Polyatomic ions - Practice, practice, and more practice

It is that time of the year when all honors chemistry students begin to dream of turkeys, candy canes, and a break from polyatomic ions.  That's right - Polyatomic ions must be memorized by November 28th.  We will have daily quizzes beginning on November 28th on the polyatomic ions.  This means spelling, formula,  and charges for each ion.  We have concluded nomenclature and writing formulas for binary and ternary ionic compounds.  We did a lab in class today to help with these new skills.  The lab will be due after the Thanksgiving break. After our break, we will finish chapter 7 and practice formulas/nomenclature for ionic compounds.  Beginning on Wednesday, we will begin Chapter 8 with a lab.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving everyone.

To bond or not to bond - That is the question

Today in class we began our unit on bonding.  Each student defined bonding in their own words and then shared the definitions with each other.  We compiled a list of definitions to compare and contrast. Then we watched a short music video detailing the different types of bonding.  I told the story of bonding as a fairy tale based on the land of the elements.  We learned how to model valence electrons, the difference between cations and anions, and how to determine an oxidation state for the main group elements.  Finally, we learned how to write formulas for binary ionic compounds.  (Remember to criss-cross and simplify)  We ended class today by doing a quick lab on page 199.  You do have homework for Thursday - a hand-out to review the concepts from class today.  Also, do not forget to study your polyatomic ions.
See you all on Thursday,
Mrs. E

Top Secret

Mission accomplished!  We have finished our study of the quantum mechanical model of the atom and our study of modern periodic table and trends.  Today in class we reviewed the periodic trends for atomic radius, learned how to do dot notation for valence electrons, and completed the top secret activity as a review of the periodic table.  I hope everyone was able to crack the code and figure out their secret agent.  Friday is test day! Also the unit four portfolio will be due.  Please make sure that you study the unit objectives.  Think critically.  What can be used for a compare/contrast short answer.  How can multiple choice questions be worded to make sure you understand the difference between an energy level, sublevel, and orbital.  What labs did we do this unit that I can derive questions from.  ( hint - flame test lab).  Personalize the trends - think of examples/analogies to help you remember.
See you on test day!
Mrs. E

November 7, 2011

Hello everyone,
Although it was a dreary November day outside, it was certainly hopping inside room 328 today.  We covered atomic radius and first ionization energy trends today as well as completed the "density as a periodic trend" lab.  For homework, please complete the data analysis questions in the lab packet.  This includes the graph.  REMEMBER - use graph paper for your graph and follow the guidelines for a scientific graph.  This means to include a title, labels, and a correct scale.  We will be finishing the  chapter 6 on Wednesday and completing an activity to help us remember the trends.  Friday will be the chapter test as well as turning in the unit 4 portfolio.  Enjoy your evening.  See everyone on Wednesday!

Periodic Table - Day 2

Good morning everyone,
I'm a few days late on the blog.  In class on Thursday, we began to investigate the periodic trends by looking at the physical properties of the main group elements.  We built 3-D models of the different trends and analyzed the models.  On Monday, we will discuss what we saw and the implications of these trends for predicting properties.  On Monday, we will be in lab involving glass.  Close-toe shoes please! Please prepare for your lab by doing the pre-lab questions and by reading the procedure. Don't forget to create a chart of the periodic trends ( look at page 178) to help with studying.  We will finish this chapter on Wednesday and the chapter test will be on Friday.  Enjoy the sunshine today!
Mrs. E

November 1, 2011

Today in class we had our first scrimmage to test our skills on electron configuration and orbital notation.  I was very happy with the results of the scrimmage.  Don't forget to practice the exceptions!  We will have a quiz for credit  on Thursday.  We also delved into the periodic table for the first time.  Make sure you understand the difference between Mendeleev's periodic table and Mosley's table.  Finish the periodic chart lab questions for homework and read/outline 6.2 and 6.3 in your textbook.  Please focus on the trends  as we will working with these during the next several classes.  Don't forget that the test will be 11/11/11.