social

sciences 4
Rock

The Earth’s crust is made up of rock. There are three main different
types of rock: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic.

Igneous rock Sedimentary rock is Metamorphic means

forms deep made of fragments of a change of form.
inside the Earth. rocks, dead They form when
It’s very hot here vegetation and there are movements
and the rock animal matter. in the inner layers of
melts. the Earth.
The properties of minerals

Minerals exist in the Earth’s crust.

how it reflects
light

They can exist on their own and they can

combine with other minerals to make rocks.
For example, granite contains the minerals
feldspar, quartz and mica.

Minerals have different properties: colour, hardness and lustre.

What do we use rocks for?
We use minerals for many things.
• gold, silver and diamonds
for jewellery
• graphite to make the lead in
pencils
• copper to make electric
cables and coins
• malachite to make paint
• aluminium to make cans, cars
and aeroplanes
• gypsum to make cement and
plaster
What is the lithosphere?

The lithosphere is all the rocks and minerals on the Earth’s

crust and part of the upper mantle.

The lithosphere, under the

ground we walk on, consists of
huge areas of rock which are
called tectonic plates.

As the plates are always moving, sometimes

This movement can cause
earthquakes, tsunamis or can
make volcanoes erupt.
they bump into one another. The places this
happens most are the fault lines.
where plates meet
What have we learnt?

Rocks can be…

igneous sedimentary metamorphic

What have we learnt?

The properties of minerals can be …

lustre hardness colour

What have we learnt?

We use minerals for…

pencils paint cars

electric
jewellery
cables
What have we learnt?

When the tectonic plates move they can cause…

volcanic
tsunamis earthquakes eruptions