Did You Know This About Rocks and Minerals?
For your final task you will read some short passages and answer questions about rocks and minerals. Good Luck!
1. The three statements below are observations of the same rock sample:
a. The rock has intergrown crystals from 2 to 3 millimeters in diameter.
b. The minerals in the rock are gray feldspar, green olivine, green pyroxene, and black amphibole.
c. There are no visible gas pockets in the rock.
Question: Is this rock monominerallic or polyminerallic? Underline the words in the statements above that helped you figure that out
2. The three statements below describe how rocks are made.
a. Igneous rocks are formed from the solidification of molten, liquid rock called lava or magma.
b. Sedimentary rocks are formed from the compaction of rock fragments.
c. Metamorphic rocks are formed from extreme heat and pressure that changes rock
Question: Fossils are only found in sedimentary rocks. Underline all words in the statements above that would explain why fossils are NOT found in igneous or metamorphic rocks.
3. Igneous rocks are classified according to where they formed. Igneous rocks that form underground cool very slowly and are called Intrusive rocks. Igneous rocks that cool on the earth’s surface cool much faster and are called Extrusive.
Question: The longer it takes an igneous rock to cool, the bigger the crystals in the rock will be. Which type of igneous rock would have the biggest crystals?
Extrusive or Intrusive
Underline the word(s) in the passage that helped you answer the question.
Congratulations! You completed your mission.