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First Week Excitement

Deanna Cullen | Tue, 07/17/2012 - 18:33

I love the first week of school! I perform some of my favorite demonstrations and we jump right into activities that help to jumpstart the year and excite students about where we are headed. I am in the process of uploading many of those activities. I will list them here and you can check them out.

Adding Inquiry to Atomic Theory

Deanna Cullen | Sun, 10/07/2012 - 20:53

Having some experience in using and creating inquiry activities, I am getting questions from teachers looking for ways to add inquiry to their curriculum. My first tip is to take baby steps. I will continue to blog about ideas to help outline some of those steps. First, I am sharing some inquiry ideas from the last unit I taught in my high school general chemistry course along with providing some ideas for using the resources provided with a subscription to ChemEdX.

Periodic Table Project

Deanna Cullen | Mon, 10/08/2012 - 12:42

Students choose a topic and select items to incorporate into a periodic table. Students explore trends related to their own topic and relate to the trends on the actual Periodic Table of Elements.

Trend Setter Lab

Deanna Cullen | Wed, 10/10/2012 - 11:57

Students will proceed through a pre-lab engagement activity, organize element cards based on similarities & trends, discuss trends with the class and then produce a periodic table that includes the trends discussed within the lab.

Energizer Lab - A Target Inquiry Activity

Deanna Cullen | Wed, 10/10/2012 - 14:58

This lab was written as part of the Target Inquiry program at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. Students build an electrochemical cell, learn about the symbolic equations used in electrochemistry and manipulate a model representing the particulate level of what is happening during the electrochemical process. 

ChemEd X Call for Contributions

Deanna Cullen | Thu, 12/13/2012 - 13:39

Chemical Education Xchange is requesting chemistry educators as well as others working in the discipline to submit ideas, articles, activities and laboratories for publication.

Percent Composition of an Oreo Cookie

Deanna Cullen | Wed, 01/16/2013 - 14:09

Whenever possible, I try to begin a topic with something my students are familar with. For the introduction of Percent Composition in my general chemistry course, I brought in bags of Oreo cookies. Seeing the bags upon entering class was a great attention getter. If you are looking for ways to add more inquiry to your chemistry course, this a an example of how you can experiment with giving up a little control. Try it and see how it goes.

ChemEd 2013 Conference

Deanna Cullen | Mon, 02/18/2013 - 10:25

Sunday, July 28 to Thursday, August 1, 2013, the largest conference in North America focused on teaching high school and introductory chemistry will be hosted by the University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON Canada.

Stoichiometry Resources

Deanna Cullen | Mon, 02/18/2013 - 12:45

Moles, mole ratios and stoichiometry have been frustrating topics for many of my chemistry students. The MOLE and Avogadro’s number get tangled up in other Chemistry jargon and students have stared at me like I am speaking another language. I have been around long enough to know this is a problem that many of us have faced. I have tried many ideas that have helped and I want to share a few.