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Ion Chip Challenge: A Brain Break for Chemistry Classrooms

Melissa Hemling | Thu, 07/25/2024 - 21:37

The Ion Chip Challenge is an interactive brain break game where students play rock-paper-scissors to exchange electron chips, helping them understand ion formation by addressing common misconceptions about positive and negative charges. This engaging activity combines movement and social interaction, making chemistry concepts more accessible and reinforcing that ions are formed through the transfer of electrons, not protons.

Keeping Simulations Simple with Javalab

Sarah English | Sun, 08/13/2023 - 15:11

Javalab is a resource for free simulations to support student understanding of chemistry concepts. These web based simulations can be used across different platforms and are simple in their use by students. The open ended aspect of the simulations allow for teachers to be creative in how they are used in class.

Solar Eclipse Trip Recap

Dean Campbell | Mon, 05/01/2023 - 17:26

A trip to see the 2024 solar eclipse provided the opportunity to explore ideas associated with sulfur in petroleum, sunlight intensity measurements, laser interference patterns from eclipse glasses, and large-scale light emission from excited hydrogen.

Hatching Ideas to use Egg Cartons to Represent Electron Arrangements

Dean Campbell | Mon, 01/23/2023 - 14:11

Egg cartons and small objects such as milk jug caps or plastic eggs can be used to illustrate chemical concepts. The egg cartons can be cut into trays to represent atoms or to represent energy levels associated with atomic orbitals. The plastic caps or eggs distributed among the dimples of the trays can be used to represent electrons or pairs of electrons.

Three-dimensional figure to improve the didactics of the Periodic Table

PABLO CASSINELLO | Mon, 04/04/2022 - 10:00

A kaleidocycle is presented in which the entire periodic table has been collected. In this three-dimensional figure are the elements organized in four blocks according to their final electronic structure. It is intended that students with this playful figure actively participate in classes by rotating their kaleidocycle looking for the groups or elements that are being studied. The entire periodic table fits in one palm of their hands. It is also a didactic device because students only focus their attention on one block or group of elements from the entire Periodic Table. It can be achieved a more entertaining, motivating and exciting learning about the subject of the Periodic Table.

Electrons as Waves?

Thomas Shiland | Fri, 11/19/2021 - 18:01

A simple demonstration for high school chemistry students is described which gives a plausible connection between electrons as waves and the shapes of the s and p orbitals. This demonstration may build a transition from electrons as particles to electrons as waves.