Download Rock Cycle, Weathering, Erosion, Deposition and Soil Study Guide

Name_____________________________________________ Date__________________ Period
1
2
3
4
Rock Cycle, Weathering, Erosion, Deposition and Soil Study Guide
(Please use complete sentences when necessary)
S6E5.
c. Classify rocks by their process of formation.
d. Describe processes that change rocks and the surface of the earth.
f. Explain the effects of physical processes (erosion, deposition, gravity, etc.) on geological features.
h. Describe soil as consisting of weathered rocks and decomposed organic material.
i. Explain the effects of human activity on the erosion of the earth’s surface.
j. Describe methods for conserving natural resources (soil).
1. Describe the main steps of the rock cycle (what happens?):
a. Weathering ______________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
b. Erosion _________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
c. Deposition ______________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
2. What is sediment (or give 3 examples), and how does sediment form? ________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Describe the two types of weathering:
a. Chemical Weathering _____________________________________________________________
b. Mechanical (physical) Weathering __________________________________________________
4. Describe the following weathering words, then write if each is chemical or mechanical weathering.
a. Abrasion ~ ______________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
b. Rusting (of iron) ~ _______________________________________________________________
c. Gravity ~ _______________________________________________________________________
d. Ice wedging ~ ___________________________________________________________________
e. Acid rain ~ ______________________________________________________________________
5. What is soil (what is it made of), and how does it form? _____________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
6. Identify soil as renewable or nonrenewable. List 3 ways farmers can conserve soil. ______________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
7. Identify and describe (the composition) soil layers (horizons):
 ____________________________________________________________________________________
 ____________________________________________________________________________________
 ____________________________________________________________________________________


____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
8. How does weathering, erosion, and deposition help shape the land (give examples)? ____________
______________________________________________________________________________________
9. Ice, wind, water, gravity, plants, and animals are all agents of __________________________
10. If you drop a sugar cube into a glass of water, the sugar cube will dissolve after a few
minutes. This process is an example of ________________
11. The term for the arrangement of soil particles is __________________
12. If you increase the surface area of a rock, how will it affect the rate at which it weathers?
_____________________________________________________________________________
13. The proportion of different-sized particles in soil determines the soil’s _________________
14. The removal of substances that can be dissolved from rock or layers of soil due to the
passing of water is called________________
15. What is it called when wind blows sand and silt against exposed rock, eventually wearing away
the rock’s surface? _____________________
16. When oxygen in the air reacts with iron, the result is ____________________
17. Mechanical weathering occurs at a greater rate in climates that are ___________________
18. What are the three benefits provided by soil? ________________________________________
19. Explain the soil conservation techniques that help prevent soil erosion and soil damage?
a.
contour plowing ~ _________________________________________________________
b.
terracing ~ ________________________________________________________________
c.
no-till farming ~ ___________________________________________________________
d.
cover crop ~ ______________________________________________________________
e.
crop rotation ~ ____________________________________________________________
20. What soil conservation technique prevents erosion by providing cover that reduces water
runoff? ___________________________
21. What soil conservation technique helps restore nutrients to the soil? ____________________
22. Which soil conservation technique helps prevent erosion of sloping hills by heavy rains?
______________________
Know the definitions of these vocabulary words:(add a short definition / explanation under each term)
a. abrasion
b. bedrock
c. soil conservation
d.humus
e. acid precipitation
f. erosion