Chemical Education Today
Especially for High School Teachers by Erica K. Jacobsen
Christmas in October
www.JCE.DivCHED.org
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Secondary School Featured Articles 䊕 JCE Classroom Activity: #74. Memory Metal by JCE Editorial Staff, p 1488A. 䊕 Napoleon’s Buttons: Teaching the Role of Chemistry in History by Cindy Samet and Pamela J. Higgins, p 1496. photo: J. J. Jacobsen, J. Harris, E. K. Jacobsen
The expectant moment as the snowman wrapping paper is impatiently torn away to reveal… “just what I always wanted!” The words are music to my ears and mark a successful gift-giving venture. To me, finding and giving the perfect gift can be as enjoyable as receiving one. I hunt, sometimes endlessly, for an item that I feel is something a friend or relative would love to have, but wouldn’t indulge in purchasing themselves. When the hunt is over and the item purchased and wrapped with care, the anticipation begins. The anticipation of giving the gift. I can hardly wait to hand it over. I picture the look of delight I hope the gift will bring. Interestingly, similar feelings occasionally surfaced during my first semesters of high school teaching. The initial lesson planning was often arduous. What was I going to pull out of my bag of tricks tomorrow? Next week? There were long hours of preparation. One week, writing a test from scratch. Another night, searching a shelf of science journals for a useful lab activity. But hidden in among the work was often a gem. A lesson plan that once prepared, had me nearly rubbing my hands together in glee. A great lesson. One that I was itching to share with my students. I could hardly wait to bring it to the classroom. Currently being out of the classroom leaves me without potential “gift unwrappers”. Or does it? Maybe you received this package in the mail today? It had your name on the label? A plastic wrapping that you tore into to reveal the gift inside? A Journal of Chemical Education! Take a look inside—you’ll find toys to accompany the National Chemistry Week (NCW) 2005 theme “The Joy of Toys”. In “Toys in the Classroom” (p 1450), Mickey and Jerry Sarquis, well known for their Teaching Science with TOYS publications, offer several experiments to try almost immediately. For example, they include instructions for making shrinking toys similar to “Shrinky Dinks” using readily available transparent polystyrene containers (recycle code #6). Williams, Van Natta, and Knipp (p 1454) describe several fast and easy activities in “The Fizz-Keeper: A Useful Science Tool”. They describe this kitchen product as a wonderful science toy, and use it to illustrate relationships between pressure, volume, and amount of a gas, as well as recreating the “cloud in a bottle” demonstration. Past issues of JCE also provide a rich source of articles and experiments related to toys. Kathryn Williams (p 1448) describes more than 30 JCE citations relating to balloons, and “JCE Resources for Chemistry and Toys” (p 1443) contains annotated listings for toy-related items. Harris and Kehoe, student interns at JCE, have scoured the World Wide Web for toy and science-related sites. See their collected re-
sults on p 1458. This month’s Classroom Activity showcases memory metal. Have you always thought it was a neat demonstration item, but not known what students could do with it? This Activity compares nitinol wire to other types of wire, and challenges students to develop a toy design that uses memory metal. To help teachers implement the Activity, Educational Innovations is now offering a specially priced amount of memory metal wire. See the Activity’s references for more details. Don’t forget to take a close look at this month’s cover. The children of several JCE staff members gathered at editor John Moore’s house on a hot summer day to experience the joy of playing with a popular toy—soap bubbles. Staff also got into the act, showing that “The Joy of Toys” has no age restrictions. Homemade bubble solution and bubble wands made of bent wire coat hangers wrapped in absorbent string were easy to make, and yielded huge, gorgeous bubbles. Additional photos of our adventure are on p 1447. This issue is the gift that keeps on giving, especially for high school teachers. A glance at the table of contents shows a veritable forest of 䊕 symbols. Do you need a fresh approach to teaching significant figures, so students understand the concepts rather than merely applying memorized rules? Crute (p 1507) uses a person’s age (using the example of George W. Bush) to teach the concept. Supalo (p 1513) has provided an excellent resource for teachers who have blind or visually impaired students in their courses. Supalo describes techniques that he knows are effective. He is blind and has used the techniques himself during his own studies first as an undergraduate chemistry student, and now during graduate work. Christmas in October will soon be over, at least until next year’s National Chemistry Week issue. I hope JCE gave you some ideas that are “just what you (and your students) wanted”. NCW 2006, 2007, and 2008 It’s never too early to start thinking about ideas for future NCWs. The American Chemical Society has already announced next year’s theme “Your Home–It’s All Built on Chemistry”. Topics have even been selected for 2007 (Careers in Chemistry) and 2008 (Chemistry and Sports). Have a neat experiment or demonstration that fits one of these themes? Consider writing it up as a submission to JCE to share it with your teaching colleagues worldwide!
Vol. 82 No. 10 October 2005
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Journal of Chemical Education
1433
