Introduction to Chemistry
Guiding Question
What is the relationship between chemistry and matter?
Chemistry and Matter
Lab: Oobleck
Our job as chemists is to study matter and the changes it undergoes. Part of that job is to classify the matter we study, not as simple as it sounds. Is it a solid? Is it a liquid? Both? Neither? How do we classify this substance? What gives it these strange properties? What could it be used for?
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LEARNING TARGETS
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making observations
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being open to the unexpected
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looking at properties
Scientific Methods
Question: How do scientists pursue questions and problems?
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Answer: Not every scientific question can be pursued in the same way. For example, an organic chemist is able to conduct experiments to determine the composition of a new compound, but an astronomer cannot conduct an experiment on the composition of a nebula. Scientific methods are a systematic approach to studying the natural world or solving a problem, but they are not necessarily all the same. However for the experiments we will be conducting in our class there is a general formula we can follow.
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The Basic Steps:
Observation
Hypothesis
Experiments
Results Analysis
Conclusion Presented to Others for Further Experimentation
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Think: Think of each of the sections in this class as a question: How can we best learn about (topic). Come up with a lab to best help you and your classmates learn about a topic in this class.
Scientific Research
In Class Activity: Free Write/Class Brainstorm: Properties of Matter
List anything and everything you know about the 2 categories of properties of matter including definition, description, properties, examples, uses, etc.
The 2 categories of properties are: chemical and physical properties.