This guide provides instructions for educators on the classroom use of the Geochemistry of Rocks of the Oceans and Continents (GEOROC) database. GEOROC provides chemical and isotopic data for rocks, minerals, and melt/fluid inclusions that are used by scientists for a variety of purposes, including analysis and classification of samples, comparison of similar rocks from different parts of the world, ... Full description.

This Starting Point webpage describes a ConcepTest question that asks students to address the question, which location (rock unit) would have the potential for the best groundwater production? They are to address a given diagram to answer the question. The website contains additional notes and references as well as statistics for typical student answers before and after discussion. Full description.

This activity asks students to place 6-10 events in Earth history on a timeline, first working in small groups and then as a class. Then, through questions, important points such as how certain events are dated, where humanity fits in, and so forth, can be brought up. The Starting Point website builds a context for the exercise by detailing the learning goals, teaching notes and materials (downloadable), ... Full description.

This site is devoted to microscopic images of minerals, thin sections of rocks and meteorites, and stereoscopy of minerals. The site is organized into the following categories: meteorites, plutonic rocks, volcanic rocks, carbonates, sedimentary rocks, sedimentary rocks and diatoms. Other links include conoscopic images, an index measurement page containing theoretical information about index of refraction ... Full description.

This web site includes almost 200 photomicrographs of rocks and minerals. The thin sections are all in transmitted white light, some in plane polarized light, but most with crossed polarizers on. The majority of the pictures show a field of view 1.5 mm long (about 80X magnification). Other magnifications are indicated where different. The thin sections are categorized into minerals, igneous, metamorphic, ... Full description.

This is a collection of photomicrographs of igneous rocks. There are 69 photomicrographs with captions containing pertinent information. This resource is part of the Teaching Petrology collection. http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/petrology03/index.html Full description.

This page is a collection of photomicrographs of metamorphic rocks. There are 45 photomicrographs with captions containing pertinent information. This resource is part of the Teaching Petrology collection. http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/petrology03/index.html Full description.

This site contains photographs of 22 igneous rock hand samples. Clicking on an image brings up a larger view of the sample. In addition, links to thin sections are available for some of the samples. Thin sections can be seen in both crossed polarized light and plane polarized light by moving the cursor on and off the photomicrograph. This resource is part of the Teaching Petrology collection. http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/petrology03/index.html ... Full description.

This site contains photographs of 18 metamorphic rock hand samples. Clicking on an image brings up a larger view of each sample. Images of thin sections are available for some of the samples. Thin sections can be seen in both crossed polarized light and plane polarized light by moving the cursor on and off the photomicrograph. This resource is part of the Teaching Petrology collection. http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/petrology03/index.html ... Full description.

This virtual five-day field mapping project allows students to construct a geological map from data provided by the web site. Students collect geologic, structural, paleontologic, strain and microstructural data observed at specific localities. Students are then able to derive a structural history for the area, including a field map, stereographs, and deformation plots. The site contains photographs ... Full description.