Critical minerals: Classroom activities

Our modern lives are enabled and facilitated by a huge range of electrical appliances and technologies; from the phones and computer screens we struggle to tear ourselves away from, to the electric cars, wind turbines and solar panels powering our sustainable future.

All these items have something surprising in common – they rely on a whole host of metals and minerals that are extracted from the ground. Demand for these materials, known as critical minerals, is increasing rapidly; driven in particular by the pressing need for us to decarbonise to combat climate change and transition to electric cars and renewable energy generation.

Below you will find three curriculum-linked lessons to engage your pupils with the idea of Critical Minerals. Suitable for KS2-KS3. These resources have been produced with support from the UK Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre.

• Loan kit – rock testing guide
• KS2 Lesson – What are rocks, minerals and metals?
• KS3 Lesson 1 – Minerals in everyday life
• KS3 Lesson 2 – The life cycle of a mineral
• Information about the UK Critical Mineral Intelligence Centre

Loan kit – rock testing guide

In this guide you will find the list of properties along with how to test them, the equipment needed, any notable results, and the expected results for the minerals included within the kit. Mineral testing kits can be requested from the BGS Public Engagement team, please e-mail bgsengage@bgs.ac.uk for further information.

KS2 Lesson – What are rocks, minerals and metals?

In this lesson we describe what they are, the differences between them and what they can be used for in everyday objects. By the end of this lesson, students should:

• know the difference between a rock, a mineral and a metal
• be able to identify where minerals are in a rock
• understand that many different household objects (and their constituent parts) are reliant on minerals
• know what critical minerals are and where they can be found

What are rocks, minerals and metals?

KS3 Lesson 1 – Minerals in everyday life

This lesson covers:

• what is a rock? What is a mineral?
• minerals in everyday life
• critical minerals and the UK strategy
• critical mineral potential in the UK
• Formation and use of some critical minerals
• critical minerals in an electric vehicle battery

Minerals in everyday life

KS3 Lesson 2 – The life cycle of a mineral

This lesson covers:

• recap from Lesson 1: pupils discuss what minerals they discovered at home or on the journey to and from school, and how minerals affect our daily lives
• use of minerals and critical minerals in electric vehicles
• key mineral components in an electric vehicle battery
• supply of minerals in mobile phones
• the life cycle of a mobile phone
• careers in geoscience

The life cycle of a mineral

About the UK Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre

The UK Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre (CMIC) supports the UK in securing adequate, timely and sustainable supplies of the minerals and metals it requires to transition its economy in the coming decades to net-zero emissions. Led by the British Geological Survey (BGS) and funded by the Department for Business, & Trade (DBT), we work together with universities and private and public sector partners to gather and analyse intelligence on the supply and demand of critical minerals, their global value chains and use by UK industry.