Mohs' scale of hardness (non-statutory) | Science | Quizalize & Oak National Academy

Starter quiz

The physical properties of a material are things we can ______ or measure.
- 'observe' ✓
Which of these are physical properties of materials?
- How something feels. ✓
- How something looks. ✓
- How something is made.
- How much something costs.
- How much something weighs. ✓
Which of these are types of rock?
- wood
- slate ✓
- granite ✓
- rubber
- sandstone ✓
If you scratched a rock with a nail you would be testing for ...
- 'hardness' ✓
Which of these rocks do you think was used to make this statue?
- sandstone
- marble ✓
- limestone
- slate
Which of these physical properties could you use to group types of rock?
- rough / not rough ✓
- happy / not happy
- hard / not hard ✓
- layers / no layers ✓
- natural / not natural

Exit quiz

A geologist is a type of scientist who studies what ______ is made of.
- 'the Earth' ✓
Geologists from the past, today and in the future help us to learn more about the __________ of rocks.
- uses ✓
- properties ✓
- emotions
Which scientist from the past helped us to learn about the physical properties of rocks through their investigations?
- Marie Curie
- Isaac Newton
- Friedrich Mohs ✓
- Rosalind Franklin
Friedrich Mohs created the Mohs' scale to measure and compare the ______ of types of rock.
- 'hardness' ✓
It is useful to __________ results of an investigation with one that has already been carried out.
- compare ✓
- ignore
Match the rock types to their potential uses based on their properties using Mohs' scale of hardness.
- chalk (hardness of 1)
  
  ⇔
  
  drawing with ✓
- slate (hardness of 5.5)
  
  ⇔
  
  covering roofs and floors ✓
- diamond (hardness of 10)
  
  ⇔
  
  cutting hard materials like glass ✓

Worksheet

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Lesson Details

Key learning points

A geologist is a type of scientist that studies what the Earth is made of. They help us to understand more about rocks.
Scientists from the past, today and in the future help us to learn more about the properties and uses of rocks.
The results from a scientific investigation can be compared to other investigations that have already been carried out.

Common misconception

Children may use a range of observational methods to assess hardness, e.g. “heaviness” of the object, and if it breaks on impact (test for brittleness), neither of which are a test for hardness.

Be aware of using the correct vocabulary around testing for hardness. Explain that hardness is the ability to withstand pressure.

Keywords

Rock - Rock is a solid material that occurs naturally in Earth.
Geologist - A geologist is someone who studies what the Earth is made of.
Hardness - Hardness is the quality of being difficult to bend, cut or break.
Mineral - A mineral occurs naturally and can be dug out of the ground.
Scale - A scale is a set of numbers or amounts, used to measure or compare the level of something.