The Mineralogy Teaching Kit –Observe. Explore. Understand.
The mileko as a Bridge Between Nature, Science and Technology
The Mineralogical Teaching Kit (mileko) was developed for use in schools to introduce geoscientific, and particularly mineralogical, topics in an engaging and accessible way for students in grades 5 to 10. It covers curriculum-relevant topics from mathematics, physics, chemistry, geography, and the natural sciences.
Five didactically designed teaching kits (modules) are currently available. Each module is accompanied by materials that can be downloaded and printed, providing teachers with a range of digital resources for use in the classroom. These include module descriptions, glossaries, information sheets on various topics, and worksheets. Solutions to the worksheets can be requested from the project coordinator, Andrea Koch-Hillmaier.
Through practical experiments as well as inquiry-based and hands-on learning with minerals and rocks, scientific phenomena become not only visible but also tangible and easier to understand.
Basic Module: Hands-on Mineralogy
From an unassuming rock to a versatile everyday object: the Basic Module offers an engaging and varied introduction to mineralogy. It presents a wide range of different minerals and rocks, highlighting not only the diversity of shapes and colours found in nature but also the close connection between mineral raw materials and many objects we use in everyday life.
Diversity of Rocks: Investigating and Classifying
From Sedimentary Material to Diverse Rocks: By independently examining hand specimens, students explore the rock cycle and deepen their understanding through practical experiments. Temperature and pressure, which increase with depth within the Earth, are introduced as key factors controlling the transformation of rocks.
Granite in Its Individual Components: Separating Heterogeneous Mixtures
What at first glance appears to be a uniform rock turns out, on closer inspection, to be a mixture of different components. Using granite as an example, students learn how to identify, classify, and separate heterogeneous mixtures.
Raw Materials: Hands-on Redox Reactions
From Green Ore to Shiny Metal: In this hands-on experiment, students explore how elemental copper can be produced from malachite in two steps. The experiment combines redox reactions and chemical calculations with a historical excursion into Ötzi’s copper axe.
Symmetry: Exploring Minerals from Every Angle
Nine different minerals invite students to explore mirror planes, rotational axes, and geometric shapes. They investigate mineral hardness through comparison and can also carry out their own crystal-growing experiment.
Contact
Andrea Koch-Hillmaier
Mineralogical Teaching Kit Project Coordinator
Email: mileko@dmg-home.org
The project is coordinated by the DMG Working Group for Schools and Higher Education and receives financial support from the Alexander Tutsek Foundation.
The teaching kits can be borrowed or purchased by schools and other educational institutions. To support their use, the Working Group is currently establishing a network of so-called mileko stations. These serve not only as lending points but also as specialist contacts for teachers.
Some mileko stations can also connect schools with scientists who offer classroom sessions. In addition, selected stations provide training courses for teachers, demonstrating how the Mineralogical Teaching Kit can be integrated into lessons while also offering deeper insights into the topics covered.