Grade 4 · Science · Unit 9 of 10
Rocks vs. Minerals
Properties and uses
What your child practises
Children tell rocks from minerals, describe and classify them by their properties, and link their properties to how people use them.
Prince Edward Island Curriculum curriculum outcome: Space and Earth Science: Rocks, Minerals, and Erosion · telling rocks from minerals, classifying them by properties and how they are used
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
What is a negative effect of mining?
- It makes the soil richer everywhere
- It helps animals find food
- It always makes new habitats
- It can damage habitats and leave scars on the land
It can damage habitats and leave scars on the land
Hint: Digging up land changes the places where animals live.
Question 2
Why do we put rock observations in a chart?
- so the rocks cannot move
- so the rocks become heavier
- so the rocks stay clean
- so we can compare them easily
so we can compare them easily
Hint: A chart puts facts side by side.
Question 3
A chart shows Rock 1 is hard and grey, Rock 2 is soft and white, Rock 3 is hard and white. Which rock is soft?
- Rock 3
- Rock 2
- Rock 1
- None of them
Rock 2
Hint: Find the row that says soft.
Question 4
What is graphite, a soft grey mineral, used for?
- making windows
- growing crops
- the writing part of a pencil
- building bridges
the writing part of a pencil
Hint: It leaves a dark mark on paper.
Question 5
Granite is made of quartz, feldspar and mica. Is granite a rock or a mineral?
- a living thing
- a metal alloy
- a rock
- a mineral
a rock
Hint: It is a mixture of several minerals.
Question 6
Two students sort the same rocks and get different groups. Why might this happen?
- They may choose different properties to sort by
- One of them is wrong about every rock
- Rocks change when sorted
- Sorting always gives the same groups
They may choose different properties to sort by
Hint: Many sorting methods can make sense.