Monday, December 12, 2011

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Friday, December 9, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

The answers to the FRQ's related to Chapters 8 and 17 will be posted soon. The homework for the weekend is to complete the Chapter 8 and 17 Practice Test, which can be found here.

E-mail me with any questions. Have a good weekend!

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students worked on their MCQ's and FRQ's related to Chapters 8 and 17. The answers to the MCQ's can be found here. The students were given the FRQ's today and started to work on them in class. The link to the FRQ's can be found here. The answers to the FRQ's have not been posted yet.

Homework for Friday is to complete the FRQ's.

Monday, December 5, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students studied Chapter 17, and the answers to the homework problems from the textbook can be found here. Students received a packet of Multiple Choice Questions related to Chapters 8 and 17. This packet can be found here.

The homework for Wednesday is to finish the MCQ's.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

The answers to the Chapter 8 homework problems are now available here.

Your homework is to review Chapter 8 and read through Chapter 17. Be prepared to come to class on Friday with specific questions regarding these concepts.

Friday, November 18, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Students reviewed the answers to the Chapter 7 FRQ's, which can be found here.

Students also received the Chapter 7 Practice Test, which can be found here.

The homework for Monday's class is to complete the practice test. Students will be given the Chapter 7 take-home test on Monday, and this test will be due on Wednesday morning, November 23rd.
Monday morning, November 28th!

E-mail me with any questions. Have a nice weekend.

Monday, November 14, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students learned more about Lewis electron-dot structures and molecular geometry. We also discussed orbital hybridization. The answers to the homework problems from the textbook can be found here. The homework for Wednesday's class can be found here. E-mail me with any questions.

Friday, November 11, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students had the chance to explore concepts in Chapter 7 (Covalent Bonding). The homework for the weekend is to answer the following problems from the textbook on pp. 190-192:


1-6, 15-16, 21-22, 29-30, 31-36, 43-46, 49-54, 63-66


E-mail me with any questions.

Friday, November 4, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today I reviewed some of the answers to the FRQ's related to Chapter 6. If you would like to see these answers, you can look at this document.
The homework for over the 4-day weekend is to study your Chapter 6 material, review all of your MCQ's and FRQ's, and complete the Chapter 6 Practice Test, which can be found here.
Be prepared to discuss all of this material of Wednesday, November 9th. E-mail me with any questions. Have a nice weekend!

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students worked on problems related to chapter 6 (Electronic Structure and the Periodic Table). I reviewed homework problems from the textbook and I gave students time to work on AP MCQ's related to Chapter 6. The homework for Friday's class is to finish answering the MCQ's and to also answer the FRQ's.
Here are the links to the relevant documents from today's class:

Chapter 6 homework problems from the textbook - ANSWERS
AP MCQ's related to Chapter 6

AP MCQ's related to Chapter 6 - ANSWERS

The plan for Friday's class is to go over the MCQ's and FRQ's. I'll be giving you a Chapter 6 Practice Test to work on over the upcoming 4-day weekend. E-mail me if you have any questions.

Monday, October 31, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students began learning about Chapter 6 (Electronic Structure and the Periodic Table). Major concepts of this chapter include the following:
  • properties of light (such as wavelength and frequency)
  • bright line emission spectra for hydrogen (and other atoms)
  • electronic transitions (ground state, excited states)
  • quantum mechanical model
  • quantum numbers
  • atomic orbitals
  • electron configuration and the filling of sublevels
  • orbital diagrams
  • electron arrangements in ions (including a special "first in, first out" rule that applies to transition metal cations, p. 150)
  • periodic trends in atomic properties, including atomic radius, ionic radius, ionization energy, and electronegativity
The homework for Wednesday's class is to answer the following problems from the textbook on pp. 157-159:
1, 2, 5, 6, 9, 10, 17, 18, 27, 28, 37, 38, 49, 50, 51, 52, 55, 56

Friday, October 28, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today in class students got answers to the Chapter 5 Practice Test. If you need to see a copy of these answers, you can look at this document.

