Week 7

                   These past two weeks we learned about two units. The first unit was about the test we recently took, and later in the week we started a new unit! I stapled a lot of the sheets for unit six together so that I could study efficiently. In unit six we covered molecular and ionic compounds. One of the first labs that we did was the stick tape lab. For this, we measured the charge and movement of charges in particular items through a 1 day experiment. We began with four individual pieces of tape and labelled them top and bottom tape. Then we tore those pieces apart and hung them on a stand. We tested how the tape reacted when the opposite tape (top and bottom) cam closer to each other and also the top and top tapes. We also observed how the interacted with non-paper (metal) and paper. We concluded that opposites attract and similar charged items repel. The metal and paper tests also helped us examine how particle movement varies with different material. We elaborated on that concept later in the week. I understood this lab and could relate it to previous experiments and activities that I did to prove this theory on charges. Below is a picture of our sticky tape lab sheet:

                    Next we did a lab about conductivity. We did multiple measurements on what was conductive and not conductive. I mentioned this in my previous post, but it ties into the material on the test so I will describe it again. We took a stick with metal prongs at the end and put it on different pieces of matter see if they were conductive or not. I won't go into detail because I discussed it last week. But I participated a lot in this lab! We all contributed to the data collecting and were interested in the results... Here were our results: 

                  Before the test we also did a lot of practice on naming molecular and ionic compounds. We were given a pink sheet of the charge of each ion etc, and a periodic table. We learned various prefixes to help us name molecular compounds such as mono, di, tri, tetra, etc. This was part of the test that I think I did well on but could've made a minor mistake on one or two questions. We color coded our periodic table for metals, non-metals, transition metals, and diatomic elements. This helped us answer if a compound was molecular or ionic because ionic is metal and non-metal, and molecular is composed of both non-metals. This is how we color coded our periodic table!!: 

                 I studied for the test and felt prepared but still had two questions at the beginning of class that I still couldn't figure out. One was, why do some compounds that turn liquid become conductive? This is because the atoms become more spread so they aren't too close and eliminate each other... Therefore the substance can conduct electricity. I asked my other question to my table group and we came to a conclusion; what happens if two pieces of tape are placed on either side of a metal strip? We may have been wrong but said they would remain unchanged because the forces cancel out. This is a question I can ask you and the whole class on Monday! Here is a picture of the question i had: 

                Overall, I think i did well on the test but make a few mistakes (on diagrams etc.). We also started a new unit near the end of this week and will be continuing it. In unit 7 we will be covering chemical reactions. We began by practicing the rearrangement of atoms. We did this by first drawing diagrams of the atoms in each compound. We did a lot of practice with this. We also started a lab; the nail lab. We will continue this lab on Monday because our beaker with copper, chloride, dihydrate, and nails is sitting over the weekend. That was what our class has been doing since my last post :)... Here is a picture of what our beaker looked like during class (Day 1):