This lesson revisits the topic of random and systematic errors and also challenges students on other scientific skills such as identifying variables. Students tend to find this topic confusing, so the PowerPoint and accompanying resources have been designed to support them to identify whether an error is random or systematic and then to understand what to do next. The lesson guides the students through a series of real life examples and shows them how to spot each type of error. There is a considerable mathematical element to this lesson, including the calculation of means or missing values in a table. The lesson concludes with a series of exam-style questions where the students have to apply their understanding of identifying errors, variables and calculating means.

This lesson has been designed to guide GCSE students (14 - 16 year olds in the UK) through the steps involved in gas calculations. As you can see in the cover image, this lesson uses a step by step guide format to go through each of the critical stages. Hints and tips are given along the way and worked examples are used so that students can visualise how to set out their working. Important terminology such as room temperature and pressure (RTP) and limiting reactant are explained so that these do not cause issues. Students are given the opportunity to test their skills against some gas calculation questions which have detailed mark schemes and explanations to enable them to fully self-assess.

A short lesson which includes a lesson presentation (27 slides) and a hint worksheet and looks at redox reactions that involve oxygen and electrons. When focussing on oxygen, the lesson uses the example of extracting metals by reacting them with carbon to show how the metal is reduced and the carbon is oxidised. Key terminology such as reducing agents are also discussed. The important topic of electrolysis is used when teaching about the redox reactions that involve electrons and students are reminded about half equations. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students (14 - 16 year olds in the UK) but is suitable for other ages

A fully-resourced lesson which uses a step-by-step guide to show students how to write fully balanced symbol equations. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (38 slides) and associated worksheets containing questions which iaredifferentiated. The lesson begins by talking the students through the three steps involved in writing a chemical symbol equation. The first step involves writing in the formula for the elements. Students are introduced to the term, diatomic, and shown the 8 molecules that have to be written as a pair of atoms. Moving forwards, students are shown how to write chemical formulae for ionic compounds. They are reminded of how to use the group of the Periodic Table to work out the ion charge and how this is crucial when writing the formula. They are also shown how to write formulae which include brackets which is necessary when the charged molecules are involved. Finally, students are reminded of the rules of balancing symbol equations. There are progress checks at each stage so that students can assess their understanding and any misconceptions can be be addressed immediately. Time is taken to talk about state symbols, in case the exam question requires these to be included in the equation. The final section of the lesson involves students bringing their new-found skills together to write symbol equations for a range of reactions, including a neutralisation and reversible reaction. This task is differentiated so that students who need a little bit of assistance can still access the work. This lesson has been written for GCSE students (14-16 year olds in the UK)

A fully-resourced lesson which guides students through drawing, writing and recognising the electronic configurations of atoms and ions. The lesson includes an engaging lesson presentation (33 slides), an associated worksheet and a competition worksheet. The lesson begins by introducing the students to the number of electrons that can be held on the first three electron shells. They are then shown how to draw an electronic configuration and write this in brackets form. Students are given the opportunity to apply this knowledge by drawing the configuration of first 20 elements of the Periodic Table. Moving forwards, students are guided to enable them to discover how the electron configuration is linked to the position of an atom in the Periodic Table. The remainder of the lesson focuses on ions and how the configuration of these substances can be recognised. Some time is taken to explain how ions are formed from atoms and the lesson finishes with a competition which challenges students to identify atoms or ions from their configurations to form a word. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding and a range of quiz competitions to maintain engagement. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with younger students, especially the initial part of the lesson on atoms and the link to the Periodic Table

A concise lesson presentation (21 slides) which uses a range of methods to allow students to discover how to draw dot and cross diagrams for covalent structures. The lesson begins by challenging the students to recall their knowledge of electronic structure to show the outer shell of two specified atoms. They will then see how it is possible for both of these atoms to get full outer shells by sharing as happens in this type of bonding. A few more examples are used to consolidate this understanding before quick competition is used to check the understanding so far. Moving forwards, a step by step guide shows students how to draw dot and cross diagrams using the same techniques as was utilised with the hulas. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with higher ability KS3 students.

A fully-resourced lesson which explores how the composition of different alloys is related to their properties and their uses. The lesson includes an engaging and informative lesson presentation (38 slides) and an associated differentiated worksheet. The lesson begins by challenging the students to use their Chemistry knowledge of numbers to come up with the letters of the word alloy. Students are introduced to the definition of this key term and then use a wordsearch to find both the names of the alloys but also the metals that are found in these mixtures. The main aim of this lesson is to get students to understand why alloys are chosen for jobs rather than pure metals and there is a focus on atoms and their arrangement. Students are challenged to use the example of copper and brass to complete a summary passage which is differentiated so that those who need more assistance are still able to access the work. The remainder of the lesson focuses on steel and solder, again exploring how their different features are related to how they are used in modern day life. Progress checks have been written into the lesson at regular intervals to allow the students to check their understanding and a range of quick quiz competitions will aid engagement. This lesson has been designed for GCSE students but could be used with KS3 students who are looking at mixtures within the atoms and elements topic.

