Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Folded Mountains
Mountains are found on every continent. They cover about one-fifth of the surface of the earth. What forces caused the majestic mountains that have formed on the earth's landscape?
Many mountains form at or near plate boundaries. Remember that the lithosphere is broken up into large plates. These plates float around on the molten mantle deep below the surface. Sometimes the plates bump into each other. Sometimes they pull apart. Either way, stress is placed on the crust above.
Rocks can be put under extreme pressure for thousands or millions of years. The rocks may become extremely hot during compression. The gradual stress causes the rocks to bend. This process is called folding.
Think of a piece of paper lying flat on a table. If you slide the two ends of the paper toward each other, the paper will bend in the middle. Two crustal plates moving toward each other sometimes do the same thing. This is the way folded mountains are formed.
