Identify a mineral from its properties

Grade 6 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. 1.

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

   • Luster
   • Streak
   • Hardness
   • Fracture
2. 2.

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

   • Cleavage
   • Fracture
   • Streak
   • Luster

3. 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).

4. 3.

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

   • Gypsum
   • Quartz
   • Feldspar
   • Talc
5. 4.

   Using the card, how does quartz break, Luz?

   • It does not break
   • Into cleavage flakes
   • Along two cleavages at right angles
   • With a curved fracture
6. 5.

   A fingernail (hardness 2.5) scratches talc (hardness 1). Which one is harder, Milo?

   • Neither has a hardness
   • The fingernail
   • They are equally hard
   • The talc
7. 6.

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

   • The quartz
   • Neither, as glass is not a mineral
   • The glass plate
   • Both are the same
8. 7.

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

   • Neither can scratch the other
   • Each scratches the other
   • Apatite scratches fluorite
   • Fluorite scratches apatite
9. 8.

   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
   • Weighing it on a kitchen scale
   • Tilting it to see how it shines
   • Looking at its outside color
10. 9.

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

    • Measure how long each one is
    • Check which one is purple
    • Compare their two shades of purple
    • Try to scratch each one with a steel nail (6.5)
11. 10.

    Zee reads that common micas can be black, brown or clear. What color is the streak of each one?

    • Red-brown
    • Black, brown or clear, like its color
    • Golden yellow
    • White