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Hello,
Whenever I have contacted a representative, visited a booth, or been involved in a discussion thread on the ACS (American Chemical Society) site, I was treated as if I had just asked the most intelligent, inquisitive question that had ever been posed! Chemistry is not my major - and I've only taught the discipline through 8th grade - but every interaction I've had with ACS has been positive and made me feel good to be considered a Chemistry Teacher by my students.

This site is dedicated to chemistry education and all areas that you, the reader, may want to discuss! I know chemistry educators with years of classroom experience and/or a degree in chemistry can be a huge support system to those of us that teach 'Introductory Level Chemistry' classes in middle school.

Feel free to share ideas and pose questions. The resources we have available through our NSTA discussion threads is immense,

Alyce

Hello,
I discovered an archived NSTA Web Seminar that was presented by Michael Tinnesand, former Associate Director of the ACS Education Division.

The discussion focused on reading in chemistry. He talked about how some of the stories from the Chem Matters periodical can be used in the classroom to help students grasp chemical concepts. Mr. Tinnesand also discussed reading comprehension strategies and explored a sample lesson on Green Chemistry to give a specific example of how to use this information in the high school chemistry classroom.

It is rare to see/hear discussions concerning teaching reading strategies in high school level content classes; this seminar was well attended and rich with resources.

Alyce

Hi,
I was visiting NSTA's WebNews Digest page and discovered that Chemistry is joining Environmental Science and celebrating Earth Day!

Chemists Celebrate Earth Day (CCED)is April 22 and this year’s theme is “Energy: It’s Everywhere.” The theme will introduce the topic of alternative energy as a key aspect of sustainability. The American Chemical Society (ACS) is developing outreach materials and a publication, Celebrating Chemistry. All of these materials will be available in print and online!

Enjoy,
Alyce

My 8th grade science class will take final exams for our Weather unit next week, and then will begin our 6 week chemistry unit. I am interested in finding some good links for them to use while doing an individual research project on elements. Each students will have a different element to research and then create a PowerPoint, poster, or Glog to use to share their research with the class. Do any of you know of good websites my students can use to assist them with their research? Thanks! It is wonderful to have other teachers to gain resources and ideas from!

Susan wrote, "What if students made a Facebook page with their element. They could "friend" other elements that they bond with. Show "family" relationships." Hi Susan, Facebook friending of elements is a really great idea and definitely something to which students can relate. It reminds me of a resource you can find in the Learning Center. It is a short skit that students can act out in class called The Octet Rules: a dating game for atoms. My chemistry classes used it this year as an introduction to valence electrons. They thought it was cheesy, but they liked it.

Attachments

Science Sampler: The Octet Rules-- A dating game for atoms (Journal Article)

Good Morning All, Attached are lesson plans that I helped to create as a writer for the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL). These introductory chemisty lessons were designed to actively engage all students, but especially those who speak English as a Second Language. I've also shared an introductory video from unitedstreaming.com (Discovery Channel). I have plenty more resources from CAL if you are interested (ionic and covalent bonds; acids and bases; chemical reactions, etc.), just let me know if you'd like for me to share them. Warm regards.

Attachments

Periodic Table of Elements (External Website)

Lesson_1_Elements_and_Atoms.pdf (0.07 Mb)

Lesson_2_Elements_and_Atoms_[1].pdf (0.22 Mb)

Lesson_3__Atoms_Bonding_and_Periodic_Table[1].pdf (0.19 Mb)

Ruth, I like the article you posted; it was very informative. Additionally, thank you for the novel idea of Facebook Elements; since our scholars spend a great deal of time on social networking sites, this is a great way to actively engage them in learning. To familiarize themselves with elements (in general), I usually have my scholars do the following two tasks: 1) They research and write about an assigned element: atomic number; atomic mass; number of electrons, protons, neutrons; Bohr Diagram; Lewis Structure; who identified or discovered it; how the element got its name; how is the element used, etc. Their information is put on a template (card stock) that I obtained from Dinah Zike's Big Book of Science Foldables. We then create a giant periodic table and place it in the back of the classroom for our entire chemical interactions module. 2) They create Periodic Table Puns, for example: What do you do to a wrinkled shirt? (Iron it--Iron/Fe); Where Superman is from? (Krypton-- Krypton/Kr); What do you do in plays? (Act in them-- Actinium/Ac), etc. This really gets them into the learning, and sets the stage for electron bonding (ionic and covalent bonding).

