Award-Winning Chemistry Tutors serving Portsmouth

The student and I reviewed electron dot configuration, VSEPR theory, and electronegativity. I provided her with two outside sources -- a chart on VSEPR theory as well as practice for determining the polarity of covalent bonds based on the presence or lack of presence of a dipole moment. We did several practice problems, and I felt that she had a much stronger grasp at the end of the session on the materials covered.

We continued working on writing out equations and balancing. The student is doing really well with it but will definitely need to review the naming rules before the test. We started talking about problems derived from the equations and how to convert an amount of one substance into the amount of another in the equation. We also started talking about limiting reagents and how to work through the problems.

The student has started a new unit about light and energy. We talked about the relationships between the equations c = (lambda)*v and E = hv and did several practice problems together to help him improve his confidence.

We reviewed terminology associated with lecture slides in addition to stepwise solutions of practice problems in preparation for the student's exam tomorrow. I am sending her additional stepwise solutions to practice problems from class and additional problems and solutions pertaining to redox reactions.

The student and I continued to work on her take homework worksheet. She is doing a lot better remembering conversions and what steps to take next. I can definitely see her confidence in the subject matter growing, so that's a huge win! She seems less intimidated by the material as well. I went over a few test taking skills, specifically geared towards multiple choice, and we continued reviewing strategies for stoichiometry problems. Overall, this was an awesome session, and I can see her improvement in the course.

We reviewed trends in periodicity and naming of chemical compounds. The student clearly has a very strong grasp of the relevant concepts. We went through old problems that she had previously gotten wrong. With hindsight and our discussion, she was able to get to the right answers, often with little to no prompting. We went through tips and key points along the way, including how to name acids of elements vs. acids of polyatomic ions, to prepare for her test on these topics this week. I believe that she should do very well.