Creating a Partial Pressure Diagram for the Cu-CO2-O2-H2O System part of Teach the Earth:Teaching Activities
Terri Woods, East Carolina University
Students will be guided through the procedure for creating a partial-pressure diagram in the low-temperature system Cu-CO2-O2-H2O system for the minerals cuprite, tenorite, native copper, azurite, and malachite. ...

Petrographic Microscope Home Kit for Smartphones part of Teach the Earth:Teaching Activities
Lynne Elkins, University of Nebraska at Lincoln
This is a useful set of design instructions to build a home microscope kit for illustrating the properties of polarizing/petrographic microscopes with a smartphone camera. It can be used for any number of class ...

Mineral Identification part of Teach the Earth:Teaching Activities
Katryn Wiese, City College of San Francisco
Mineral Identification online (developed for remote learning during COVID-19 pandemic); students will explore the various characteristics of minerals and then apply them to identify unknowns.

Feldspar Mineral Chemistry Using the FCAEM Remotely Operable Electron Probe Micro-Analyzer. part of Activities
Sven Holbik and Rosemary Hickey-Vargas, Florida International University
This lab uses the remote operation of an Electron Probe Micro-Analysis (EPMA) available through the Florida Center for Analytical Electron Microscopy (FCAEM; https://fcaem.fiu.edu/), at Florida International University, Miami, to explore feldspar mineral chemistry. This lab explores detailed mineral chemistry, data normalization, and plotting compositional ranges on ternary diagrams suitable as an introductory assignment in a Mineralogy, Earth Materials, or Petrology course. This instructor-led interactive demonstration of remote Electron Microprobe use introduces students to microprobe analysis, x-ray analytical techniques, standardization, image analysis, normalization, mineral formulas and composition. The instructor can acquire images (optional) of samples containing feldspar (provided by FCAEM or instructor's samples) then select multiple points for analysis. This activity captivates student's attention and provides a hands-on instrument-led approach to introducing undergraduate students to chemical analysis and vital concepts in mineralogy and petrology.

Virtual Lab: "Big Nine" Silicates in Thin Section part of Teach the Earth:Teaching Activities
Catherine Macris, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis
This virtual lab activity uses Virtual Microscope to help students create their own ranked lists of diagnostic properties for the "Big Nine" silicate minerals/groups, which includes quartz, muscovite, ...

Critical Minerals Summit part of Teach the Earth:Teaching Activities
Clementine Hamelin, College of William and Mary
This activity combines elements of role-play, jigsaw, and galley walk activities to introduce students to critical minerals, their place in the context of geology, their societal and economic importance as well as ...

Crossword Puzzles to Review Mineral Concepts part of Activities
Laura Wetzel, Eckerd College
Students complete a crossword puzzle to review the physical properties of minerals that are helpful in hand specimen identification. Mineral names and characteristics are particularly well-suited for a crossword format. Two versions are provided, one at an introductory level and one for more advanced undergraduates. Instructor files provided are easy to customize.

Rock & Mineral Bingo part of NAGT:Our Resources:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
Kate Pound, North Hennepin Community College
This is a rock and mineral 'Bingo' that is based on knowledge and skill (not luck). It was designed as an entertaining and interactive means of developing and improving student rock and mineral ...

Gestures for Miller Indices part of Spatial Thinking Workbook:Teaching Activities
Carol Ormand Ph.D., Carleton College
Students use one hand to gesture crystallographic axes and the other hand to represent planes designated by Miller Indices.

Comparing Phyllosilicate Structures part of Spatial Thinking Workbook:Teaching Activities
Carol Ormand Ph.D., Carleton College
Students compare the chemistry and structures of biotite, muscovite, and chlorite.

Understanding Polyhedral Diagrams part of Spatial Thinking Workbook:Teaching Activities
Carol Ormand Ph.D., Carleton College
Students identify individual polyhedra in a variety of diagrams and answer questions about shared oxygens in diagrams of common silicate structures.

Mineral Selfie part of Introductory Courses:Activities
Stefany Sit, University of Illinois at Chicago
Students identify minerals used in their everyday lives by taking a 'selfie' with the product and then sharing their photo with their fellow students on a class blog.

Research Experiences in a Mineralogy Class part of Undergraduate Research:Case Studies
A case study page detailing an exemplary undergraduate research project in a mineralogy course where students engage in authentic, inquiry-based investigations using XRD and SEM techniques to characterize Earth materials, with applications to industry, faculty research, and societal issues, including implementation strategies, assessment methods, and downloadable teaching materials. auto-generated The author of this page didn't provide a brief description so this one sentence summary was created by an AI tool. It may not be completely accurate.

An Electron Microprobe in the Classroom: A Remote-Access System for Education part of NAGT:Our Resources:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
Ellery Frahm, University of Minnesota-Duluth
In 2003, the University of Minnesota's Electron Microprobe Laboratory implemented a new system for remote research and education via the Internet. The remote-access system allows real-time access to our ...

Is it a Mineral? part of NAGT:Our Resources:Teaching Resources:Teaching Materials Collection
Sara Harris, University of British Columbia