
Curated OER
A Rock Cycle Shower
Learners classify rocks as sedimentary, igneous or metamorphic based on physical properties. In this earth science lesson, students recreate the rock cycle using a set of stones placed on labeled shower curtain. They explain the...
Curated OER
Soapy Stress
Students investigate the three types of material stress related to rocks. They identify the three types of stress, conduct a simulation by breaking bars of soap using only their hands, and complete a worksheet.
Curated OER
Rocks and Rock Formation
In this rock formation worksheet, students read a 2 page detailed text about rocks and their formation. Students then answer 15 essay, matching and multiple choice questions about the information.
Curated OER
Rock Cycle
In this rock cycle worksheet, students simulate the changes that occur during the rock cycle using a sugar cube. They use the sugar cube to represent a rock and perform changes on the sugar cube that represent the stages of the rock cycle.
Curated OER
The Great Rock Sort
Students describe and sort rocks according to their physical properties. They listen to a story and discuss what they know about rocks, then work with a partner to discuss how their sample rocks differ from each other.
Curated OER
Rocks on Parade!
Third graders describe and classify rock samples. In this rock lesson, 3rd graders make inferences about rock samples by observing and measuring them. This lesson contains 5 different stations for the students to go to.
Curated OER
Sedimentary Rocks- Formation and Types
In this sedimentary rocks resource worksheet, students follow the guide for reading this informational text. They read about the formation of sedimentary rocks, and the three major types of sedimentary rocks.
Curated OER
For Creative Minds
Students study pictures of plants, animals, and minerals. Students classify the pictures into the three groups. For this rock identification lesson, students complete a rock finding lab experiment by finding, cleaning, identifying, and...
Curated OER
Igneous Rocks/Volcanoes
Learners differentiate between the two types of igneous rock and designate the area the rock comes from.
Curated OER
The Rock Cycle
In this rock cycle worksheet, students study the diagram of the rock cycle and explain how minerals originally in magma could travel through the cycle. Then they identify how these minerals end up in each of three main classifications of...