The Geometry of Minerals

The Geometry of Minerals

The Geometry of Minerals
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 9 to 11
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	11.12

Vocabulary

challenging words:

double-chain, nonsilicate, pyroxenes, silicon-oxygen, single-chain, tetrahedras, tourmaline, biotite, silicate, crystalline, muscovite, olivine, ionic, hexagonal, quartz, geometry

Print The Geometry of Minerals

Print The Geometry of Minerals (font options, pick words for additional puzzles, and more)

Quickly Print

Quickly print reading comprehension

Proofreading Activity

Print a proofreading activity

Feedback on The Geometry of Minerals

Leave your feedback on The Geometry of Minerals (use this link if you found an error in the story)

The Geometry of Minerals
By Trista L. Pollard

¹     Deep inside the Earth's minerals lies a little bit of geometry. Every mineral has a specific crystalline structure. This geometric structure is the result of the careful arrangement of the minerals' atoms, ions, or molecules. It is this specialized geometric structure that helps scientists to categorize the Earth's minerals.

²     Crystals have an internal structure that contains regular repeating patterns. Although some minerals may have large crystals, many have crystals that can only be seen under a microscope. It is the larger mineral crystals that scientists study to understand the internal geometric structure of crystals. As minerals grow, there may be certain conditions that restrict the growth of large crystals. This is why some minerals form masses of very small crystals. Minerals will form single large crystals when their growth is not affected by outside conditions. These silicate mineral crystals will take on one of six shapes: isolated tetrahedra, ring silicates, single-chain silicates, double-chain silicates, sheet silicates, and framework silicates. Scientists view the crystal shapes of minerals through x-rays. The x-rays pass through the crystal and strike photographic plates. Once this occurs, an image of the crystal structure is produced on the plate. This is how scientists know the geometric patterns of atoms in the crystalline structures.

³     The crystalline structure of silicate minerals contains four oxygen atoms that are arranged in pyramids with a silicon atom in the center. Scientists call this arrangement a silicon-oxygen tetrahedra. For every different type of silicate minerals, there are different combinations of silicon-oxygen tetrahedrons. Each arrangement is different based on the bonds between the oxygen atoms and the other atoms in the tetrahedra. Scientists have noticed that tetrahedra bonds may form between the oxygen and silicon atoms and other neighboring tetrahedra. There may also be bonds between the oxygen atoms and atoms from other elements, which are outside of the tetrahedra. Now let's explore the six types of tetrahedra.

Paragraphs 4 to 8:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable

Weekly Reading Books

          Create Weekly Reading Books

Prepare for an entire week at once!

Earth Science

             Earth Science

More Lessons

             High School Reading Comprehensions and High School Reading Lessons

More Activities, Lesson Plans, and Worksheets

Back to School
Graphic Organizers
Alphabet Worksheets
Sight Words
Math Worksheets
Mazes
50 States

Monthly Themes
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December

Fractions
Place Value
Time and Calendar
Money
Earth Day
Solar System
Analogies
Nouns
Following Directions
Listening
Capitalization
Cursive Writing
Patterns and Sequencing
Dinosaurs
All About Me

Kindergarten
First Grade
Second Grade
Third Grade
Fourth Grade
Fifth Grade
Sixth Grade

Multiplication
Division
Main Idea
Cause and Effect
Measurement
Decimals
Rounding
Order of Operations
Verbs
Community Helpers
Adjectives
Plants
Grammar
Addition and Subtraction
Contractions
Bulletin Board Ideas
Word Searches
Crossword Puzzles
Printable Puzzles

Reading Comprehension
Reading Skills
English Language Arts

Copyright © 2011 edHelper