The homework for Monday is to complete the Chapter 5 Test. Please e-mail me if you have any questions.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today in class students reviewed some of the answers to the FRQ's related to Chapter 5 (Gases). If you need to see the answers to these FRQ's, you can look at this document. If you want to see a PowerPoint slide show that explains how the answers were obtained, you can click here to watch the slide show.

Students watched me perform a demonstration of how to calculate the molar mass of a volatile liquid. Even though I obtained rather poor results (i.e., 50% error!) from this experiment, it was still a decent thing to do. I wanted to emphasize that the molar mass of a gas is equal to (gRT)/(PV). You can see a YouTube video of another chemistry class doing this experiment by clicking here.

Students did a lab today involving the reaction of magnesium with hydrochloric acid to produce hydrogen gas. Based on the data collected from this experiment, students were able to calculate the value of the ideal gas law constant, R.

The homework for Friday's class is to complete the Chapter 5 Practice Test, which can be found here.

I will give out the take-home test for Chapter 5 on Friday, and it will be due on Monday.

E-mail me if you have any questions.

Monday, October 24, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students were working on concepts from Chapter 5. After finishing up our discussion of the Chapter 5 Classwork from Friday's class, I explained the answers to the AP Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ's) related to Chapter 5. If you need to see the answers to these MCQ's you can look at this document.

These are some of the important concepts that were discussed in class today:
  • If two gases are at the same temperature, then they have the same average kinetic energy.
  • If two gases at the same temperature have different molar masses, the one that has a smaller molar mass has the largest average molecular speed.
  • Gases will be most likely to deviate from ideal behavior at low temperatures and high pressures.
  • The volume of one mole of gas at standard temperature and pressure (273 K, 1 atm) is 22.4 L.
The homework for Wednesday's class is to answer the Free Response Questions (FRQ's) related to chapter 5.
E-mail me if you have any questions.

Friday, October 21, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students were working on problems related to Chapter 5 (Gases). The homework for Monday is to finish up the worksheet from class and to answer the AP MCQ's related to Chapter 5. E-mail me if you have any questions. Have a good weekend!

Monday, October 17, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

The answers to the Chapter 4 Practice Test have been posted here. Your Chapter 4 take-home Test is due on Wednesday Morning, October 19th. Please e-mail me if you have any questions.

Friday, October 14, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

This week was definitely affected by schedule changes. We didn't have class on Monday because of the teacher work day, and we had about 10 juniors absent on Wednesday for the PSAT. So today was a good day to spend time discussing the FRQ's related to Chapter 4. The PowerPoint file that explains all of the solutions to these FRQ can be found here. However, if you just want to check your answers, you can look at this document.
The homework for Monday's class is to do the Chapter 4 Practice Test, which can be found here.
I will be giving you the Chapter 4 Test as a take-home test on Monday. This test will be due on Wednesday morning, October 19th.

Friday, October 7, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today I presented the answers to the AP MCQ related to Chapter 4. If you need to see the answers and explanations to these questions, you can click here.

I handed out a packet filled with AP FRQ related to Chapter 4. You should be working on this until we meet again. Some of you will take the PSAT on Wednesday, so you will not see me until Friday, October 14th. PLEASE do your very best to get all the FRQ's answered by then.

E-mail me with any questions. Have a good weekend.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

On Monday students had the opportunity to do a bit more practice with balancing redox equations. This corresponds to section 4.4 of Chapter 4 in the textbook. If you would like to see the PowerPoint notes that explain all of the example problems from the Chapter 4 Review Guide, you can click here.

If you would like to check your answers to all of the homework problems that have been assigned from Chapter 4 in the textbook, you can click here. Note that I have also included the answers to a few odd-numbered problems from the textbook that were NOT assigned for homework. So you should now have plenty of resources to guide you through the various concepts in Chapter 4.

On Monday we did not get a chance to discuss the AP MCQ related to Chapter 4. We will go over this soon.

The homework for Wednesday is to answer the Pre-Lab questions for the redox titration experiment. If you need a copy of these Pre-Lab questions, you can click here.

