This document summarizes research on modeling the elastic properties of silicon and how it influences the behavior of micro-mechanical components like MEMS sensors. Finite element modeling was used to simulate the vibration modes and resonant frequencies of silicon micro-cantilever beams. Silicon was modeled as both an isotropic and orthotropic material using different elastic modulus values from literature. The simulation results were compared to analytical calculations and experimental measurements using laser Doppler vibrometry and atomic force microscopy. Modeling silicon as an orthotropic material with different elastic properties along crystal axes provided the best match to experimental frequency values, with errors less than 3% for bending modes.