Blogs

ChemEd X contributors offer their ideas and opinions on a broad spectrum of topics pertaining to chemical education.

Blogs at ChemEd X reflect the opinions of the contributors and are open to comments. Only selected contributors blog at ChemEd X. If you would like to blog regularly at ChemEd X, please use our Contribution form to request an invitation to do so from one of our editors.

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Become a ChemEd X Contributor during BCCE 2014

// Wednesday, June 4, 2014 • Deanna Cullen

Will you be attending BCCE 2014? There is still time to register! This is one of the best opportunities for high school chemistry teacher professional development. Grand Valley State University BCCE organizers have worked to make this year’s BCCE an affordable and valuable experience for high school level teachers. High school teachers may register at the reduced rate of $210 ($350 for regular attendees). If you are attending, I hope you will consider attending our ChemEd X Workshop. We will provide training to those interested in contributing their ideas with our community of educators. See the workshop abstract below. I hope to see you in August!

Floating Squares

// Tuesday, June 3, 2014 • Deanna Cullen

I was looking for a new demonstration to initiate a discussion about polarity and related properties to use as part of an exam review. I found a video at ChemEd X (this is part of a ChemEd X subscription). It is entitled “Floating Squares – Hexane and Water” (see note below). I have placed both solutions together before, but I had not added the squares. The demonstration fulfilled my needs. I could have used the original video and muted it if I had not had hexane to demonstrate with.

Seeing Is Not Believing

// Monday, June 2, 2014 • Erica K. Jacobsen

“It sort of started to look kind of like a very pale blue.”

Reflections on a (Virtual) Guest Speaker Visit to my Chemistry Class

// Saturday, May 31, 2014 • LowellThomson

I've mentioned previously that my current grade 10 class is reading "The Case of the Frozen Addicts" together. As my students starting writing their blogs to respond to the reading, I saw quite a few questions that I couldn't answer. But I didn't want to leave the questions there with no response, so I went to Twitter to find scientists to join my class as a guest speaker.

Solution to the M&M Mystery?

// Saturday, May 31, 2014 • Tom Kuntzleman

Last year I wrote a blog about a very simple experiment can be done using water, a plate and M&M’s candies. The experiment can be seen in the video below:

American Association of Chemistry Teachers

// Wednesday, May 28, 2014 • Shelly Belleau

I have been a member of the American Association for Physics Teachers (AAPT) since I began teaching in 2010. Each summer I attend the AAPT national meeting and give a short talk or poster presentation about some form of research that I conducted in my classroom that year.

Articles from twitter

// Wednesday, May 7, 2014 • Doug Ragan

In reference to the recent posting by Deanna Cullen and the list of where to find articles such as

How do you teach "entropy" to high school students?

// Wednesday, May 7, 2014 • Deanna Cullen

I was recently drawn to an article published ASAP in JCE entitled Application of the Second Law of Thermodynamics To Explain the Working of Toys. Erick Castellon wrote the article highlighting the use of three toys that are used to help students develop an understanding of the second law of thermodynamics and entropy by having them observe the working of the toys and the energy transfers that occur while playing with them. I already had two of the toys, the radiometer and the drinking bird. I ordered the stirling engine from the link provided in the supporting information. As I waited for the stirling engine to arrive from Japan (which was only a few days) I attempted to write an activity to guide my students to conceptual understanding as they worked with the toys.

beakers of different colors of solutions

Solution to Chemical Riddle #2

// Wednesday, May 7, 2014 • Tom Kuntzleman

Congratulations to Andres Tretiakov who solved Chemical Riddle #2. In this particular riddle, we presented a twist on the famous “Disappearing Rainbow” demonstration. You can purchase a

Bountiful answers from Brian

// Friday, May 2, 2014 • Sarah Kong

This month I spoke with Brian Brethauer who teaches chemistry and coaches Science Olympiad among other science activities on the west side if Michigan. Here are his responses to the 4 questions. Q1: How do you define inquiry? What does inquiry look like to you?