This lesson explains the properties of typical covalent simple molecular compounds and introduces diamond and graphite as giant substances. The lesson PowerPoint and accompanying resource have been primarily designed to cover point 1.34 of the Edexcel GCSE Chemistry & Combined Science specifications but also links to points 1.35 - 1.37 where the structure and uses of the giant covalent substances are described. The lesson begins with a quick recap task where students have to recognise a covalent bond from a description and fill the missing part. Moving forwards, they are introduced to the fact that covalent molecules can be simple or giant. They are then presented with a table showing some properties of covalent molecules and having to group them as simple or giant in the short space of time that the table remains displayed on the board. This task challenges their observational skills, something which will again be tested later in the lesson as they study the structure of graphite and diamond. Time is taken to ensure that key details such as the strong covalent bonds in both sets of molecules is understood and that it is the weak intermolecular forces which are actually responsible for the low melting and boiling points. The last part of the lesson introduces diamond and graphite as allotropes of carbon and students will briefly learn why one of these conducts electricity whilst the other doesn’t. If you want a lesson about these allotropes in more detail, then please look for “Diamond and Graphite”. Progress checks have been written into the lesson at regular intervals so that students are constantly assessing their understanding and so misconceptions are quickly identified.

This lesson describes an ion as an atom with a positive or negative charge, and explains how cations and anions are formed in ionic compounds. The lesson PowerPoint and accompanying worksheet have been designed to cover points 1.22 - 1.24 of the Edexcel GCSE Chemistry specification and also covers the same points on the Combined Science course. The first part of the lesson focuses on atoms and specifically on getting students to recall that they contain the same number of protons and electrons and this is why they have no overall charge. By ensuring that they are confident with this fact, they will be able to understand why ions have a charge. Students will learn that ions have full outer shells of electrons and this change in the number of this sub-atomic particle leads to the charge. They are shown examples with aluminium and oxide ions and then are challenged to apply this new-found knowledge to a task where they have to explain how group 1, 2, 5 and 7 atoms become ions. The final part of the lesson looks at how ion knowledge can be assessed in a question as they have to recognise the electron configuration of one and describe how many sub-atomic particles are found in different examples. There are regular progress checks throughout the lesson to allow the students to check on their understanding. This lesson has been written for GCSE students but could be used with higher ability KS3 students who are looking to extend their knowledge past basic atomic structure

This fully-resourced lesson describes how to calculate the concentration of solution in grams per decimetres cubed and mol per decimetre cubed. The lesson PowerPoint and accompanying questions which are differentiated have been designed to cover points 1.49 & 5.8 of the Edexcel GCSE Chemistry specification. The lesson begins by introducing students to volumes in decimetres cubed and time is taken to ensure that students are able to convert to this measurement from volumes in centimetres cubed. Moving forwards, students are shown how to calculate the concentration in both units through the use of worked examples and then they are challenged to apply this to a series of exam-style questions which have been differentiated so students of differing abilities can access the work

An engaging lesson presentation (70 slides) and associated worksheets that uses a combination of exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to help the students to assess their understanding of the topics found within unit C2 (Bonding, structure and properties of matter) of the AQA GCSE Combined Science specification (specification point C5.2) The topics that are tested within the lesson include: Chemical bonds Ionic bonding Ionic compounds Properties of ionic compounds Covalent bonding Metallic bonding Properties of metals and alloys The three states of matter State symbols Structure and bonding of carbon Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like “The name’s BOND…” whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention

This is an engaging revision lesson which uses a range of exam questions, understanding checks, quick differentiated tasks and quiz competitions to allow students to assess their knowledge of the topic of moles and related topics as covered in the GCSE Chemistry and GCSE Combined Science courses. An understanding of moles and their associated calculations is critical for the success of a student in these two courses. The following topics are covered in this revision lesson: Avogadro’s law and constant Mole calculations involving Avogadro’s constant Mole calculations involving the formula, moles = mass x molar mass Mole calculations involving the constant and the formula Moles in balanced symbol equations and identifying molar ratios of reactants or reactants to products Calculating masses in reactions Gas calculations (molar volume) Concentration of solutions (in mol per decimetre cubed) Students will be engaged through the range of activities which includes quiz competitions such as “Fill the VOID” where students have to complete some equations which have pieces missing and also “In the BALANCE” where students have to balance equations in order to work out the number of moles on each side of the reaction. This lesson can be used at any time during the year as a revision material, in the lead up to mocks or as a final revision lesson before the GCSE terminal exams.

An engaging lesson presentation (73 slides) and associated worksheets that uses a combination of exam questions, quick tasks and quiz competitions to help the students to assess their understanding of the topics found within TOPIC 1 (Atomic structure and the Periodic Table) of the AQA GCSE Chemistry specification (specification unit C4.1). The topics that are tested within the lesson include: Mixtures Development of the model of the atom The subatomic particles Electronic structure The periodic table Group 0 Group 1 Group 7 The transition metals Students will be engaged through the numerous activities including quiz rounds like “UNLOCK the safe" whilst crucially being able to recognise those areas which need further attention