Category Archives: Modeling

ModChem Day 15: Last Day!

I write this last post for Modeling Chemistry as we prepare to go back home. It is just too hot in Arizona that 75℉ is cool here. The air conditioning system is set to 75℉. At home, 75℉ is when I start to wonder about moving to a cooler region of the country…or maybe goingContinue reading “ModChem Day 15: Last Day!”

ModChem Day 14

Silver Nitrate Lab We started our day by taking a look at our test tubes with the copper wire and silver nitrate. OF COURSE I forgot to take a photo, but just trust me when I say that no more things gathered on our copper wire. Mitch said that that was part of the point.Continue reading “ModChem Day 14”

Day 13: Internal Structure

Multiple Representations Reading An Overview of Recent Research on Multiple Representations – David Rosengrant, Eugenia Etkina and Alan Van Heuvelen is the name of the article we read. We continued the discussion on how learning styles were preferred rather than actually beneficial to learning. Despite the amount of students saying they preferred a certain learningContinue reading “Day 13: Internal Structure”

Day 10: Learning Styles, Mixtures, and Compounds

Learning Styles Reading Discussion We had a pretty spirited conversation about the use of Learning Styles in education. So much funds and monies have been spent on workshops, resources, etc. to incorporate learning styles in the classroom. As an undergraduate student, I do remember one of my Psych professors saying that people may have aContinue reading “Day 10: Learning Styles, Mixtures, and Compounds”

Day 7 & 8: Energy, States of Matter, Mixtures & Compounds

Gabel Reading We discussed how in 1996, when this article was first presented, there was a call for more Chemistry Education Research, but here we are in 2026…saying the same thing. The conclusion I ended up writing in my notes was that students will ask themselves: How do I know this is factual? It critiquesContinue reading “Day 7 & 8: Energy, States of Matter, Mixtures & Compounds”

ModChem Day 6: Heat Capacity

Talanquer Reading The reading discussion focused on Johnstone’s Triangle. Chemistry education rarely gives opportunity to bring all three: Macroscopic, Submicroscopic, and Symbolic together. Yet, all three are (mostly) required for students to gain a deep understanding that we’re seek. As educators, it is easy for us to move through between the different representations of Chemistry.Continue reading “ModChem Day 6: Heat Capacity”

Physics Day 10: Buggy Lab

The beginning of the velocity unit has always been a bit hairy. This is when the “true” modeling part of teaching comes out. I ask: “is the buggy moving?” In the past, it has become a controversial question and students leave the room wondering if it really is or isn’t. This year, the students wereContinue reading “Physics Day 10: Buggy Lab”

Day 7: 2-Argument Functions

It has finally dawned on me why teaching Pyret felt both foreign and familiar. We are teaching the same material, but in a different order. At this point, we would have drawn some pictures using Pyret already. I absolutely understand why we skipped the playing with Pyret portion of the introduction. We simply don’t haveContinue reading “Day 7: 2-Argument Functions”

Day 30: Quiz and turning our motion maps

We’re about 10 days out from taking the final, and we’re just now taking the first quiz for velocity. During the next-x discussion, a lot of the students LOOKED like they were paying attention. There were lots of copying down whatever was being written down on the board. However, today, after looking at the quizzesContinue reading “Day 30: Quiz and turning our motion maps”