Friday, September 30, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today in class students (hopefully) increased their understanding of Chapter 4 material. The answers to Example #11 and Example #12 from the chapter 4 review guide were discussed. You can watch the PowerPoint Notes by clicking here. Just fast forward to the end to see Examples #11 and #12. Then we moved on to a discussion of Section 4.4 in the textbook (Oxidation-Reduction Reactions). Here are some important points about oxidation numbers:
  • The oxidation number of an element in its elemental state is zero
  • The oxidation number for a monoatomic ion is simply the charge on the ion
  • The O.N. for alkali metals in compounds is +1
  • The O.N. for alkaline earth metals in compounds is +2
  • The O.N. for fluorine in compounds is -1
  • The O.N. for oxygen in compounds is usually -2 (except peroxides or OF2)
  • The O.N. for hydrogen in compounds is usually +1 (except metal hydrides)
  • In a binary covalent compound, the element that is more electronegative will have an O.N. equal to the charge it normally forms as a monoatomic ion
  • The sum of the O.N. values is zero in a neutral chemical formula
  • In a polyatomic ion, the sum of the O.N. values is equal to the charge on the ion
Now that you understand oxidation numbers, here is a procedure to help you balance a half-reaction:
  • Step 1 = Balance the atoms of the element that is being oxidized or reduced
  • Step 2 = Use electrons to balance the change in oxidation number ("OIL RIG" will remind you that oxidation is the loss of e and reduction is the gain of e)
  • Step 3 = Use H+ ions (or OH ions) to balance the overall charge on both sides
  • Step 4 = Use H2O molecules to balance the H atoms and the O atoms
We did not get a chance to go over all of the homework problems in class today. I'll be talking more about that on Monday. The homework for Monday is to do the AP Multiple Choice Questions related to Chapter 4, which can be found here.

E-mail me with any questions. Have a good weekend.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

The Homework for Friday is to answer questions 41-50 at the end of Chapter 4 from your textbook.

Monday, September 26, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students learned more information about acid-base reactions. The following points were very important for writing net ionic equations:
  • Strong acids (HCl, HBr, HI, HNO3, H2SO4, HClO3, HClO4) should be written as H+
  • Weak acids (HF, HC2H3O2, HNO2, HCHO2, etc.) should be written as one formula, whatever its chemical formula happens to be
  • Strong bases (NaOH, KOH, Ca(OH)2, etc.) should be written as OH
  • Weak bases (NH3, CH3NH2, etc.) that are either ammonia or an amine should be written as one formula, whatever its chemical formula happens to be
  • Net ionic equations should be balanced with respect to atom count and overall charge
If you are doing stoichiometry calculations related to acid-base reactions, it's a very good idea to start by writing the molecular equation. This will help you see a complete picture of what is going on in solution. If you only look at the net ionic equation, you might not see the correct molar ratio between two reacting species.


Consider the example above, based on problem #31 from the textbook. Barium hydroxide, Ba(OH)2, reacts with nitric acid, HNO3. The molecular equation shows you the 2-to-1 molar ratio between nitric acid and barium hydroxide. You need to use this ratio in your calculation. If you had only written the net ionic equation, you might have missed this point. The net ionic equation shows a 1-to-1 ratio between H+ ions and OH ions.

Answers to the Chapter 4 homework problems have been posted here. The homework for Wednesday is to answer the Pre-Lab Questions for the titration lab. E-mail me if you have questions.

Friday, September 23, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students learned about some of the properties of acids and bases. Acids can be classified as either strong or weak. Strong acids are completely dissociated into ions. Weak acids are only partially dissociated into ions. In the pictures below, hydrochloric acid (HCl) is a strong acid that is completely dissociated into ions, whereas hydrofluoric acid (HF) is a weak acid that is only partially dissociated.
Bases can also be classified as strong or weak. Strong bases are typically ionic compounds that contain hydroxide (OH-) ions. A weak base is a molecule or ion that accepts H+. One example of a weak base is ammonia (NH3).

