biochem22

This is a comprehensive Periodic Table Lab Activity Simulation for students. There are 3 documents: 1) Lab Introduction Document with Questions and setting the context to examine unknown elements from the Planet Pumpernickel 2) 9 page flash cards of unknown alien elements that have element properties of atomic radius, electronegativity, ionization energy, conductivity, electron configuration, etc. 3) Answer Key for the most consistent element arrangement I found this to be most successful when

This is one of my favorite labs. It sounds simple but it's a great lab that I created for students to explore the structure, formula, and shape of various organic compounds. You will need molecular model kits (any kind) for students. I also describe the various molecules so students can learn how they're used and why they're important.

This is the lab I use for the energy unit. Instead of just doing problems, I have students calculate the energy found in 1 cheese puff and have them compare it to the nutrition facts label. I've included both pre-lab and post-lab questions.

This is one of the initial labs I use to help students apply the rules for significant figures, use rulers, and also to determine and calculate the thicknesses of various aluminum foil brands. It's a pretty easy one to do with students and very minimal prep required.

Here is another lab I've used to help students learn acid-base concepts. My philosophy is to help students connect with things they are familiar with and then to describe and explore the science. In this lab, I've taken a variety of vinegar brands, have asked them to predict which vinegar brand has the highest acidity content and then have them actually explore it on their own using titration techniques. Try it out with your class!

Here is a worksheet that I used extensively to help students learn how to use the factor label method (or dimensional analysis). It can be used for non-chemistry unit conversions. It is a great scaffolding worksheet. And students love the shapes. I used this in conjunction with the mneumonic "Got Cravings For Skipping." "Got" stands for the "Given" of the problem, "Cravings For" stands for the appropriate "Conversion Factor(s)" and "Skipping" stands for "Solving" at the end. Factor Label Work

Here is the lab I use with students to help them actually experience and test out different substances to determine if they possess ionic or covalent bonding. I mainly suggest common houeshold items. Try it out!

This is a great lab that asks students to learn acidity based on the titration of an egg shell with an acidic substance. I found that students are not that excited to do NaOH and HCl titrations since they never encounter these substances in "real" life. Thus, I found this egg shell titration lab and customized it to work for my classes. It is important too to make sure that students can hypothesize or make predictions on how much acid they think it will take to neutralize the egg shell.

This is the lab I used to have students learn about physical and chemical changes of matter. I have several stations set up and students go around and test them on their own, making observations and are required to complete various post-lab questions.

This is one of my favorite labs. It requires students to create a pre-determined amount of salt, then to determine the amount of reactants they need to make this salt amount. This is a great application of stoichiometry and factor label for students. I do not let them do the lab until they show me all the correct factor label math, which is quite a motivation for them to do the lab!

This is a lab I use in my Atom unit. Because the structure of the atom is hard to visualize, I have students perform basic flame tests and then have them record their observations on a diagram I've included. There are also some post-lab questions as well.

Since nuclear chemistry is a hard subject to teach with a lab, I use a simulation variation of the pennium lab (using pennies) for students. I've included pre-lab and post-lab questions.

This is a lab I use in the Kinetics and Equilbrium unit. It is hard to have inquiry labs in this unit, but here I challenge students to make predictions on a reaction and to also carry it out.

This is a fun lab where students create their own snow globes and then describe the types of solutions they created. They can take home their snow globes too!

This is the lab I use in my redox unit. I have students bring in supplies and prepare ahead of time to create their own battery (fruit, salt water, etc.) that they research online. I supply a low voltage LED for them to test. While the results can be tough to obtain, I still think it's a worthwhile lab for students to carry out.

How are chemical formulas determined? This is a really neat lab using hydrates to help students determine the chemical formula of a hydrate. It also forces students to use good lab technique and apply the stoichiometry/factor label method in calculations. It's a great application instead of going through rote stoichiometry problems from the textbook.

Instead of lecturing students about the parts of a heating curve, I have them actually do it to construct their own. That being said, it can be tricky getting the solid-liquid and gas components of the curve, but this also leads to good discussion on limitations of the experiment.

Learning about matter classification is not easy. I use this lab to have students learn about many aspects of heterogeneous and homogeneous mixtures as well as basic lab techniques.

This is the lab I use to help students understand the different factors that affect reaction rates. I primarily allow them the flexibility to design and test whatever they think might affect a reaction. They then time the results to see if this is true.

This is a lab I used for my unit on Atoms. Since it is difficult for students to "experience" the structure of an atom, I found that this is one of the best ways. Here, you will have to use gas tubes of specific elements and students will use diffraction grating line spectrum viewers to view specific line spectra.