Balancing and Particulate models...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

I was a little worried.  We had gone through types of reactions, balancing and predicting and, although I introduced the idea of the particulate level throughout the year, I had not yet hit it hard in this section.  I also did not want to leave it without talking about the particulate level.  So, we looked at a reaction and I asked them to model it.  For the most part, I liked what I saw.  The above picture is a sample response from a table.  They were less concerned with the amounts and more concerned with the "snapshot" of each of the reactants and  products.  At this stage, I will take it.

So now we are heading into stoichiometry.  My goal is to approach it similar to an ICE diagram.  I know they do this in modeling.  The kids balance the reaction, say what they are starting with, what the changes are and what they should end with.  It also helps as we get into equilibrium...it is a nice transition.  I will keep you posted...

Stuff I am Thankful for ....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

So here is what I got from Thursday at my Miami U. class.

Geyer gave me a great idea using manipulatives on a test (went to ebay and started spending money on legos). Imagine giving students two 8x8 lego plates and some small round legos and saying, "Model this reaction..." and then put it in a plastic zip lock and that is a test question.

Barb gave me some great ideas for redoing her activity with pizza plates instead (made a note of that).  Essentially, students will be provided with round pizza pans.  There will be a "radius" in picometers and they will model the period 2 elements with magnets and sodium.  The idea is to look at trends.  Margie provided the idea of doing the Coulombic attraction POGIL just before this.  Again, another thing I am thankful for.  It would dovetail nicely into this section.

Also got some good ideas on how to better do POGIL's (sorry..."Activity Notes").  I am going to tell students, here are your notes.  I will answer any questions about the notes except the last questions which will be an assessement.

As I consider what I am thankful for during Thanksgiving, all of the TIMU people are all on the top of my list.  If I did not name some personally, don't worry...they have still had a postive impact on my teaching.  It is 5:45 on a Saturday morning...need some more coffee....

The Periodic Table and Obsessions....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     O.k....some say I am slightly obsessed with the periodic table.  I have 2 periodic table mugs, a periodic table shower curtain, four periodic table ties and a new periodic table bow tie.  I do not see myself as obsessed...just impressed. (I am not obsessed with coffee either...addicted is a better phrase...by the way, I like to call it my "happy juice").

     Here is why I like the periodic table.  It is the ultimate chemists cheat sheet.  It is an amazing pattern with the trends, relationships and stories.  So here is the good news.  I found a great lab at the TIMU site called "Trend Setter".  The students have a bunch of cards with properties and they recreate exactly what Mendeleev went through.  Not only do they learn the content but they have to work as a group and use higher order thinking skills to find the "missing element".  It is the first time I have done this lab and is a stretch for the kids..but I think it will be a good stretch.  I am so excited...I might were one of my ties....By the way...if you are looking for a good periodic table lab that  ties in many concepts (ionization energy, atomic radii, electronegativity, analysis of patterns and trends) log into the Grand Valley site and check it out...

The Particulate World and Hydrates...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I am doing a hydrate lab.  For homework, I told the students to look up what a hydrate is and look at the particulate model.  They came in and I gave them a pie plate and some really cheap magnets off of amazon.  The majority of students developed the particulate model.  I was able to check it out just by going from table to table.  The question is...can we now apply this on a macro scale in the lab...

Cool New Formative Assessment for Flipped Classrooms....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

O.K...this is cool.  Most teachers like to grab short videos off of YouTube.  Many also "Flip" the classroom by showing some Khan Academy type video, require kids to take notes at home and then do the problems in class.  The concern is always if kids are paying attention and putting in the time to understand the content on the video.

     There are some new products that have a free version of a software that attaches questions to the videos.  The are from "Educanon" and "Zaption".  I have tried zaption and here is the low down....

 

     We were doing an "inquiry" lab with chromatography.  Students had gotten some background information.  I wanted to see what they knew but I did not want to give them too much information.  I found a short You Tube video about chromatography basics.  I was able, through Zaption, to easily insert questions and make it into what they call a "tour".  Kids had to sign in, watch the video....but at certain points that I designated, the video would stop and not continue until they answered a multiple choice question.  The cool part is that I could then go into the "analytic" section and view how everyone did.  Quickly, I was able to tell that they had the "basic" idea of chromatography but needed some help on applying it to our specific situation that involved red food dye and candy.  Overall...quick, fast, cheap and it works...my kind of technology...You can check out the video here.