Alyce, I am a huge fan of the ACS education pages. I have used many of the activities in their Inquiry in Action Text, which one can download for free here http://www.inquiryinaction.org/

Hi Chem Friends,
I was thrilled to read the posts on this thread that have been made the last few days! My alternative middle school students will be entering Acids and Bases and I would appreciate you sharing additional files and ideas Lorrie.

Pamela, thank you for posting the link to Inquiry in Action so that I can download student sheets. Lorrie, what a treat to have you join our conversation. I will be reading the puns to my students tomorrow. In fact, I sent the thread's link to our Language Arts instructor and he mentioned spending some time having our students try their hand at composing some of their own.

Lorrie, you also mentioned using Dinah Zike's Big Book of Science Foldables. I purchased a copy of her book during NSTA's Conference in Nashville. My students have blossomed using Dinah's foldable suggestions. I have found that my struggling learners are developing a stronger sense of concepts through the drawing and writing process. Artistic and kinesthetic learners were hooked from day one, and through the movement of 'building' the foldables, the students who consistently struggled with initiating a task know that a foldable lends itself to moving.

I'm including Dinah Zike's website. I'm sure many readers have had students made a vocabulary flip book, create a tri-fold brochure for Solids, Liquids and Gases. Dinah takes off on those ideas with hundreds of additional foldables, along with specific suggestions on science topics with each foldable.

Enjoy, Alyce

Thanks Alyce, I would be very interested to learn what you do with Acids and BAses that obviates the use of logrithms. I teach a group of non-science majors who a "freaked" if I attempt a detailed description of pH

Alyce Many of the Wonder Science Activity sheets are also available free online http://portal.acs.org/portal/acs/corg/content?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=PP_SUPERARTICLE&node_id=552&use_sec=false&sec_url_var=region1&__uuid=b98f3a98-0ca8-4063-862d-d601bd0d4c8a Some of these require special materials. I have never had any trouble getting what I needed with a quick phone call to the ACS. Their education people are wonderful!

I know you were looking for websites, but I offer this as a suggestion for your elements project. I teacher sent out copies of a Facebook page. What if students made a Facebook page with their element. They could 'friend' other elements that they bond with. Show 'family' relationships.

Wow- these are great ideas and such a creative way to allow my students to communicate their findings! I love it! We had a few snow days this week, and each day I took time to do an entire science object- The first one was 'Atomic Structure: Investigating Atoms' and the second one was 'Atomic Structure: Properties of Atoms'. They were so informative and help me to feel much better prepared to teach chemistry to my eighth grade students!

I know you were looking for websites, but I offer this as a suggestion for your elements project. I teacher sent out copies of a Facebook page. What if students made a Facebook page with their element. They could 'friend' other elements that they bond with. Show 'family' relationships.

Wow- these are great ideas and such a creative way to allow my students to communicate their findings! I love it! We had a few snow days this week, and each day I took time to do an entire science object- The first one was 'Atomic Structure: Investigating Atoms' and the second one was 'Atomic Structure: Properties of Atoms'. They were so informative and help me to feel much better prepared to teach chemistry to my eighth grade students!

