safety

Online Activity: Chemical Kinetics and the “Radium Girls”

Dean Campbell | Mon, 12/20/2021 - 12:17

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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.

Especially JCE: October 2019

Erica Jacobsen | Sat, 10/12/2019 - 18:14

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Erica Jacobsen shares highlights from the October 2019 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education of special interest to our ChemEd X community.

Paraffin Wax - an Exothermic Reaction: Caution

Chad Husting | Sun, 08/18/2019 - 11:12

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I met some amazing teachers at Chem Ed 2019. Two of these teachers are Yvonne Clifford and Sharon Geyer who ran a workshop about chemical demonstrations. One in particular caught my attention. The demonstration was an exothermic process with paraffin wax. Here is the demonstration.

Why Green Chemistry? Or Better Yet, Why Not Green Chemistry?

Erika Fatura | Mon, 08/05/2019 - 22:50

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My top 5 reasons for using Green Chemistry in my classroom along with a few examples of replacement labs that follow Green Chemistry principles.

Safely “Playing With Fire” in the Chemistry Classroom

Ryan Johnson | Mon, 09/03/2018 - 18:01

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It’s the beginning of a brand new school year, and a brand new opportunity to capture students’ interest in chemistry and the joy of lab-based sciences! In thousands of chemistry classrooms across the country, teachers will be planning labs, demos, and ways to have students be engaged and excited about learning.

Required Safety Training

Deanna Cullen | Sat, 09/01/2018 - 04:01

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Is your school district providing OSHA required safety training to teachers and other staff that will be in the science labs in your building?

Positive Relationships & a Safer Classroom

Michael Farabaugh | Mon, 08/13/2018 - 08:25

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In this post, I share my thoughts about positive relationships as well as some of the activities that I do on the first day of school to make connections with my students.

Safety in Academic Chemistry Laboratories - 8th Edition

Deanna Cullen | Thu, 08/10/2017 - 14:07

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The ACS Committee on Chemical Safety has released the 8th edition of "Safety in Academic Chemistry Laboratories". The publication provides advice for first- and second-year university students.

ACS publishes Guidelines for Secondary School Laboratory Safety

Deanna Cullen | Mon, 11/21/2016 - 10:33

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The ACS Committee on Chemical Safety has published new Guidelines for Chemical Laboratory Safety in Secondary Schools. This document is organized with the R.A.M.P. concept – Recognize the hazard, Assess the risk of the hazard, Minimize the risk of the hazard, and Prepare for emergencies. The online document includes two pages for each letter that could be printed and posted in the classroom to reinforce these principles of safety. The documents are provided to strengthen the safety practices of teachers and help them to promote a culture of safety that their students will take with them throughout their academic and professional careers.

The Importance of Safety.

Doug Ragan | Sun, 10/02/2016 - 12:26

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Undergraduates Need a Safety Education is the title found in the commentary section of the September 2016 Journal of Chemical Education. It is written by Robert H. Hill Jr and it explains the lack of safety education in chemistry curriculum. As I read this, I thought back to my safety education that prepared me for my role as a high school chemistry teacher and felt I was very fortunate to have had an undergradutae class that was specifically designed to teach chemical safety.