Learning about Minerals through the Art of Jewelry Making: A Multicultural Science Connection

ABSTRACT

This article presents an activity that focuses on helping students investigate the formation of rocks, minerals, and gemstones. Students describe visual, textual, and physical properties of various specimens of minerals. Using compare and contrast skills, students can classify the primary types of rock, ask questions about the Earth's inner processes that result in the formation of our natural resources, and discuss cross-cultural traditions’ perspectives on many of our Earth's natural resources. In this multicultural science activity, children actively engage in a hands-on lesson that allows them to visualize and appreciate the beauty of the Earth's natural resources through the art of jewelry making. This lesson provides an artistic approach to science as students explore various properties of the Earth's materials and physical properties of matter.

KEYWORDS:

• gems
• minerals
• multicultural science activities
• Native Americans