Hi, i was wondering if u had any tips for learning Chem! Im taking the second intro to chem course and I did the last one 3-4 yrs ago. Im nervous about labs😖
A CHEM QUESTION!!!!! omg yes I absolutely have tips!! (also... if you ever have questions, feel free to send em here or dm me ;) )
1. the hardest thing, in my opinion, about chem2 is that you go from a lot of theory in chem1 to practice in chem2. this depends on how they split up the content across semesters, but you often do a LOT more math in chem2 -- so it's super easy to forget the actual chemistry happening behind the numbers. put in the extra effort to really understand the concepts so you don't get lost in the math!
2. do LOTS of practice problems! and when you do them, make notes next to each one (short and sweet) about what concepts the question is asking you to utilize. you want to get familiar with the actual problem-solving side of chemistry, but in doing so, you want to continue tying theory to practice the whole time. this will help you build intuition! for example, if you're doing a titration calculation w/ LOTS of strong acid added to a weak base, you should build enough intuition to look at your calculated pH and decide if it's a reasonable answer or not. When you get to this stage, you'll start to catch mistakes without even knowing what they are and can start the problem over!
3. fail, fail, fail -- and learn from it every time! with more problem-oriented chemistry, don't be discouraged by getting a question wrong. Ask yourself WHY that's wrong with respect to the chemistry behind it -- if you add strong acid to weak base, why doesn't it make sense to have a neutral or high pH? What about the chemistry itself tells you that's incorrect? This will help you IMMENSELY. What sets apart students who do well in a class for a semester as opposed to those who walk away with long-term retention is this right here! When you learn why a wrong answer is wrong with respect to the concepts and math alike, your understanding of the right answer will be so much deeper.
4. teach someone all of your concepts! trust me, you will learn VERY quickly how much or how little you understand the moment you try explaining it to someone (bonus if it's someone who isn't taking the class, so you have to break it down even more). If you can't teach a concept simply and effectively to someone with no foundation in the subject, you don't understand it as well as you think.
5. Most importantly... don't be too hard on yourself! Chemistry is hard, but it's super fun. Find exciting and nerdy applications to each concept to keep the fascination alive when topics get tough. Good chemists aren't good chemists because they know everything -- they're good chemists because they ask questions, stay curious, and experiment/play around with the rules of the science. Chemistry is everywhere around you, literally, so start spotting it in your every day life and asking how the coursework relates! You'd be surprised how many places you can find it <3
Wishing you lots of luck in chem2!! you'll rock it :) and if you ever have chem-related questions, don't hesitate to reach out! i was on a college teaching team for 5 years and ran a demonstrations lab for another 2... so i've been around it quite a bit!
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