The Department of Natural Resources helps organize the Minnesota Minerals Education Workshop (MMEW) for K-12 teachers to learn more about the state’s geology and mineral resources.
What is the Minnesota Minerals Education Workshop?
Every June, K-12 teachers from across Minnesota participate in an engaging three-day professional development workshop aimed at enhancing their knowledge of geology and the state's natural resources. The MMEW offers unique opportunities for teachers to learn about how geologic phenomena, such as mountains, volcanoes, continental rifts, shallow seas, and glaciers, have shaped the land that is now Minnesota, characterized by rocky bluffs, deep lakes, and rolling hills. During the workshop, teachers engage in hands-on classroom experiences and guided field trips with MMEW instructors to understand Minnesota's diverse landscape and its wealth of mineral resources.
Since 1997, MMEW has connected teachers with the state's leading geologists and experts through various short courses, field trips, and guest speakers. This immersive workshop helps educators grow their understanding of the formation and development of Minnesota's rocks, minerals, and soils with applications of science, engineering, and history to enhance the curriculum for their students. Teachers attend MMEW to learn about the state's earth materials and mineral resources—including iron, sand and gravel, dimension stone, silica sand, crushed stone, and peat—and how these resources are used in our daily lives.
At MMEW, teachers can access free teaching materials, rock and mineral kits, lesson plan ideas, posters, maps, classroom lab supplies, and other useful resources. MMEW paves the way for teachers to dig into Minnesota’s geologic past, present, and future!
The 2025 Minnesota Minerals Education Workshop is coming to St. Paul!
Teachers can register now to join us at Hamline University for the MMEW-St. Paul event June 16-18, 2025. The 2025 workshop will cover regional glacial history, the formation of Paleozoic bedrock, construction aggregates, river commerce, historical uses of industrial sand, and much more. The MMEW aligns with Minnesota's Science and Social Studies Standards. Participants can earn up to 24 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and have the opportunity to obtain two graduate credits from Hamline University.
View or download the 2025 MMEW poster
Visit the MMEW site for additional details and program information
What is it like attending MMEW?
Thank you for providing great resources and filling my head with new knowledge about MN minerals and the geologic processes that formed them. Looking forward to next year already!
- 2024 Chisholm participant
Fabulous experts in the field, a fantastic location, and extremely well organized. My earth science teaching will be enriched by the experiences I have had. Thank you!
- 2024 Taylors Falls participant
This workshop was a wonderful way to expose teachers to applied science. It was perfect for what I needed to get started in earth science.
- 2024 Winona participant
This workshop provided a wealth of information and resources for developing earth science curriculum. The experts and geologists I collaborated with during the workshop were exceptional.
- 2024 Chisholm participant
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Short Courses: Practical geology in the lab -
Field Trips: On the hunt for a perfect speciment for the classroom! -
Field Trips: Inside DNR's Drill Core Library -
Field Trips: Hearing from the experts 
Field Trips: Active discussions on tour-
Field Trips: Landmark in the forest - the Laurentian Divide -
Field Trips: Facility tour on the Mesabi range -
Field Trips: Exploring together -
Short Courses: Examining a specimen -
Short Courses: Interacting with a landscape-scale model -
Short Courses: Learning about core samples -
Short Courses: Putting the Mesabi Range in context -
Short Courses: Interpreting the samples -
Short Courses: Important perspectives on minerals -
Teacher Resources: Samples and information for the classroom -
Teacher Resources: Making fun discoveries in class -
Teacher Resources: Seeking a perfect specimen -
Teacher Resources: A workshop staple - the rock box! -
Teacher Resources: Aggregates on display in a core sampled from an asphalt road -
Teacher Resources: Mesabi Range stratigraphy on display -
Teacher Resources: Define 'sample'...
- Access materials from previous workshops
- Teachers are encouraged to use the wealth of information shared at each workshop, including field trip guides, rock, mineral, and fossil identification sheets, virtual field trips, and more. Information varies yearly, so be sure to explore materials from past workshops.
- Minnesota Center for Mineral Resource Education
- The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) collaborates each year with theMinnesota Center for Mineral Resource Education (MCMRE), to facilitate education about Minnesota's mineral resources and geology.
The MCMRE is a multisector partnership including members from the DNR, academia, teachers, and industry. They work together to promote awareness of the positive contribution that mineral resources make to the Minnesota way of life. Their goal is to support teacher education in mineral resources and geology to enhance teaching about mineral resources for K-12 education.
In 2022, DNR and MCMRE's expertise in developing and coordinating curricula for teachers and students was nationally recognized by the Minerals Education Coalition Partnership Appreciation Award. The prestigious award acknowledges MMEW’s decades-long contributions to connecting geology and minerals to education and inspiring the next generation of geoscientists.
Get in touch
MMEW Coordinator and DNR Geologist Sara Welna - [email protected]Sign up to receive news about upcoming workshops: