Chemistry

=**Habits of Mind**= Quarter 1: Evidence: media type="file" key="Movie on 2011-09-27 at 12.08.mov" width="300" height="300"
 * Responding with Wonderment and Awe**

Reflection I have never really been interested in many of the things we have to study, I also really disliked doing homework and sitting in classrooms listening to teacher drone but I found chemistry labs really interesting. Learning is fun with experiments and I really enjoy them. I thought that learning about chemical properties was pointless but the experiments were actually really interesting, for example seeing how sugar began to bubble and turned to caramel [supposedly] in the heat. Hands on experimentation made the learning experience much more enjoyable. I won't ask "why are we doing this?" from now on, instead "what interesting things could come with learning this?"

Evidence:
 * Gathering data through all the senses**

Measurement Lab: Observations: -the magnesium is bubbling on the sides at first although very slowly and when we pushed it entirely into the hydrochloric acid, the entire surface began to sizzle -no special smell -the sizzling probably caused a sound but not audible -there was no change in temperature

Reflection: I used to think that recording observation was simply recording what changes I saw for example, a color change or a size change. However now I know that in science we need to observe with all of our senses, the smell of burning chemicals, the popping sounds as salt particles jump around when heated, the warming or cooling of water. I haven't had a chance to use taste in experiments but I'm sure there will be an experiment for that too. It is important to use other sense as well as sight because sometimes sight alone can be deceiving for example when sugar turns to caramel, the bubbling and brownish color make caramel seem dangerous but really it is an edible substance when processed correctly.

Quarter 2:
 * Striving for accuracy and precision:** Do you turn in slopping or incomplete work? Are you more anxious to get ride of the assignment than to check it for accuracy and precision?

Evidence:



Reflection: It's always been a bad habit of mine to try and cram all my notes and work in the margins of my handouts rather than writing out my notes and working out problems clearly on a separate piece of paper. However, in this quarter I learned to always take good notes, clearly organized and easily legible unlike the sloppy marking I used to make on my handouts. This has been really helpful for studying because I can find what I need easily rather than having to scrutinize all my hand outs trying to find one small formula that I had written down somewhere. Also, I never used to check my work because it seemed to be too much of a hassle but in this quarter I have gotten into the habit of checking my work and making sure there are no careless mistakes.


 * Persisting:** Do you sometimes say, "I just can't do this" or "This is too hard"? Do you give up when the answer is not immediately apparent? Persistence means staying the course, taking the time to work at something until you achieve excellence.

Evidence:



Reflection: At first I really disliked naming compounds because the different naming systems for ionic compounds and covalent compounds was confusing. Also, remembering the prefixes, was difficult because I would often forget that 4 is tetra and not quadra and would often mix up hexa and hepta; it's one of those things that you simply have to memorize and it was quite frustrating. I didn't do very well on my first quiz on naming compounds and that made me dislike the lesson all the more but I didn't just throw it aside and say "this is too hard", I found ways to help me remember the prefixes, the naming patterns and so on. Eventually, with some practice, and help from friends, I finally figured the naming system out and did well on my next quiz.


 * Learning Continuously**: This requires humility. You must have the humility to know that you don't know everything and you cannot be afraid to find out. When you talk with people, if you are humble enough to learn, there is always something to learn.

Evidence:



Reflection: When first learning about acids and bases I thought I knew all I needed to know and could easily calculate pH, pOH, concentrations of ions and so on. I did not seek help when I was not completely clear on when to use which formula because I didn't want to feel as if I didn't understand very simple concepts. I told myself that I was over thinking and that I did in fact know everything I needed to and understood everything perfectly.

However, I made many mistakes on the first quiz. Some were careless errors such as forgetting to convert the units, but others were conceptual errors because I did not try to fully understand and clarify what I was unclear about before the quiz. Afterwards I immediately talked to some friends and asked them to explain when to use which formulas to me and how to do certain problems. I admitted to myself that I don't know everything and that I need to seek help and learn from others when I am confused. On the next quiz, after having these concepts clarified to me, I understood how to do the problems I was unclear about before and also learned from myself to be more careful and not make careless mistakes.


 * Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations:** Often students approach each task as if it were for the very first time. Its like each experience is independent, has no relationship to what has come before or what comes after. Psychologists call this an "episodic grasp of reality" (Feuerstein 1980)

Evidence:

Reflection: Last semester we learned about calculating the number of moles using mass and molar mass. At first I didn't think much of this not knowing when I would ever use this knowledge other than on the coming test. However soon after we started learning about dilutions which required us to know the number of moles in a substance. This was the first time I used the formula in another area and I began to realized that molarity was not just another unit to confuse us, but rather a necessary piece of knowledge that can be built upon. Still I did not think that knowing the formula would help me anywhere else until recently when we started learning about titrations. When conducting titrations to neutralize acids or bases I learned that when the number of moles of an acid and base equal they will neutralize each other. This was very important in designing our own experiment in which we try to neutralize vinegar and verify whether the company's claimed concentrations of ethnic acid is actually true. Although these experiments are still confined to science class only, I know that one small formula is the basis of many other more advanced and complex formulas and that without a solid base, it is impossible to build up more knowledge. I think it's great that because I know how to use the simple formula n = m/M, I can conduct more interesting and fun experiments such as dilutions and titrations. I'm sure that this formula will be useful in many other areas as we learn on.