Science · Class 6 · Chapter 11
Nature's Treasures
Aim: Build a clear, working understanding of this chapter's key ideas, connected to real NCERT examples, worked problems, and everyday situations.
- Natural resources — Things we get from nature.
- Human-made resources — Things people create from natural resources.
- Renewable resources — Replenished naturally, e.g. air, water, forests.
- Non-renewable resources — Limited, take ages to form.
- Fossil fuels — Coal, petroleum, natural gas.
- Rainwater harvesting — Collecting and storing rainwater.
- Soil — Formed from broken-down rock over time.
- Minerals — Substances in rocks that metals are extracted from.
Chapter 11 · Concept 1 of 7
Air
- Air is a mixture of gases — mostly nitrogen (78%) and oxygen (21%), with argon, carbon dioxide, and other gases making up the rest.
- Our need for oxygen — We can survive days without food or water, but only minutes without oxygen.
- Wind energy — Moving air is wind — gentle as a breeze or strong as a storm. Windmill farms harness it to generate electricity.
Chapter 11 · Concept 2 of 7
Water
- Everywhere, but... — Water covers about two-thirds of Earth, but most (in oceans) is saline and unusable directly.
- Conserving it — Rainwater harvesting and traditional stepwells (Bawadi, Vav) store water for later use.
- Pollution — Dumping waste into water sources makes water unfit for use — protecting water means keeping it clean.
Chapter 11 · Concept 3 of 7
Energy from the Sun
- The Sun is the main source of energy on Earth. Plants make their own food using sunlight — energy then passes from the Sun to plants to animals.
- Using solar energy directly — Solar cookers for cooking, solar water heaters for hot water, and solar panels for generating electricity.
Chapter 11 · Concept 4 of 7
Forests
- Shelter and food — Dense plant growth gives food and shelter to wild animals, birds, and insects.
- The Chipko movement — In the early 1970s, women in Uttarakhand hugged trees to stop them from being felled.
- Van Mahotsav — A week-long tree-planting festival held every July to raise awareness of forest conservation.
Chapter 11 · Concept 5 of 7
Soil, Rocks, and Minerals
- Soil — Formed when rocks slowly break apart, over thousands of years, through the action of the Sun, water, and living organisms like earthworms.
- Rocks and minerals — Rocks like granite, sandstone, marble, and laterite are used for construction. Metals such as aluminium, gold, copper, and iron are extracted from minerals.
Chapter 11 · Concept 6 of 7
Fossil Fuels
- Petroleum, natural gas, and coal are together called fossil fuels — formed from the remains of ancient microorganisms and plants buried underground.
- Fossil fuel | Common use
- Petroleum — Petrol, diesel, kerosene
- Natural gas — Cooking, CNG for vehicles
- Coal — Generating electricity
Chapter 11 · Concept 7 of 7
Renewable and Non-renewable Resources
- Renewable resources — Get replenished naturally within a reasonable time — air, water, forests.
- Non-renewable resources — Take millions of years to form and are limited — coal, petroleum, natural gas, minerals, rocks.
Quick Recap
Check Your Understanding
- 1Unjumble ocrk, refost, ndiw, atwre — name these resources and classify each as renewable or non-renewable.
- 2True or False, correcting the false ones: (i) Nature has all the resources to meet human needs. (ii) Machines are a resource found in nature. (iii) Natural gas is a non-renewable resource. (iv) Air is a renewable resource.
- 3Fill in the blanks: (i) A fuel commonly used in two-wheelers is (a) Kerosene (b) Petrol (c) Diesel (d) LPG. (ii) An example of a renewable resource is (a) Coal (b) Water (c) Natural gas (d) Petrol.