The practical activities below are designed to complement the Shedding Light on Atoms series and the Shedding Light on Acids and Bases series.
Making and Testing Carbon Dioxide Practical Activity
Students produce carbon dioxide using calcium carbonate (limestone) and hydrochloric acid, and then examine its ability to extinguish a fire.
Making and Testing Oxygen Practical Activity.
Students produce oxygen gas from hydrogen peroxide using manganese dioxide as a catalyst. They then examine how an increase in the abundance of oxygen can increase the severity of a fire.
The 8-part Shedding Light on Atoms video series.
Using amazing demonstrations and animations we take students on a journey of discovery to explain not just what we know about atoms, but also how we know what we know about atoms!
- Episode 1: The Dawn of Modern Chemistry
- Episode 2: Oxygen Everywhere
- Episode 3: The Discovery of Atoms
- Episode 4: The Periodic Table
- Episode 5: Protons, Neutrons, and Electrons
- Episode 6: Electron Shells
- Episode 7: Covalent Bonding
- Episode 8: Ionic Bonding
The first three episodes form a trilogy. They cover concepts like
- chemical reactions,
- elements, compounds, and mixtures, and
- the Law of Conservation of Mass and more.
Along the way, they also answer the most-asked question of them all: how do we know about atoms if we can’t even see them? (It comes down to chemical reactions!)
The other videos, as you can tell from their titles, cover
- the Periodic Table,
- atomic structure, and
- bonding
They continue to draw heavily on the key concepts of how experiments and evidence led us to an understanding of these things, but also cover patterns in chemical behaviour and reactions and, of course, bonding.
There are plenty of real-world examples of the important role that chemistry plays in our lives.
Each video comes with a question sheet.