1. Home
  2. January 2022 Xchange

January 2022 Xchange

Happy New Year! The January 2022 Xchange highlights some of the contributions that have recently been published on ChemEd X. We hope you will take a moment to check in and see what you may have missed. 

     

Register for our (FREE) Zoom meeting to be held January 13th, 2022, at 8pm EST. Our presenter, Sarah English, will explore the phenomenon of burning steel wool in a chemical reactions storyline and show how this topic provides a seamless transition into future concepts such as oxidation and reduction chemistry, organic chemistry and stoichiometry. 
     

The classic classroom or lab activity using coin flips to illustrate the first order kinetics of radioactive decay is connected to the tragedy of radiation exposure of workers at facilities using radium-containing luminescent paint. Some of the chemistry related to the contamination of these “radium girls” is explored, with connections being made to the Principles of Green Chemistry and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
     

Kristen Drury offers this lesson that uses PES evidence to drive the instruction that would allow students to identify the limitations of the Bohr model and introduce the Quantum Mechanical Model.
     

This lesson uses guided inquiry learning to identify patterns and trends in the Quantum Mechanical Models of elements. (A follow up to Kristen's lesson above.)
     

Check out this citizen science inspired review of anthocyanin extractions that can be attempted at home.
     

There are some simple ways to break chemical bonds with microscale techniques.
     

Gas Laws are an essential and easily accessible area of chemistry to understand. They can be an excellent foothold into the inner workings of chemistry. On December 9th, 2021, Daniel Radoff shared his unit covering gas laws in this ChemBasics Talk. You can view a recording of his presentation and access materials he has suggested. Also see: .
     

This post focuses on the virtual chemistry laboratory activities created for students pursuing a bachelor of science degree in Primary Teacher Education at the University of Bologna.
     

Heidi Parks offers a soap-making lab or activity that can be run in a chemistry class with 25-30 students working at the same time. She usually does this activity right before spring break, as it provides enough time for the soap to harden and cure (high school students are impatient to use their soaps right away, which you should not do with cold process soap). She has used this soap making activity at different points in the curriculum: during intermolecular forces, during acids and bases, and during stoichiometry. 

 soap just removed from soap molds
     
text: ChemEd X Call for Contributions

ChemEd X invites practitioners in the chemical education community to share their experiences, knowledge and the resources they use in their classroom and laboratory.
     

We hope you enjoy the content mentioned here and other content at ChemEd X. If you find ChemEd X content useful, please consider  to help support ChemEd X using our online store. In addition to supporting the free content we make available, you will also get access to our complete  and to help in teaching and learning chemistry. If you would like to contribute content, begin with the . For other questions or comments, please use our .