What is a rock? A group of minerals joined together, like ingredients combined to make a loaf of bread Can be made from things that were once alive (i.e. coal) Three main types: Igneous – forms when magma cools and hardens Metamorphic – when old rocks are heated or squeezed to the point where they change to something new underground Sedimentary – sediment settles into layers in certain places

What is a mineral? Not produced by people or other living things (whether currently or formerly alive), occurs naturally Solid Same “chemical make-up”, structure is always the same (color, size, and age are not always) Examples: salt, copper, quartz, graphite Removed from earth by mining

What is a fossil? Show us what living things were once like All are found in sedimentary rock (form when they are buried under sediment quickly with little time to decompose)

Layers of the Earth Crust: Solid (the land we walk on and/or the ocean floor) Mantle: Liquid Core: Liquid Inner Core: Solid

Plate Tectonics Plates are constantly moving (very slowly) Continents are moving (very slowly)

Earthquakes occur when two tectonic plates slip past each other suddenly.

What is weathering and erosion? How natural forces break rocks apart Main force to produce sediment Frost wedging, root wedging, rain, Moving water and wind cause sediments to travel, sometimes great distances Deposition (when eroded materials rest/settle)

Test Topics Vocab words (core, crystal, fossil, hardness, igneous, luster, mantle, metamorphic, sedimentary, weathering, geologists) Rock make-up (three types) Types of Weathering Mineral tests and what they show Mineral properties Examples of different types of rocks