When acids and bases react together, the acid loses H+ and the base gains H+. Acid-base reactions can be written in the form of net ionic equations. You have already had some practice with writing net ionic equations for precipitation reactions. You will need to practice writing net ionic equations for acid-base reactions. This will require you to know if an acid or a base is strong or weak. Therefore, just like you had memorized solubility rules, you should memorize the strong acids (HCl, HBr, HI, HNO3, H2SO4, HClO3, and HClO4).

The PowerPoint Notes for Chapter 4 have been updated to include Example #10 from your Chapter 4 Review Guide, which I discussed at the end of class today. This problem shows you four examples of net ionic equations.

Your homework for Monday is to answer the following questions from Chapter 4 in your textbook: 21 - 32 (on page 97).

E-mail me if you have questions. 

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

AP Chemistry Update

Today students reviewed their Chapter 4 homework in a way that encouraged collaboration and discussion in small groups. After class discussion, they turned in a worksheet that contained their answers to selected homework problems. Students also did a lab experiment today that was designed to help them strengthen their understanding of the solubility rules. Students mixed various solutions together and observed whether or not a precipitate would form. The homework for Friday is to write the net ionic equations for the precipitation reactions that occurred in the lab. A copy of the lab activity can be found here. Students should read ahead in Chapter 4 and be prepared to discuss acids and bases (Section 4.3).

Monday, September 19, 2011

AP Chemistry Chapter 4

If you missed class today, here is a summary of what we did:

Handouts for Chapter 4 were given to students. You can get your copy of this handout by clicking here.

We discussed the information in Sections 4.1 and 4.2. You can watch this PowerPoint slide show to follow along with the example problems in the Chapter 4 Review Guide.

The chapter 4 homework (which should be ready to turn in for a grade on Wednesday) are the following problems from pages 96-97 in your textbook:

1, 5(a) & (d), 7, 11, 13, 17

Friday, September 16, 2011

Unit 2 Test Coming Soon!

This week in Advanced Chemistry:

MONDAY
We finished up our laboratory discussion of Physical and Chemical Changes. We reviewed SOL Questions and did a lab on separation techniques. These included chromatography, filtration, distillation, and electrolysis.
TUESDAY
We discussed the separation techniques lab and students took notes on matter. Separation of mixtures can be done with a physical change. Decomposition of compounds can be done with a chemical change. Elements can't be separated by physical or chemical changes.
WEDNESDAY = We reviewed homework and students took a quiz on matter.
THURSDAY = We discussed the process of writing chemical equations and did a lab involving baking soda and vinegar.
FRIDAY = We discussed the law of conservation of mass and did a few example problems involving percent composition.

The unit 2 test is scheduled for Tuesday. The homework for this weekend is to do the Unit 2 Practice Test.

In AP Chemistry, we did a lab on Monday involving the empirical formula of hydrates. On Wednesday we reviewed a Chapter 3 practice test. On Friday we had a demo of the formation of tin oxide, and wrapped up Chapter 3. Students were given a take-home test for Chapter 3. This test is due on Monday morning when class begins

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

AP CHEMISTRY UPDATE

Chapter 3 Practice Test Answers can be found here and the PowerPoint file that was used in class can be found here. For those of you who wanted more Chapter 3 practice problems, you can find them here.

E-mail me if you have questions, and/or come see me during Mustang Morning. The Chapter 3 Test will be given out on Friday. It will be a take-home test, due on Monday Morning September 19th.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

What's the Matter?

Here is a brief summary of the work that was done in Advanced Chemistry this week.

MONDAY = Labor Day holiday
TUESDAY = Review for Unit 1 Test
WEDNESDAY = Unit 1 Test
THURSDAY = Introduction to Matter

FRIDAY = Lab experiment on Physical and Chemical Changes


Unfortunately many students did not perform well on the Unit 1 Test. Students will be given extra practice problems to reinforce concepts that they have not mastered yet. Students who did poorly on the Unit 1 Test should start coming in regularly during Mustang Morning. Students are strongly encouraged to improve their study habits, make flash cards, ask questions in class, and practice solving problems outside of class.

The PowerPoint file "Introduction to Matter" is now available on my web site. Click here to watch it again if you missed anything from the notes in class.

