rocks and soil around us

Genre Comprehension Skill Text Features Science Content
Nonfi ction Draw Conclusions • Captions
• Labels
• Glossary
Natural Resources
Scott Foresman Science 2.6
Standards
Preview
Standard Set 3. Earth Sciences
3. Earth is made of materials that
have distinct properties and provide
resources for human activities. As the
basis for understanding this concept:
3.a. Students know how to compare
the physical properties of different
kinds of rocks and know that rock is
composed of different combinations of
minerals.
3.b. Students know smaller rocks come
from the breakage and weathering of
larger rocks.
3.c. Students know that soil is made
partly from weathered rock and partly
from organic materials and that soils
differ in their color, texture, capacity
to retain water, and ability to support
the growth of many kinds of plants.
3.e. Students know rock, water, plants,
and soil provide many resources,
including food, fuel, and building

materials, that humans use.
ISBN 0-328-23511-3
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Earth Sciences
by Mary Beth Spann
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Vocabulary
fuel
luster
minerals
natural resources
rock
soil
weathering
Picture Credits
Every effort has been made to secure permission and provide appropriate credit for photographic material. The
publisher deeply regrets any omission and pledges to correct errors called to its attention in subsequent editions.
Unless otherwise acknowledged, all photographs are the copyright of Dorling Kindersley, a division of Pearson.
ISBN: 0-328-23511-3
Copyright © Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America.
This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any
prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form by any means, electronic,
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Permissions Department, Scott Foresman, 1900 East Lake Avenue, Glenview, Illinois 60025.
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Rocks and Soil
Around Us
by Mary Beth Spann

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2
Getting to Know
Rocks and Minerals
Rocks are found all over the Earth. They can
be found at the park or in a fi eld. They can be
found at the bottom of the ocean. A rock is the
hard, solid part of Earth that is not soil or metal.
Rocks can have
amazing shapes!
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Different rocks have different colors.
Different rocks feel different. Some are smooth
and others are rough.
Some rocks are small and light. You can hold
these rocks in your hand. Other rocks are very
large. Rocks can be the size of an elephant!
Can you tell how these
two rocks are different?
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Many Minerals
Minerals are what rocks are made up of.
Minerals are nonliving materials that come
from Earth. Diamond and copper are minerals.
Diamonds are used to make rings and other
forms of jewelry. Wires, coins, and many other
things are made from copper.
Diamond

Copper penny
Copper
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Most rocks have more than one mineral
inside of them. Gabbro is made up of the
minerals feldspar and pyroxene. Gabbro forms
deep beneath Earth’s surface. It makes up much
of the ocean fl oor.
Gabbro contains
pyroxene and feldspar.
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Minerals Have Properties
We learn more about minerals by studying
their properties. All minerals have properties.
A property is something about an object that
you can observe. Minerals can be hard or soft.
Hardness is one property of minerals.
Color is a property of minerals too. Garnet
can be red. Opal can be blue.
Garnet
Opal
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Some minerals are shiny. Other minerals are
dull. Luster is the property of how shiny or dull
a mineral is. Quartz can have a glassy luster.
Galena’s luster is shiny.
Quartz

Galena
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Rocks and
Weathering
A rock’s size, shape, and color can be
changed by weathering. Weathering is the
breaking apart and changing of rocks.
Weathering can change big boulders into
smaller rocks. Weathering can change very
small rocks into sand.
Weathering turns big rocks into
smaller rocks. It turns smaller
rocks into gravel and sand.
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Water and temperature changes can cause
weathering. Water weathers a rock by getting
inside its cracks. The water can freeze into ice.
The ice can then cause the rock to break apart.
Plants can also cause weathering. Sometimes
plant roots grow into cracks in a rock. The
growing roots can break the rock apart.
The roots of plants
can weather rocks.
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More Causes of Weathering
Look at the inside of the cave. Water in
the ground dissolved rock. Then the rock was

washed away by the water. Dripping water
made the shapes on the cave’s fl oor. It also
made the shapes on the cave’s roof. The shapes
join to make columns.
Dripping water made the
shapes in this cave.
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Some rocks have iron in them. If these rocks
get wet, the iron mixes with air. They mix
together to make rust. The rust gives the rocks
a reddish brown color. It causes the rocks to
weaken. It might make them break apart.
Rust has made this rock
reddish brown.
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All About Soil
Soil is the top layer of Earth. It is where
plants grow.
Weathering turns big rocks into small rocks.
It also turns small rocks into sand. Weathering
also turns small rocks into soil.
Soil has rocks of
different sizes in it.
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Soil is full of weathered rock and other
things. It has pieces of leaves and twigs. It also
has the remains of living things that have died.

Animals dig in soil. This can change the soil.
Animals loosen and mix the soil by digging in it.
These rabbits change the soil
by loosening and mixing it.
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Many Kinds of Soil
There are different kinds of soil. Different
plants grow best in different kinds of soil.
Sandy soil is bad for most plants. It does not
hold water well. Sandy soil can be found in
deserts. It is also found near oceans and lakes.
Sandy soil is dry
and very loose.
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Clay soil holds water well. But some plants
do not grow well in it. Clay soil often has a red
color. This color can come from iron in the soil.
Most plants grow best in loam. Loam holds
water well. This helps plants get the water they
need. Then the plants can grow.
Clay is soft and sticky.
It also feels smooth.
Loam is good for
growing most plants.
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Natural Resources
We use resources every day. Natural

resources are useful materials that come from
Earth. Soil and water are natural resources.
Rocks and plants are natural resources too.
How many natural
resources can you see here?
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Natural resources give us things we need.
We use natural resources for food and clothing.
We also use them for shelter and fuel.
Many of the things we build contain rocks.
We get food by growing plants in the soil. Trees
are plants that can also be used to build things.
Some plants can even be used for fuel.
The water and food
on this farm are
natural resources.
This dam was built
with natural resources.
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More Natural Resources
Rocks, soil, water, and plants are natural
resources. We use rocks to build things.
We mix sand, cement, and water to make
concrete. From concrete we make sidewalks,
bridges, and buildings.
Parts of this bridge were
made from rocks.
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Wood is a natural resource. Oil, gas, and
coal are also natural resources. We get fuel
from these natural resources. Fuel is anything
that is burned to make heat or power. Oil, gas,
and coal come from plants and animals. These
plants and animals lived long ago.
A car uses gas for fuel.
Gas comes from plants
that lived long ago.
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fuel anything that is burned
to make heat or power
luster how shiny or dull a
mineral is
minerals nonliving materials that
come from Earth
natural resources useful materials that
come from Earth
rock the hard, solid part of
Earth that is not soil or
metal
soil the top layer of Earth
weathering the breaking apart and
changing of rocks
Glossary
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What did you learn?
1. What are the three different kinds of soil?

2. What two minerals make up gabbro?

3.

You learned many
different things about natural resources
while reading this book. Write a couple of
sentences about natural resources. Make sure
to group related ideas together as you write.
4.

Draw Conclusions If you come across a
soil that is very dry and has few plants
growing in it, what might you conclude?
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