Metamorphic rocks are all around us. We use them from everything from old fashion chalk boards to decorative rocks around our homes. These rocks were formed inside the Earth’s crust or near the surface along fault zones. Metamorphic rocks are easy to identify in nature, when you see squished, deformed rocks. Hand samples are more difficult.

In this exercise you need to compare and contrast the different metamorphic textures. Learning to identify foliated texture in a hand sample is important. Recognition of nonfoliated metamorphic rocks is difficult, because they look similar to igneous and chemical sedimentary.

Use a hand lens to look closely at the textures. 

The squished look in the field