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Oxidation / Reduction

The Required Skills to Balancing Redox Equations—Logical and Easy

Michael Jansen | Fri, 09/26/2025 - 11:12

Balancing redox reactions doesn’t have to feel like a guess-and-check process. Once students master oxidation numbers, they can follow a clear “script” to keep every atom, charge, and electron on cue—even in acidic solutions like Fe²⁺/MnO₄⁻ → Fe³⁺/Mn²⁺. This article shares a student-ready, color-coded, animated PPT and a step-by-step routine (LEO/GER, electron equalization, H₂O/H⁺ balance) that turns messy equations into solvable scenes. 

An Empirically-Based and Logical Approach to Teaching the Oxidation Number Concept

Michael Jansen | Sun, 08/24/2025 - 12:32

Oxidation-Reduction (Redox) reactions, also referred to as electron-transfer reactions, are common. So common, in fact, that four of the five general reaction types studied in Honors Chemistry involve the transfer of electrons. In this post, lead contributor Michael Jansen outlines three approaches to teaching electron transfer and Redox reactions. 

 

The Pumpkinator

Tom Kuntzleman | Mon, 10/17/2022 - 17:09

This Pumpkinator is a fantastic orange-to-blue-to-orange chemical reaction that will make a great addition to your Halloween-themed chemistry demonstrations.

Lithium Battery Flame

Tom Kuntzleman | Mon, 09/27/2021 - 16:42

Inspired by a recent article in the Journal of Chemical Education, Tom Kuntzleman attempted to extract lithium from a coin battery, and to use the extracted lithium to produce a pink flame.