Value of Chemistry

Expectations and Teaching ChallengesAssociated with NGSS + CCSS

ACS Teachers Meeting November 1 – TOPS Team

Lab Based TeachingThe expectations and teaching practices

associated with NGSS and CCSS put greater emphasis on lab activities and how chemistry teachers can connect with each other and TOPS.

ACS Connections-ACS is an organization that connects you to valuable

colleagues.-ACS formed the AACT (American Association of Chemistry Teachers) for K-12 teachers.- Provide high quality resources- Exposes students to chemistry through AACT, results in better chemistry- “Without good chemistry teachers in the classroom, students are going to turn off to chemistry.”- Visit teachchemistry.org

Oxy TOPS Website

A major TOPS resource for labs and connections

La Canada School District + TOPS = ConnectionsTOPS can function like AACT (American

Association of Chemistry Teachers) for a school district.

Common Core State Standards -(NGSS) Next Generation Science Standards - School districts are challenged to align with

CCSS and NGSS.

Challenges from ACS articleCore concepts focus teacher time on key ideas,

not lists of facts NGSS makes hands-on learning a requirementIt will take hard work to turn standards into

curricula that can be used to train teachers in new way of learning

“If you want to understand science, you have to use the ideas of science while you are doing science” Joseph Krajvik at Michigan State

NGSS from ACS articleFederal Government has never been involved

with NGSS; it is a STATE decision (but there was an advantage in federal education grants)

The essential idea is to improve science education

NGSS is a different way of teaching. It is a much deeper understanding of somewhat less content.

For the teachers, the biggest battle is time

NGSS links for TOPS teachers

TOPS “Facebook” Page

TOPS “Facebook” link for studentsSite for teachers to share student workSite to post images, student work, lab work,

lab photosSite to share lab concerns and enthusiasmSite for instructive chemistry humorTeacher guidance recommended

Advice: “Never take the advice of someone who has not had your kind of trouble.” -Sydney J. Harris

“Only you know about Banana Oil”

News November 1, 2014 ACS Meeting, TOPS

PowerPointBioRad article: Protecting Coastal

Ecosystems Contributions from today?

Selected Quotes For Chemistry Humor

Arguments: “No matter what side of an argument you’re on, you always find some people on your side that you wish were on the other side.” -Jascha Heifetz

Chemistry: “To most people solutions mean finding the answers. But to chemists solutions are things that are still all mixed up.” -Polish Proverb

Difficulty: “A difficulty is a light. An insurmountable difficulty is the sun.”-Paul Valery

“Organic chemistry is the chemistry of carbon compounds. Biochemistry is the study of carbon compounds that crawl.”-Mike Adams

TOPS ResourcesLab training Summer teacher seminarsYearly ACS meeting Teacher list + schools for communication NGSS requires lab emphasis Suggestions from teachersTOPS webpage (connections, programs,

schools, teachers, Facebook, news, “blog”)