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🪨 Rocks & Minerals

Scratch, sparkle, and sort the amazing minerals that build our planet!

lessons

~15 min

to learn

🔬 Science

subject

Ages 6–12

level

Start the course →

What you’ll learn

Learners can explain what a mineral is, how crystals form, and where minerals are found.Minerals are natural solids that grow as crystals with repeating patterns. Their colors come from the chemicals inside them, and they are found in caves, mountains, oceans, and even in everyday things like salt and pencils.
Learners can use the Mohs hardness scale, explain the scratch test, and connect minerals to rocks and everyday uses.The Mohs scale ranks minerals from soft talc (1) to hard diamond (10) using the scratch test. Rocks like granite are made of several minerals, and minerals help people build, power devices, and make jewelry.

Questions this course answers

What is a mineral?

A mineral is a natural solid that forms in the Earth and is not made by living things. Each has its own chemical recipe.

Why do minerals have different colors?

Tiny amounts of chemicals like iron or copper give minerals their colors, such as green malachite or blue turquoise.

Which everyday item is actually a mineral?

The salt on your food is a mineral called halite. Pencil 'lead' (graphite) is a mineral too.

On the Mohs scale, which mineral is the hardest?

Diamond is number 10, the hardest natural mineral. Nothing can scratch it except another diamond.

What does the scratch test tell us?

If one mineral scratches another, it is harder. A harder mineral always scratches a softer one.

The speckled rock granite is made of what?

Rocks are made of one or more minerals. Granite contains quartz, feldspar, and mica pressed together.

Grounded in trusted sources

U.S. National Park Service, 'Mohs Hardness Scale' (nps.gov/articles/mohs-hardness-scale.htm)
Britannica Kids, 'Mineral' (kids.britannica.com)
National Geographic Kids, 'Rocks and Minerals'
Mineralogical Society of America, 'Mohs Scale of Hardness' (minsocam.org)

Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.

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