Hi Folks, I'm not quite sure where to post this since so many of our science threads intersect in interesting ways, but I wanted to bring our attention to the great searies that NSTA is showcasing on chemistry in conjunction with the International Year of Chemistry. This info comes from the eyecatchers on NSTA's home page but this page is so dynamic and diverse, in addition to changing, that I wanted to post the gateway here. The “Chemistry Now,” series is 'a weekly, online, video series that uncovers and explains the science of common, physical objects in our world and the changes they undergo every day.' http://nstacommunities.org/blog/category/chemistry-now/ Week 1: Chemistry of water Week 2: Cheesburger chemistry - cheese Week 3: Molecule structure - properties There is some interesting stuff here to focus the interests of the students on how chemistry impacts their lives outside of the classroom and the presentations have potential for use within the classroom as part of a lesson. Enjoy! Did you choose your favorite element to celebrate the significant birthday? Patty

Patty,
Thank you for posting this dynamic series! Our minds must think alike, I discovered the materials on Thursday evening. NBC Learn is part of the producing/publishing team along with NSTA and other excellent organizations. I want to celebrate these new resources. I feel as an educator there is always a variety of 'green science - environmental' resources and productions made available, but so few Chemistry related resources.

I was at a science meeting this past weekend and one of the participants was a chemist who asked that we encourage teachers to visit the water.chemistry site and to become involved with the globarl water testing project as part of the International Year of Chemistry. I am sharing this information: http://www.chemistry2011.org/ Global Experiment Water: A Chemical Solution Water–A Chemical Solution: A Global Experiment for the International Year of Chemistry is an activity that unites students around the globe to participate in activities that highlight the role that chemistry plays in issues of water quality and purification. update 16 Feb 2011 - Visit the website of the Global Water Experiment @ water.chemistry2011.org and sign up now to follow that site updates, activities launch, etc. - update 2 Feb 2011 - The team has released the four experiments: No Dirt, No Germs, pH of the Planet, Salty Waters, and Solar Stills Challenge. Check out also the videos released about the experiments. - Primary school to high school students are invited to explore one of the Earth’s most critical resources, water. The students will report their findings on water quality and water treatment on an online map, allowing them to compare results and connect with other students around the world. ~patty

I love all of the sharing! NSTA is always a great resource. Here are some chem files I use with my 7th graders. I hope they can help someone out!

Attachments

Density_PPT.pptx (0.13 Mb)

Characteristic_Properties.ppt (0.03 Mb)

Jeopardy_Review_game_for_mixtures,_elements_and_compounds.pptx (0.16 Mb)

Lorrie, I was wondering if you could check your two pdf connections for lessons 2 and 3 on your earlier post. I was able to download lesson 1, but I could not download the other two. Lesson 1 looks great! Thanks for your help. Carolyn

Thank you everyone, those are such great resources. I can't wait to get those books that were mentioned. For my class we do element advertisements. Each student has one element and researches that one element. They need to find the most common uses of that element and they create a slogan for that element. Each student will then advertise their element to the rest of the class.

I too am interested in developing the reading skills of my middle school students. I worked as an environmental geologist for many years before becoming a science teacher. I have used many of the CRISS strategies and the PLAN strategy for reading. Anyone have any other suggestions?

Adah, I use a different version of the element cards http://sciencespot.net/Media/ptablebasics.pdf We talk about the fact that the number of protons in the nucleus defines the element and then for the atom to be electrically neutral there must be something with a negative charge (electrons) I then have students think about how something small and negative can "orbit" and not fall into the small positive nucleus and introduce the word "quantized"; electrons can not have any energy level but ONLY certain ones and because of this they can not fall into the nucleus. I am aiming at simplicity and truth that will set the foundation for later development. We then learn a bit about how electrons fill shells 1,2,3 etc (as distinct from orbitals(s,p,d,f) - WTMI at this point)and complete the Bohr models on the cards. Arranging these as they appear on the periodic table reveals that what is periodic is the outer electron configuration. It works at the Middle School level.

Adah wrote, “Has anyone tried Element Trading Cards? and Pam wrote, “ I use a different version of the element cards....”

