Black Lead That Is Not Lead: teacher key

How Pencils Are Made, grade 3 edition, written for 3rd grade. How a mix of rock and clay ends up inside a wooden pencil.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

What is pencil lead really made of?
- Metal lead
- Graphite (answer)
- Ink
What did Conté mix with graphite?
- Clay (answer)
- Sand
- Wax
What happens when you add more clay to the core?
- The pencil gets softer
- The pencil gets harder (answer)
- Nothing changes
Where was the first big graphite mine?
- Borrowdale in England (answer)
- Paris in France
- Rome in Italy
What does the word graphite come from?
- A Greek word meaning to write (answer)
- A Latin word for tree
- A French word for clay