Rocks and Minerals Lessons
Websites
Mineralogy 4 Kids
This Mineralogical Society of America’s site for kids has good information about minerals and
their properties.
( http://www.minsocam.org/MSA/K12/K_12.html )
Minerals
Here you can find color images of minerals from an alphabetized list.
( http://webmineral.com/specimens/index.php#.Uvlw8_ldV8E )
Nets of Crystals
This link contains models of crystal polyhedrons that you can print out and construct of paper.
( http://mathforum.org/alejandre/workshops/crystalnet.html )
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Rocks and Minerals Lessons
Books
General
The Magic School Bus Inside the Earth
By Joanna Cole; illustrated by Bruce Degen. (2003, Scholastic Inc.)
A humorous account of a teacher who takes her class on a magic school bus into the center of
the earth to study rocks and minerals. Packed with pictures and captions, this book will be
captivating to elementary rock hounds.
National Audubon Society First Field Guide: Rocks and Minerals
By Edward Ricciuti and Margaret W. Carruthers. (2003, Scholastic Inc.)
This child-friendly field guide is an excellent resource book. It contains clear, detailed pictures
of rocks and minerals for children to use throughout the unit to identify and learn more about
samples. The introductory section includes a wealth of helpful background information about
many of the topics introduced in the Rocks Unit.
Additional child-friendly field guides
Looking at Rocks: My First Field Guide
By Jennifer Dussling; illustrated by Deborah and Allan Drew-Brook- Cormack. (2001, Grosset &
Dunlap)
This is a good field guide to recommend to children who want to become rock hounds. Includes
a section for tracking information about the rocks they collect.
Rocks and Minerals (My First Pocket Guide)
By Dr. Paul M. A. Willis; illustrated by Iain McKellar. (2002, National Geographic Society)
This is an age-appropriate field guide with simple, clear information about where you might find
each rock or mineral, and details to help identify it. It also contains interesting background
information and “field notes” for each rock and mineral.
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Rocks & Minerals (Pockets)
By Sue Fuller. (1995, DK Publishing Inc.)
This small book is packed with lots of interesting information about rocks and minerals.
Rocks and Minerals (Usborne Spotter’s Guides)
By Alan Wooley. (2001, Usborne Publishing Ltd.)
A compact, informative, and child-friendly field guide with large, easy-to-see pictures of each
rock and mineral included.
Noteworthy read-alouds
Earthsteps: A Rock’s Journey Through Time
By Diane Nelson Spickert; illustrated by Marianne D. Wallace. (2010, Fulcrum Publications)
Take a walk back through time as a rock is transformed into a grain of sand over the course of
millions of years. The succession of prehistoric life that serves as a backdrop for this
transformation offers a wonderful sense of the vast time frame involved and will captivate
children who are interested in dinosaurs.
Nonfiction books about rocks, minerals, crystals, and gemstones
The Best Book of Fossils, Rocks, and Minerals
By Chris Pellant; illustrated by Ray Grinaway and Chris Forsey. (2007, Kingfisher)
Large and detailed full-color spreads discuss and illustrate a variety of topics, including gems
and metals, fossil fuels, and rocks from outer space. Written at an upper-elementary reading
level.
Crystal and Gem (Eyewitness Books)
By R.F. Symes and R.R. Harding. (2007, DK Children)
With beautiful, full-color and full-size photographs, this book makes a good browsing reference.
The text includes interesting facts about rocks, minerals, and gemstones and many historical
references.
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Crystals and Crystal Gardens You Can Grow (Full-Color First Books)
By Jean Stangl. (1990, Franklin Watts)
An attractive introduction to the subject with black-and-white and color photographs. The book
provides scientific explanations about crystal formation, tips for growing crystals, and
instructions for many experiments. Contains clear and informative captions.
Geology Crafts for Kids: 50 Nifty Projects to Explore the Marvels of Planet Earth
By Alan Anderson, Gwen Diehn, and Terry Krautwurst. (1998, Sterling Publications)
A fun collection of 50 activities and craft projects that teach children about geology topics such
as minerals, crystals, volcanoes, erosion, fossils, and more. Includes great full-color illustrations
and easy-to-follow directions.
Look at Minerals: From Galena to Gold (First Books)
By Jo S. Kittinger. (1999, Franklin Watts)
Written for upper-elementary students, this book looks at crystals, gemstones, and metals. It
shows the structure of minerals and the way they are classified, found, and processed. Excellent
photographs and drawings highlight the clear and concise text.
Minerals (Kaleidoscope Earth Science)
By Roy A. Gallant. (2000, Marshall Cavendish Children’s Books)
This book begins with the question, “Have you ever tasted a mineral?” It examines minerals,
rocks, and elements in the natural world and includes an informative section on fossilization.
The large-print text is easy to read, the explanations are concise, and the full-page photos are
attractive.
Rocks and Minerals (Eyewitness Books)
By Chris Pellant and Dr. R. F. Symes. (2000, DK Children)
The text and photographs in this book examine the creation, importance, erosion, mining, and
uses of rocks and minerals. Wonderful for browsing and reference.
Rocks and Minerals (Eyewitness Explorers)
By Steve Parker. (1997, DK Children)
An information-packed book with a very accessible format and content level—perfect for earlyelementary grades. Also includes numerous suggestions and instructions for hands-on
activities. An excellent reference for the unit.
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