Merry Christmas...

Hey, Chemistry Groupies!

Hope your holidays are happy and safe…looking forward to seeing you after the break.

I want to let you know that I’ve read and thought about your responses that I asked for in writing back around Thanksgiving. You might be interested to know what some of the comments were:

Some thought I should choose the groups next time; most thought I should let you choose, but approve them in the end.
Some felt that groups should be larger (5-6); most thought they should be smaller (2-3).
Some believed that the amount of work was not enough to keep 4 people busy; others thought they had too much to do.
Some of you admitted to procrastination and asked me to have checkpoints or timelines – if I did that, what would I do if you still procrastinated?

Anyway, I do appreciate the feedback and it is quite valuable to me, so don’t quit now!!

For this assignment (and remember this counts as a test grade), you will be telling me specifically about you and your group members.

You need take your time to answer these questions. Follow the instructions carefully.
Make sure you can be objective (that means if you get mad when you think about this whole thing, then you’ve probably not very objective…so chill!) – this is a test grade for you and your group members as well. You can assign the person a grade in between two numbers, like 3.5 or 2.8 or something like that – just don’t give them a grade with more than 2 significant digits!!

1. Be sure to put your name on your response first! I still am getting unnamed entries from time to time.

2. Tell me who was in your group.

On a scale of 1 to 4 (4 is the top score) tell me what you think each member deserves and tell me why you think so. If you do not tell me why, then I will deduct points from your score, not your group members.

4 – this person works very well, an excellent team member, got things completed as promised – on time or even earlier than expected, helped out with others’ assignments, excellent quality work produced by this person (you would absolutely want to be paired with this person on another assignment)

3 – this person works pretty well, a good team member, got things done on time – needed a reminder or 2, would help out with extra work if asked, good quality work produced by this person (you would probably like to work with this person on another assignment)

2 – this person works okay, a fairly good team member, may have complained too much, slow with the work and made excuses for that, wasn’t particularly helpful to other team members, fair or poor quality work produced by this person (you wouldn’t refuse to work with this person, but they would not be your first choice)

1 – this person did very little or nothing to contribute to the project, may have felt left out, but did not take any active part or voice any opinions or advice, poor quality or no work produced by this person (you would never want to be paired with this person on another assignment)


Like I said, take your time. Be objective – this is not the place to vent your anger or get back at somebody. That only reflects poorly on you!

Enjoy the rest of your time off – TAKS camps start up as soon as we get back … and then there’s that field trip….

Ms. H

Taking Notes - Learning to Learn

In class today, we looked at two different ways of taking notes while reading a passage - fill-in-the-blank and a type of mind-map. Of the two, which one did you prefer? Why? Which one would help you more when studying for a test? Why? The responses to this blog are due by Friday at 3:30 - they count as a daily grade. No response by Friday will be a grade of zero - I will not take "100 passes" for these grades. Simple responses (not discussed fully) will earn a 70-75; all others will be graded based on the consideration given when responding. In other words, tell me what you think and why. ("Because" is not considered a reason.) Take your time when responding to this - I read your responses very carefully and expect you to answer them completely. Look back at the original questions. How many do you see? If you counted "4", then you're right and expected to give me 4 answers! If you didn't see 4 questions, go back and count the question marks!

ms. h

Hydrogen - It's a Gas!!

Your trip to the lab this time should have been explosive - your group was supposed to produce hydrogen gas and then ignite it. Now that you have had this experience, use your results to answer the following questions.

1. Name 2 hazards of this particular lab and the safety precautions used.

2. What was the gas produced in the lab?

3. Why should you have heard a "bark" when the gas was exposed to the flame?

4. What was the substance that was removed by the sandpaper?

5. Name another metal that could probably have been used to produce similar reactions.

Food Preservation

October 30th -

Today in class we are discussing (and seeing a demonstration of) radioactivity. Common uses of radiation include medical and energy needs - we are all familiar with x-rays and have at least some sense of the nuclear power produced in the state of Texas. However, we are not as familiar with the use of radiation when considering our food supply. In many countries around the world (where refrigeration is not available in homes or stores), irradiating food is a primary method of food preservation. It is not at all unusual to go to a market, pick up a carton (or jug) of milk from a shelf at room temperature and buy it to drink later - it does not need to be kept cold because it will not spoil. This is one advantage to irradiating food. Use the link below to read a document from the United States' FDA (Food and Drug Administration). Then answer the question below.

http://www.fda.gov/opacom/catalog/irradbro.html

Citing information from the brochure (that means you have to read it) give 2 reasons why you:

1. would feel comfortable buying and eating irradiated foods.

