Award-Winning Chemistry Tutors serving Cambridge

There were a few questions the student had about her summer camp math assignment so we addressed those word problems at the beginning of our session. We followed up with introductory chemistry specifically on phases of matter and thermo processes. We ended with answering a few questions about the topic.

The student told me about Cesium, which he chose to research. Then we read through the chapter on ionic compounds. We practiced naming ionic compounds and deriving the chemical formula for a compound from its name.

The student and I continued to work through pH, buffer and titration problems together. He worked through many of the problems on his own and did everything correctly. He definitely seems more comfortable working through these step-wise problems. We also reviewed titration curves and how to glean information from them. He seems to understand the concepts fairly well.

First we talked over colligative properties and the effects of solutes on vapor pressure, freezing point and boiling point. We then moved into stereochemistry including isomers, stereoisomers, enantiomers, and cis/trans isomers.

We completed a sample practice test for the student's chemistry test tomorrow. The test covered topics such as the relationship between photon energy, wavelength, and frequency, electron configuration, quantum numbers, and effective nuclear charge. Additionally, we discussed the periodic trends with regards to atomic radius, ionization energy, and electron affinity. I gave her the opportunity to attempt each question without any explanation. If she needed help, we first discussed a strategy for approaching the question, then I explained the pertinent topics in a general sense. I then had her attempt the problem again. If she needed additional practice on a problem type, I made up similar problems for her to attempt. At the end of the session, she had a much better handle on the topics, and said she felt more confident completing her homework assignment for tomorrow.

We reviewed his old exam, working through questions regarding stoichiometry, and dimensional analysis, etc.