2. Minerals The Basic Building Blocks of Earth!

3. Minerals Video

4. Minerals… The BIG Idea! Minerals are all around us. A mineral is identified by its properties. Minerals are valuable resources.

5. How many different types of minerals are there? Thousands! Most are rare-only about 100 occurring in abundance. Of those 100 minerals, 15-30 make up the common rock-forming minerals and some of the remainder have some economic value. Galena is a mineral used to make paints

6. Minerals are everywhere and used daily… Pots and pans are made from metal – stainless steel, cast iron, copper or aluminum. All of these come from minerals. Common salt is made from a mineral known as Halite.

7. Did you know… Pencils contain a mineral called graphite. Toothpaste is made with a mineral Fluorite.

8. Give me light… When you switch on a light, electricity flows through copper wires and into a filament made of tungsten (which comes from a mineral called wolframite). The filament glows and shines through a light bulb of glass (made from quartz)….Mineral teamwork!

9. What are the five characteristics of Minerals? Forms in nature (by processes that do not involve living things). Is a solid. Has a definite chemical makeup. Has a 3-D crystal structure. They are inorganic

10. How are minerals identified? 1. Color 2. Streak 3. Luster 4. Cleavage 5. Fracture 6. Hardness

11. Mineral Properties...Color/Appearance Color and appearance are two obvious clues that can be used to identify minerals. Color is one of the least reliable properties because a mineral may have a variety of colors.

12. Mineral properties...Streak Streak is the color of the powder that a mineral produces.

13. The way a mineral reflects light is known as luster. Luster can be  metallic (like metal)  nonmetallic (dull, pearly, silky, and glassy). Mineral properties...Luster

14. Mineral properties...Cleavage Minerals that break along smooth, flat surfaces. Calcite has cleavage.

15. Mineral properties...Fracture Minerals that break with uneven, rough, or jagged edges have “Fracture.” Sulfur

16. Mineral properties...Hardness The Moh’s Scale  A mineral’s hardness is its resistance to being scratched.

17. Other Properties… Light forms two separate rays when it passes through calcite, causing you to see a double image. Some minerals… Have a magnetic quality, such as magnetite. React with a weak acid (bubble/fizz). Glow with a black light: fluoresce

18. Are minerals and rocks the same? No! Rocks share two characteristics with minerals…  They are solids  Form naturally Rocks contain one or more minerals within them.

19. Can you remember? Minerals that contain silicon and oxygen are __________. A. magma B. opals C. silicates D. solutions The answer is C. Silicates contain silicon and oxygen and usually one or more other elements.

20. Can you remember? Which of these is a characteristic of minerals? A. solid B. formed by life processes C. indefinite chemical composition D. organic substances The answer is A. Minerals are solids. Only a solid can be a mineral, but not all solids are minerals.

21. Minerals that break easily along smooth, flat surfaces have __________. Can you remember? A. cleavage B. fracture C. luster D. Streak The answer is A. Cleavage is determined partly by the arrangement of the mineral’s atoms. Minerals that break with uneven surfaces have fracture.

22. Minerals that break into irregular, jagged pieces, have __________. Can you remember? A. cleavage B. fracture C. luster D. streak The answer is B. Minerals that break with uneven surfaces have fracture.