Imagine the excitement of the fourth grade when they found out that their science activity involved a chocolate chip cookie. A cookie makes a great (and tasty) way to explain the difference between a rock and a mineral. While all minerals are rocks, not all rocks are minerals. A mineral is made up of only one pure element, while a rock is made up of at least one element, usually more. To demonstrate this, I handed each student a toothpick and a cookie with chocolate and white chocolate chips. The chips subbed in for minerals, while the cookie as a whole stood in for a rock. The students excavated all the "minerals" from the "rock" with their toothpick first. Then I instructed them to take one of their minerals and break it down. What they discovered is that no matter how small their chip was broken down, it still looked and was made up of exactly the same substance (chocolate or white chocolate) just like a real mineral. When they broke down the cookie, each piece was comprised a little bit differently, just like a real rock made up of multiple elements would break. Loved this easy to grasp lesson and what better way to enforce sc