Course description

Carthage High School

General Chemistry Syllabus

Fall 2015 – Spring 2016

Instructor: Mrs. Brandi Shoemaker

Email: [e-mail]

Phone: [phone] ext. 21203

Tutoring Times: M-F 7:30am to 7:50am, Seminar, and after school by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION

General Chemistry is a full year course designed for the highly motivated and self-disciplined student seeking basic knowledge in the area of chemistry. The general curriculum is designed to teach students the facts, formulas, principles, and theories that accompany the field of chemistry. It is my goal as your teacher to encourage and to motivate you to develop critical thinking, and problem solving skills which may be applied to everyday life.

EVALUATION

Students will be evaluated by activities and assignments that assess their capability of comprehending and applying materials that will be learned in class. Students will be graded on daily homework/classwork assignments, notebook evaluations, group activities, laboratory reports, and chapter tests/quizzes. The grade distribution will be as follows:

Test / Quiz Scores …………………………………………..50%

Lab Reports / Participation ………………………………….20%

Daily Homework / Projects & Notebooks …………………..30%
GRADING

The following grading scale will be used:

95 – 100 % A 74 – 76 % C

90 – 94 % A- 70 – 73 % C-

87 – 89 % B+ 67 – 69 % D+

84 – 86 % B 64 – 66 % D

80 – 83 % B- 60 – 63 % D-

77 – 79 % C+ 0 – 59% F
CLASS MATERIALS

The following supplies will be needed EVERY DAY for this class:

• 
  A 2-inch, 3-ring binder with dividers (dividers may be purchased or student generated)
  
• 
  Loose leaf paper
  
• 
  Pen and/or pencil
  
• 
  Textbook (provided by the school)
  
• 
  Scientific calculator
  

NOTEBOOKS

Each student is required to keep a notebook separate from their other classes. It needs to be

organized in the manner outlined by the teacher. Notebooks will be collected randomly

throughout the year.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

When you successfully complete this course, you will be able to:

1. 
   Describe the structure and behavior of atoms
   
2. 
   Extract data and information from the periodic table of the elements
   
3. 
   Predict the properties and behavior of elements based on their position in the periodic table
   
4. 
   Describe and compare the properties of gases, liquids and solids
   
5. 
   Understand the process of chemical bonding and predict what type of bonds will form between different substances
   
6. 
   Correctly name chemical substances based on the ratio of the elements in the compound and the type of bonding between the atoms
   
7. 
   Determine when chemical reactions will take place between substances, the ratio in which the substances will combine, what new products will be formed in the reaction, and the amount of product formed from a given amount of starting materials
   

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF TOPICS

1^st Quarter:

Lab safety and lab equipment, Introduction to chemistry, scientific method, physical and

chemical properties, physical and chemical changes, quantitative and qualitative observations,

data analysis: metric units and conversions, significant figures, and scientific notation

2^nd Quarter:

Moles, dimensional analysis, atomic structure, introduction to the periodic table, and trends of

the periodic table, electron configuration, and chemical bonding

3^rd Quarter:

Formula writing, chemical naming, moles, molar mass, molar conversions

4^th Quarter:

Empirical and molecular formulas, and stoichiometric conversions