2. would not feel comfortable buying and eating irradiated foods.

Please note, there is not a "choose one of these" option - answer both questions!

This is due by Friday. See you in class.

ms. h

Tests and their Importance

For most of us, a test is a pain in the neck (or some other place) but a necessary part of schooling. While I do not place a great deal of emphasis on test grades, our school's grading policy does. I can certainly understand the idea that "you don't like chemistry" or "you don't get it". And trust me, I don't take it personally - it's something you are required to take and something that I understand pretty well so I'm trying to help you understand as well.

Imagine my surprise when I graded the first tests we took (now almost 2 weeks ago) that dealt only with chemistry concepts. The average of the 3 classes was somewhere around 67 - not a grade which represents the collective intelligence of you folks.

Someone in each class (no names) asked if I would give "a curve" or "extra credit". The answer is and will always be "no". I want you to think about something here - and to give me some feedback (that means leave me a comment - this is how you earn bonus points for your grade - by leaving a thoughtful comment). How would you feel if you knew that your doctor, your dentist, your lawyer, your surgeon, your pilot (you get the idea) got their professional license by getting extra credit points or a curve or made a really neat poster instead of passing their courses because they studied and knew what they were doing?


Just something to consider....

Hope you studied this time!

ms. h

New Assignment

Check out the website below. From the website, you need to choose one element and then complete the assignment sheet from class.

http://www.webelements.com/

Be sure to post the element that you selected.

Have a great weekend!!

ms. h

Answers to last week's questions

1. point at which liquid changes to solid - freezing point

2. point at which solid changes to liquid - melting point

3. change from solid to gas (without becoming a liquid)- sublimation; examples include dry ice, solid iodine and (in the reverse - gas to solid without becoming a liquid) snow

Lab Experiment

What was the most difficult part of last week's lab?

New Questions

1. What is the term used to describe the temperature at which a liquid becomes a solid? (1 bonus point on the next test)

2. What is term used to describe the process of a solid becoming a liquid? (1 bonus point on the next test)

3. What is the term used to describe the process of a solid becoming a gas? Give an example. (3 bonus points on the next test)


Answers will be posted next Sunday evening.

th

Even More Info

For some interesting ideas, check out this website:

http://fayette.k12.in.us/~cbeard/mysteries/topics.html

Further Information on Webquests

I know that some of you have mentioned that you "don't get it" with reference to the webquests. The link below goes to a sample page (for teachers) that shows how they are set up. We will (or may have already) discuss this further in class after your test. I will have some options for you or you can develop something based on your group's interests.

http://webquest.sdsu.edu/templates/lesson-template1.htm

Webquests

I need the names of your partners for the webquest. If you want to start looking at the requirements (and possible topics) - go to this website:

http://webquest.org/index.php

This site will give you lots of information as well as ideas for webquests. Remember, this is in place of a science fair project and will count similarly in weight (for grading purposes).

See you tomorrow,

th

Internet Scavenger Hunts

If you'd like to investigate some background information on the metric system, see me for an internet scavenger hunt activity (yes, it will count for extra credit). We will be discussing the metric (or SI) system later this week as well as significant figures and scientific notation (both in chapter 2 of your text).

We will also be conducting webquests this spring instead of science fair projects. These will be groups projects, so see me about possible partners - groups can have 4 to 5 people. Groups will need to formed by the end of October. Topics will be made available in early November.

Remind me to discuss this in class after the lab on Wednesday.

Welcome to AHS "Longhorn" Chemistry!

During the year, you are welcome to use this site to post questions, make comments, check the class assignments or just let me know how this class could be improved - it is, after all, your chemistry class and it's up to you to let me know how to help you. Don't forget that postings (as we discussed in class) will be worth extra credit during each grading period.

th