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After only 2 weeks of school, we had another lengthy break, allowing kids' brains to marinate in all the chemistry glory they have learned... right?! Assuming many students didn't get to much chemistry during the break, I will allow students time to get back into the groove on Monday. Because after that, it is on to more labs, and more chemistry goodness! This week, the chemistry 30s will have their first lab report due... and this may cause a little bit of stress in the class. Many students are afraid of the "Mogck Chem Lab" and feel they are not prepared for the expectations. This stress should be alleviated slightly, as the expectations are clearly outlined in the Science Department wide Lab Rubric. All science classes use this rubric to evaluate lab reports, however, obviously it is impossible to mark exactly the same for all classes. For this reason, the first lab report is to be taken with a grain of salt... I will ensure plenty of comments will allow clear understanding of my expectations for the following labs, and if students follow the guidelines and comments, it is impossible to do worse on the following labs. At the same time, chemistry 30 labs do require a high level of understanding and application of the learning to the concept being analysed in the lab, which many students struggle with. The application and description of why they saw the results they did seems to be a difficult concept to express for the 30s. Obviously, lab reports and scientific writing is a work in progress, and by the end of semester, after performing 4 labs per unit, students will better understand lab concepts (and hopefully be able to apply this to lab specific diploma questions!) Soo.... after all of that... what's up for this week?!? This week in Chem 30 Monday: still off... kids never seem to be at school anymore ;) Tuesday: work period / review of concepts Wednesday: molar heat of combustion lab Thursday: energy exchange (topic 7) Friday: efficiency quick lab Upcoming Due Dates Tuesday Feb 25 - Calorimeter Lab Due Monday March 2 - Quick Lab Due Tuesday March 3 - Unit A Test Wednesday March 4 - Molar Combustion Lab Due REMINDER: PLEASE SIGN UP FOR PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11 FROM 5PM-8PM! 
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 Last week the chem 30s got their first taste of "difficult" chem 30, and a few of them are quite discouraged. I would like to remind everyone of the fact that although my class may be difficult, my marks are fair and even with the diploma marks earned by the students. That is, the marks are neither inflated, nor am I marking too hard. The fact is, chemistry is difficult, as it combines both theoretical understanding and mathematical prowess. If studenst work hard, they will be able to maintain a relatively high mark, however it will require effort in chemistry 30 (there are not many students who are able to float through chem 30!)
A quick note: this semester I have started to do Friday Exit Slips that are a really great tool that allow me to see what students are understanding from the week. The Exit Slips are (mainly) open book, and between 1-4 questions long. Overall, these slips will be worth less than 4% of the total mark, and are an excellent indicator of student understanding as time goes by! I feel these are an excellent indicator for me as the teacher, and great help for studying for students, as they will be comprised of diploma exam style questions to study from! This week in chemistry, we will be diving into the idea of calorimetry, an important part of energy calculations within the food and petroleum industry. This chemistry is SO applicable to everyday life and relatively interesting to anyone! This week in Chem 30: Monday: Calorimetry Inquiry Tuesday: Calorimetry Lab Wednesday: Unit A Quiz (Topic 1-4) Thursday: Topic 5: Calorimetry Friday: Topic 6: Every Day Calorimetry Upcoming Due Dates: Monday February 9: Inquiry into Calories due Wednesday February 11: Unit A Quiz 1 Wednesday February 25: Calorimetry Lab due |
AuthorMs. Kendra Mogck Archives
June 2017
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