Study Guide: Minerals
Test date: Thursday, December 17th
Grade 6 Science
Mineral
Ways to identify minerals
Color
Cleavage
Density
A natural occurring, inorganic solid with
a definite chemical composition and an
orderly arrangement of atoms or ions
Color
Luster
Streak
hardness
cleavage and fracture
density
Is useful for determining impurities
The breakage of a mineral along
smooth, flat surface
The mass of an object divided by its
volume
Fracture
The breakage of a mineral to form
uneven surfaces
Hardness
The resistance of a mineral to being
scratched
Luster
The way a mineral reflects or absorbs
light at its surface
Streak
The color of mineral in powdered form
Mineralogist
A scientist who studies the distribution
of minerals, mineral properties, and
their uses
A rock that contains high enough
Ore
Gemstone
Mohs’ hardness scale
concentrations of desired substance so
that it can be mined for a profit
A rare and attractive mineral that can
be worn as jewelry
Used to compare the hardness of
minerals
The mass divided by the volume
Density
Specific gravity
Special properties of minerals
Magnetism
Double refraction
The ratio of the mass of a substance to
the mass of an equal volume
Magnetism
Double refraction
Is used to distinguish it from other nonmagnetite iron oxides
Is when light is spilt or refracted into
two components
To test the hardness of a mineral you
would…
To test the color of a mineral you
would…
To test streak, you would..
Perform a scratch test
To test luster, you would…
Observe how minerals reflects the light
To test the density you would
Find mass per unit volume
Observe the surface of the mineral
Observe the color of the powder on
unglazed tile
Observe the number and angle of
To test crystal, you would..
crystal faces
Break mineral apart to see if it splits
To test cleavage and fracture you would along flat surfaces
The repeating pattern of a mineral’s
Crystal
particles in a solid