Identify a mineral from its properties

Grade 6 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. 1.

   Ari reads that a geologist rubbed a mineral on the rough back of a white tile and saw a powder line. Which property was tested?

   • Luster
   • Hardness
   • Streak
   • Cleavage
2. 2.

   Under a desk lamp, Bo tilts a mineral to see whether its surface shines like glass or like metal. Which property is that?

   • Hardness
   • Streak
   • Fracture
   • Luster
3. 3.

   Esme reads that a mineral splits into flat, smooth sheets along weak planes. Which property does that describe?

   • Luster
   • Fracture
   • Streak
   • Cleavage

4. Read this first

   Table (NPS; USGS), columns mineral, hardness, luster, how it breaks

   Talc, 1, pearly or greasy, cleavage flakes; feldspar, 6, glassy, two cleavages at right angles; quartz, 7, glassy, curved fracture, no cleavage. Beside it, the rock-cycle boxes: igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic (minerals make up all three).

5. 4.

   Jun's property card lists three minerals. Using the card, which one is the softest?

   • Talc
   • Quartz
   • Gypsum
   • Feldspar
6. 5.

   Using the card, which mineral breaks along two flat directions at right angles, Kira?

   • Talc
   • Quartz
   • Feldspar
   • Halite
7. 6.

   Using the card, how does quartz break, Luz?

   • With a curved fracture
   • Into cleavage flakes
   • Along two cleavages at right angles
   • It does not break
8. 7.

   Noah reads that quartz (7) scratches a glass plate (5.5), but the glass leaves no mark on the quartz. Which one is harder?

   • Both are the same
   • The glass plate
   • Neither, as glass is not a mineral
   • The quartz
9. 8.

   On the Mohs scale, fluorite is 4 and apatite is 5. Which can scratch the other, Pia?

   • Neither can scratch the other
   • Apatite scratches fluorite
   • Each scratches the other
   • Fluorite scratches apatite
10. 9.

    Ren wonders if a dark sample is hematite. Which test would show a red-brown result if it is?

    • A streak test on unglazed tile
    • Looking at its outside color
    • Weighing it on a kitchen scale
    • Tilting it to see how it shines
11. 10.

    Tala has two purple samples: amethyst, a kind of quartz (7), and fluorite (4). Which test tells them apart?

    • Compare their two shades of purple
    • Measure how long each one is
    • Check which one is purple
    • Try to scratch each one with a steel nail (6.5)