In AP Chemistry, students have completed the Chapters 1&2 Test and turned this in on Tuesday. They have been working on solving problems in Chapter 3, which deals with mass and mole relationships (stoichiometry). Students should become familiar with the techniques for solving these types of problems. Many examples can be found in the textbook. Answers have been posted to the FRQ and MCQ problems and these documents can be found in this folder on my web site. On Monday we will do a lab experiment involving formulas for hydrates and calculating empirical formulas from mass data. The homework for Monday is to answer the pre-lab questions that were given out at the end of class on Friday.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Chemistry Update

Here is a brief look back at the week of August 29 - Sept 2.

AP Chemistry

I have completed our discussion of Chapters 1 and 2, and you should be working on your take-home test over the Labor Day weekend. E-mail me with questions. I expect to receive your completed test on the morning of Tuesday, September 6th.
At this point we have basically completed our discussion of Chapter 3 concepts, including mass-mole relationships and stoichiometry. I'll give you Chapter 3 practice problems on Wednesday and the Chapter 3 test will be coming soon.

Advanced Chemistry
Here is a summary of the activities from this week:
On Monday, we finished up the laboratory involving the density of colored liquids. We also finished reviewing the packet entitled "Math Concepts Used in Chemistry." Then I gave a Math Assessment, which hopefully gave everyone a good idea of whether or not they should start coming to Mustang Morning for some math assistance.

 On Tuesday, we looked at SOL Chemistry questions in the Scientific Investigation strand. If students would like to practice answering Chemistry SOL questions, they can visit the Jefferson Lab website and select Chemistry. 

When prompted for more options, you can select the "Scientific Investigation" strand.

On Tuesday students started taking notes from a PowerPoint slide show presentation entitled "Scientific Notation and Dimensional Analysis." This PowerPoint slide show can be viewed on my website by clicking here, and the handout for these notes can be found by clicking here.

On Wednesday, I gave students the opportunity to practice conversion problems using dimensional analysis. I explained that a conversion factor is a ratio that allows you to convert from one unit to another. Some problems have only one step, but other problems require 2 or 3 conversion factors. It is very important to write down the units during every step, so that you can clearly see how to cancel them out.

On Thursday, we did a measuring activity using small wooden or plastic blocks. The students learned that when a measurement is made with a ruler, the final digit is an estimated digit. This final digit can be a "zero" if the measurement is exactly on the line.We also discussed the concepts of precision, accuracy, significant figures, and graphing. The PowerPoint slide show for these notes can be found on my website by clicking here, and the handout for these notes can be found by clicking here.

On Friday, we did a lab activity using rubber stoppers. Students used the technique of water displacement to calculate the volume of the stoppers. Then they plotted their mass and volume data on a graph, as a way of determining the density. When mass is on the y-axis and volume is on the x-axis, the slope of the line equals density.

HOMEWORK: Students should study their notes completely. Then they should complete the Unit 1 Practice Test, which can be found by clicking here. This practice test will be reviewed in class on Tuesday. The Unit 1 Test will be on Wednesday. E-mail me with any questions. When you come to class on Tuesday, you should be well-rested and ready to learn! Have a great weekend.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

AP Chemistry Students - Hydrocarbons

I know that we have only had two classes so far, but I thought that some of you might have been confused about the topic of hydrocarbons. For example, how does one write all of the structural formulas for a given molecular formula? This video should help you out if you were confused about the "Exploring Structural Isomers" worksheet from  Friday's class.




Thursday, August 25, 2011

Welcome to Chemistry

Here is a summary of our activities from the first two days of school:

AP Chemistry:
After a brief introduction and overview, I began to review material from Chapter 1. The homework assignment was to read Chapters 1 and 2, which represents basic information about chemistry. I also handed out two pieces of paper, which included sample questions from VA SOL tests in Chemistry and sample questions from AP Chemistry tests. The purpose of these two papers was to give students a general feeling of "That was then...and this is now." Please see me for extra help if you need to review anything from Chemistry I.

