manipulatives

I teach an introductory college chemistry course for non-science majors called Chemistry of Everyday Things. Most of my students have little prior science experience, and they often begin the course intimidated by chemistry.

The Density Bottle experiment has inspired many colorful variations over the years.^1-6 I recently came across yet another colorful variation that I’d like to discuss.

  Egg-lectrons and McLewis Structures: More Representations of Electron Arrangements in Atoms and Molecules Co-Authored with Ali Patel* *Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

by Dean J. Campbell* *Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

Co-Authored by Dean J. Campbell* and Thomas Kahila* *Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

Imagine the lively hum of a classroom suddenly bursting into laughter and friendly competition as students engage in a spirited game of rock-paper-scissors. But this isn't just any game; it's the Ion Chip Challenge, a clever and engaging way I help my students grasp the tricky concepts of ions in chemistry.

Phenolphthalein has been used extensively as a pH indicator.¹ Although the compound actually can exhibit multiple color transitions, it is best known for turning from colorless to pink in aqueous solution as the pH is raised above 8.3.¹ The equilibrium associated with this transition is shown in Figure 1.

Co-Authored by Dean J. Campbell*, Rhiannon Davids*, Ian Smith,* and Karl Jung* *Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

Abstract: This post describes a simple device used to demonstrate and clarify some challenging concepts in thermodynamics at the General Chemistry level.