Hello Adah and Pam,

I like both of your approaches and think I will use them with my freshman Earth Science students next school year. We have a short principles of chemistry unit at the beginning of the year so they can understand the differences between elements and compounds and how chemical bonds are formed. I think that the element cards that Adah uses would be a great bell work activity to get my students engaged and curious. I like Pam's version to teach the meat of the subject. I see great possibilities! In the past I have taught about Bohr's model and valence electrons. Then I had students make posters of randomly chosen elements. However, I like how Pam introduces the concept of periodicity. It is important that students realize why the periodic table is arranged the way it is.

Ruth - In the book 'The Disappearing Spoon' Sam Kean suggests presenting students with a blank periodic table and explaining it this way....'What does it look like? Sort of like a castle, with an uneven main wall, as if the royal masons hadn't quite finished building up the left-hand side, and tall, defensive turrets on both ends. It has 18 jagged columns and seven horizontal rows, with a 'landing strip' of two extra rows hanging below. The castle is made of bricks, and the first non-obvious thing about it is that the bricks are not interchangeable. Each brick is an element, and the entire castle would crumble if any of those bricks didn't sit exactly where it does. If scientists determined that one element somehow fit into a different slot or that two of the elements could be swapped, the entire castle would tumble down.'
He goes on to say...'Not all the bricks are made of the same substance, nor do they have the same characteristics. 75% of the bricks are metals, which means most elements are cold, gray solids, at least at temperatures human beings are used to. The reason for lingering over the blueprints of the castle walls is that the coordinates of an element determine nearly everything scientifically interesting about it. For each element, its geography is its destiny.'
He refers to the periodic table as a map.
Amazingly, that's just in a few pages of chapter 1!

Hi Stacy,
It is a small world. I am currently reading The Disappearing Spoon. I just read the section you mentioned last night. I really liked the author's suggestion of presenting students with a blank periodic table and then discussing why it is arranged the way it is. I, too, am looking forward to reading the rest of the book. It sounds as though you are further along in it. What has been the best part for you so far?

Hi Alyce- Reading your post made me curious about the ACS website. I also teach introductory level concepts in chemistry, and I know how intimidating some chemistry websites can be. I found the website to be very user-friendly and extremely informative. I especially like the education section with all of the ideas for hands-on activities to do with the students. The activities seem very engaging, and I can't wait to use some of them in my classroom. Science is an area that is in need of great improvement in our school. For the past few years we have been working so hard to make our language arts and math programs stellar, and other subjects have suffered a little for it. I am always on the look out for great science resources, especially free ones. Thank you for sharing your positive experience, I now have another place to go for ideas and information.

I too liked Adah's and Pam's idea of trading cards. The website BigHugeLabs has a trading card maker and a movie poster maker at http://bighugelabs.com/. I was thinking that the students could take photos of their Bohr model drawing or find a real photo of their element and upload their photo into the card/poster maker and add in the necessary information about their element. If I do the trading cards, I may ask the students to print out a class set of their elements and trade. Hopefully, the students will have a complete set of trading cards to study all the elements. But, I think it would be easier if the students do a movie poster and recreate a giant periodic table mural in the classroom.
Also last year, I purchased the book, The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe, by Theodore Gray through Scholastic book club. My 6th grade students were very interested in the color photos of the elements in the periodic table. The photos helped to provide a more concrete understanding of the elements.

Hi Judy, I too have the book The Elements. I was originally given a copy by a parent (who is also a teacher) and I have since bought several copies. I like how the book not only shows what each element looks like, but some of their more common uses. I am trying to get my school to purchase a set of the elements. (not all of course!)I think that being able to feel, touch, smell and see these items will really enhance there concept of what the elements really are.

Thanks Lorrie and Christina for the lesson plans. Chemistry is not my area and always struggle to teach it to my students. I'm trying to find things on density and the elements to teach to my 6th graders so its perfect. I have so many ESL students this year as well that its difficult trying to get them to engaged in the things we do in class.