Advanced Chemistry
On Wednesday I introduced students to the concepts of laboratory safety, and the homework was to complete a Lab Safety Quiz. I also introduced some math concepts that are relevant to chemistry. We talked about the procedure for how to convert a number into scientific notation. We also discussed how to do multiplication and division with numbers in scientific notation.

On Thursday (today) we did a short "do now" problem that involved algebraic skills in rearranging variables in an equation. We started with an equation "PV = nRT." Students were rearranging this equation to isolate each one of the five letters. We did more work on math concepts relevant to chemistry. We discussed conversion factors, which are ratios that are used to convert from one unit to another. For example, you can use the density of an object to convert from mL to g (or from g to mL). We did a brief lab experiment in which students used a plastic straw to compare the relative density of three colored solutions. The homework assignment was to do the following. Write a procedure for how to determine the density of a liquid. Tomorrow we will be giving you a math assessment, so review your math skills.

Don't forget to bring a 3-ring binder to class, with paper and pencils. Bring a calculator to chemistry class every day!

Friday, August 12, 2011

What is Chemistry?

Some of you may be taking chemistry this year and wondering what to expect. This video gives you a brief introduction to chemistry and offers some tips for being successful in my class. Stay tuned for more tutorial videos coming soon!




Thursday, March 10, 2011

AP CHEMISTRY HOMEWORK

Answers to selected Chapter 13 Problems can be found here. Please make sure you are practicing these problems. It's going to be very confusing for you if you don't practice every day,

Sunday, March 6, 2011

AP CHEMISTRY HOMEWORK

Read Chapter 13 (Acids and Bases) and then answer the homework questions 1-10 at the end of the chapter.
The chapter 13 review guide has been posted here.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

THE ATOM (Unit 3)

On Monday we explored the topic of Atomic History, as I made "virtual" interviews with Democritus, Antoine Lavoisier, John Dalton, J.J. Thomson, and Ernest Rutherford. You should be familiar with these five people and how their work influenced our understanding of the atom. You should also be familiar with terms like atomos, law of conservation of mass, cathode ray tube, plum pudding model, alpha particles, and the gold foil experiment (alpha scattering experiment) which led Rutherford to the idea of a nuclear model for the atom.

On Tuesday we explored the properties of protons, electrons, and neutrons. The atomic number is the number of protons, which is unique for each element on the periodic table. The mass number is equal to the sum of the protons and neutrons. A pair of isotopes are defined as two atoms that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. An ion is an atom that has either lost electrons (to form a positive ion) or has gained electrons (to form a negative ion).

Today we explored the idea of a weighted average. In our "Isotopes of Beanium" activity, we saw that when the relative abundance of two isotopes is NOT 50%-50%, you need to calculate the average using decimals, like this calculation, for example with chlorine:

(35) x (0.75) + (37) x (0.25) = 35.5

Tomorrow we will explore radioactivity and half-life. There will be a practice test review tomorrow and a Unit 3 Test planned for Friday. Keep studying!!

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

AP Chemistry - Chapter 11 problems

These are the textbook problems that I recommend for you to do:

3, 9, 11, 13, 15, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27(a,b), 31, 33, 35, 39, 43, 45, 61, 63, 75

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Welcome to Chemistry!

This blog was started back in August 2010 with the beginning of the school year. Since we just started a new semester and I have three new classes, I would like to say "welcome" to all of my new students.

Here's a brief summary of what we have done so far...

On Monday I handed out the syllabus, (which can be found here.)

I also talked about some math concepts that we use in chemistry. That particular packet entitled "Math Concepts Used in Chemistry" can be found here.

The other handout that was given out on Monday was entitled Student Safety Contract, and it can be found here.

The homework from the 1st day was to do the following:
     Get the syllabus signed, which acknowledges that the student has read the classroom rules and safety rules.

On Tuesday (today) we talked a lot about math. We went over a packet of practice problems that covered the topics of Scientific Notation and Dimensional Analysis, which can be found here.

The PowerPoint file that goes with this packet can be found here.

The homework for today is to do the following:
     Do a "Lab Safety Quiz" (open notes)
     Get a calculator (if you haven't already gotten one yet!)
     Study for the "Math Assessment," which will be given to you tomorrow.