Name: __________________________
Date: _________________ Period: ___
Rocks and Minerals Test Review Sheet
A mineral is a naturally occurring inorganic solid
that has a definite chemical composition and
crystalline structure.
The SEVEN properties/characteristics used to
identify minerals are (briefly describe each):
1. color – the physical appearance of the mineral
To be a mineral, a substance must be:
2. luster – the way the mineral reflects light (metallic,
submetallic, nonmetallic)
1. naturally occurring – not man made
2. inorganic – not make of living things (plants and
animals)
3. streak – the color of the powder of a mineral when
rubbed against a piece of tile
3. solid – a mineral cannot be a gas or liquid
4. fracture – the manner in which a mineral breaks
along either curved or irregular surfaces
4. crystalline structure – has a repeating inner
structure
5. cleavage – the splitting of a mineral along smooth,
flat surfaces
Examples of minerals:
6. hardness– a measure of the ability of a mineral to
resist scratching
Fluorite
Quartz
Calcite
Feldspar
7. density – the ratio of the mass of a substance to the
volume of the substance
How do sediments become a sedimentary rock?
Rocks are weathered and eroded over time to become sediments. Over thousands of years, sediments have been
compacted and cemented together to form sedimentary rock.
How does a metamorphic rock become an igneous rock?
A metamorphic rock can become an igneous rock by melting into magma underneath the earth’s crust and
cooled to form an igneous rock.
Describe two ways in which an igneous rock can become a metamorphic rock.
Way 1: An igneous rock can be weathered and eroded into sediments. Then the sediments are compacted and
cemented together to form and sedimentary rock. Finally, the sedimentary rock undergoes a tremendous
amount of heat and pressure deep within earth to form a metamorphic rock.
Way 2: An intrusive igneous rock is exposed to heat and pressure under the earth’s crust and becomes a
metamorphic rock.
How does magma become sediments?
Extrusive igneous rocks are weathered and eroded into sediments.
What happens when an igneous rock is exposed to heat and pressure?
An igneous rock exposed to heat and pressure becomes an metamorphic rock.
Extra:
The process of weathering and erosion creates what? Sediments
How does an igneous rock become a sedimentary rock?
An extrusive igneous rock is weathered and eroded into sediments. The sediments are compacted and cemented
together to form a sedimentary rock.
When a rock is exposed to heat and pressure, what type of rock is formed? Metamorphic
Key Vocabulary
1. Mineral - A naturally occurring, inorganic solid that has definite chemical composition and crystalline
structure
2. Element - A substance that cannot be broken down or separated into simpler substances by chemical
means
3. Compound - A substance made up of two or more atoms of different elements that are chemically
combined
4. Crystal - A solid whose atoms, ions, or molecules are arranged in a definite pattern
5. Silicate- A mineral that contains a combination of silicon, oxygen, and one or more metals
6. Non-silicate - A mineral that does not contain compounds of silicon and oxygen
7. Luster - The way in which a mineral reflects light
8. Streak - The color of the powder of a mineral
9. Cleavage - The splitting of a mineral along smooth, flat lines
10. Fracture - The manner in which a mineral breaks along either curved or irregular surfaces
11. Hardness - A measure of the ability of a mineral to resist scratching
12. Density - The ratio of the mass of a substance to the volume of the substance
13. Rock Cycle - The series of processes in which a rock forms, changes from one type of rock to another,
is destroyed, and forms gain by geological processes
14. Rock - A naturally occurring solid mixture of one or more minerals or organic matter
15. Erosion - The process by which wind, water, ice or gravity transports soil and sediment from one
location to another
16. Composition - The chemical make-up of a rock; describes either the minerals or other materials in the
rock
17. Compaction - The consolidation of sediments resulting from the weight of the material above pushing
down
18. Cementation - The binding of loose sediments or fragments into one rock
19. Texture - The quality of a rock that is based on the sizes, shapes, and positions of the rock’s grains
20. Intrusive Igneous Rock - Rocks formed from the cooling and solidification of magna beneath the
Earth’s surface
21. Extrusive Igneous Rock - Rocks that forms as the result of volcanic activity at or near the Earth’s
surface
22. Strata - Layers of rock
23. Stratification - The process in which sedimentary rocks are arranged in layers
24. Clastic Rocks - Rocks made of fragments of rocks cemented together by minerals such as calcite or
quartz
25. Chemical Rocks - Form from solutions of dissolved minerals and water
26. Organic Rocks - Rocks formed from the remains of once living plants or animals
27. Foliated Rocks - Describes the texture of metamorphic rock in which the mineral grains are arranged in
planes or bands
28. Non-foliated Rocks - Describes the texture of metamorphic rock in which the mineral grains are not
arranged in planes or bands
Types of Rocks
Igneous:
Sedimentary:
Metamorphic:
Created from magma (below the surface) or
lava (above the surface)
Created through the process of weathering and
erosion, compaction and cementation and
(chemical).
Created when exposed to extreme heat and
pressure.
Characterized by grain size.
Characterized by grain size and
texture.
Intrusive:
Extrusive:
Clastic:
Chemical:
Organic:
Foliated:
Non-foliated:
Where formed?
Where formed?
Inside earth
At or near earth’s
surface
Formed
through what
2 processes?
Formed
through the
chemical
process of
crystallization.
Formed from
the remains of
once living
plants and
animals.
Foliated - the texture
of metamorphic rock
in which the mineral
grains are aligned in
planes or bands
Non-foliated – the
texture of the
metamorphic rock in
which the mineral
grains are NOT
arranged in planes or
bands
Examples:
Halite
Examples:
corals
Examples:
Gneiss
Phyllite
Schist
Examples:
Marble
Quartzit
Speed of formation:
Speed of formation:
Slowly
Quickly
Grain Size:
Grain Size:
Large/coarse
Small/fine
Examples:
Examples:
Granite
Gabbro
Rhyolite
Basalt
Compaction
and
cementation
Classified
according to
the size of the
grains (coarse,
medium, fine)
Examples:
Conglomerate
Sandstone
Siltstone
Shale