This website, from the American Museum of Natural History, highlights a former exhibition about diamonds. Beginning with a basic definition, it covers the formation, history, and mining & distribution of diamonds, as well as their use as gemstones and as an industrial material. Full description.

The Kentucky rocks highlighted on this website are chiefly sedimentary, such as limestone and dolostone, since sedimentary rocks cover approximately 99 percent of the state. You will find an extensive list of minerals and mineral groups, such as oxides or halides, and mineral property descriptions that cover hardness, cleavage, color, crystal system, streak, and more. These properties are also discussed ... Full description.

This website is provided by ThinkQuest, a global network of students, teachers, parents, and technologists dedicated to youth-centered learning on the internet. This ThinkQuest site is one of over 4000 student created entries. It discusses what rocks are; describes sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks; identifies properties of these rock types; and covers the rock cycle. Mineral identification, ... Full description.

This lesson plan is part of the DiscoverySchool.com lesson plan library for grades 6-8. This lesson focuses on sedimentary rocks and how they are formed. Students review the rock cycle and three rock types: igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary. They then write children's books about sedimentary rocks to explain the process to a younger audience. Included are objectives, materials, procedures, discussion ... Full description.

In this lab, students work in groups to grow crystals in different conditions, and then make conclusions about how and why crystals form. This site contains a detailed procedure and materials list, as well as follow-up questions. A teacher's guide contains extension ideas and information for conducting this lab. Full description.

This website integrates video footage and information with lesson plans and activities to teach students about the rock cycle and rock types. Storytelling is used to help students understand the changes a rock undergoes as it passes through the rock cycle. These activities are intended to be used at the end of a unit on rocks and minerals. There are lesson plans for the activities with materials, ... Full description.

This kid's page offers information on mine safety and the dangers of abandoned mines, an interactive map illustrating which minerals are mined in each state, a presentation on the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and their role in mining, a pictorial history of children working in mines, the amount of minerals, metals and fuels each American will use in a lifetime, and a story based on ... Full description.

Minfile contains geological, location and economic information on over 12,000 metallic, industrial mineral and coal mines, deposits and occurrences in British Columbia, Canada. This website can be used to find information on documented mineralization anywhere in British Columbia, to develop exploration strategies, for geoscience research, to evaluate the resource potential of an area, or for land-use ... Full description.

This activity can be used as the introduction for a unit on mineral or crystal structure. It requires the students to create shapes cooperatively and put them together. This is analogous to individual crystals forming or to minerals forming. They will understand that minerals are made up of structures in certain patterns, and that these structures determine some of the properties of the minerals. Full description.

This Classroom Connectors lesson plan discusses rock formation. This includes igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks and the process of the rock cycle. The site provides goals, objectives, an outline, time required, materials, activities, and closure ideas for the lesson. The Classroom Connectors address content with an activity approach while incorporating themes necessary to raise the activity ... Full description.