Minerals Lesson Plan

Subject(s): __Minerals__ Date: __10/11/16_____

Teacher: __Monique Soto__ School: ___CSUDH____

Objective
For students to understand what minerals are, identify them and understand the composition
and structure.

Learning Target(s): Students will familiarize themselves with the following terms:
Mineral- Naturally occurring, inorganic solid, posses an orderly crystalline structure, identifiable
by a unique chemical composition
Rock- solid aggregate/mass of minerals
Composition:
Elements-92 naturally occurring
Atoms- smallest particle of matter, proton +, neutron, electron -, made up of nucleus and
electron shells
Mass number- sum of neutrons and protons
Chemical bonding- combination of elements forming a compound
Ionic bonding- atoms gain or lose outermost electrons-valence electrons forms ions
Ionic compounds- consist of an orderly arrangement of oppositely charged ions
Covalent bonding- when atoms share electrons to achieve neutrality and is stronger than ionic
bonds, ionic and covalent bonds can occur in same compounds
Metallic bonding- is free migration of valence electrons with weaker and less common than
other bonds
Isotope- is an atom that has variations in its mass number
Radioactive isotope- atoms that are unstable and nuclei emit particles and energy in a process
of radioactive decay
Mineral structure- bonds can form unique structures
Polymorphs- two or more minerals with the same chemical composition but different crystalline
structure (Phase change-one form to another)
Physical properties- crystalline structure, streak, hardness (measure of resistance to
breaking/scratching), tenacity (toughness), clevage (way a mineral breaks, # of planes/angles),
fracture (lack of cleavage), density (mass per unit volume g/cm3 or g/l), specific gravity (ratio of
mineral weight to equal weight of same volume of water)
Optical properties- Luster-metallic/non-metallic (appearance of the surface of a mineral under
reflective light), ability to transmit light (opaque, translucent, transparent), color-visual/streak
color (not best identifier)
Mohs scale of hardness- used to identify how hard a mineral is

Relevance/Rationale:
These lessons are very important to learn about because these are topics that students will deal
with in everyday life. Students should be knowledgeable on what a mineral is and what is made
of, they will come across these items at one point of their life and will need to know about them.
These ideas can be applied to their life and they will have a better understanding of how
minerals work. I feel that students will be able to use this information to become more confident
and familiar with minerals.

Formative Assessment Criteria for success:

Students know if they have successfully met the outcomes by being tested on their knowledge.
The students will be assessed on their knowledge of all of the topics discussed. Questions will
involve the topics but be asked in a way that could actually be asked in everyday life.
Some questions asked will be:
What properties do you identify to test a mineral? Luster, streak, density, hardness,
cleavage/fracture
How could you identify a mineral by hardness? By using the MOHs scale and testing out if it it
can scratch glass or not and if it can be scratched by a fingernail.
If a mineral looks like a square would it be fractured of cleavage? cleavage

Activities/Tasks: (What learning experiences will students engage in?)

Students will be given mystery minerals and have to identify them by specific properties that the
minerals have and compare them to a mineral lab chart.
For instance: A metallic luster, dark grey color, grey streak, less than 2.5 hardness, that is
fractured would be identifiable as graphite.
If a mineral has no streak what type of luster would you guess this mineral has? Non-metallic
Bring in your favorite mineral to class or draw it and explain its properties, why it is special.
My favorite mineral is Galena because it is pretty. It has a metallic luster, it is silver, with a grey
streak, it has a hardness of 2.5-5.5, and it has cleavage.

Resources/Materials:
A powerpoint with facts and pictures of this subject would be shown. The students will have the
mystery minerals, a mineral test kit and chart to complete, in order to conduct their own
experimentations and gather their own information on this subject.