Reefgazer Posted July 3, 2014 Author Share Posted July 3, 2014 No, I had not looked at this. I need to check this out also, because the experiments are exactly what I need to add. Have you looked at GuestHollow's free chemistry curriculum? It incorporates a slew of different resources, including Ellen McHenry and The Elements book by Gray that you mentioned up thread. I will add in some TOPS experiment units pertaining to chemistry for more hands on fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted July 3, 2014 Author Share Posted July 3, 2014 I was looking a the chem 3000 sets and pondering those also; in fact, I almost bought one a few weeks ago, for fun. What is included in them and do you feel they are worth the $$$? My 7th grader is currently using this: http://walch.com/Contemporary-Chemistry-A-Practical-Approach.html I got the text, TM, and lab manual used on Amazon so the overall cost was not too bad. I'm using Chem 3000 for the labs at this point. Chem 3000 covers many of the same labs from the Walch books. I do know of other places to get chem stuff, but I think at this point the Chem 3000 will suit our needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted July 3, 2014 Author Share Posted July 3, 2014 Oh, not too late...I'm still hemming and hawing, LOL! I actually visited that thread yesterday, so I ma pondering stuff there, also. Thanks! Probably coming in too late to this party to be of any real help, BUT… you might find some ideas in this thread on the high school board, posted by someone looking for a gentle non-mathy chemistry so a younger student could do it along with an older high school student: Easy Chemistry Options. (Links to some great visual supplements and tutorials, too!) From that thread, secular options include: - Chemistry Power Basics (Walch Publishing) -- labs; text & workbook; essentials of high school (content) at below-level readability - Friendly Chemistry -- text & lab guide in a gentler, more basic format - The Story of Science (Hakim) -- integrated -- mostly physics & chemistry history/lit.-based; text & workbooks; no labs - 2 Prentice Hall's Science Explorer texts: Chemical Interactions (atoms & bonding, chemical reactions, acid/base/solutions, carbon chemistry) Chemical Building Blocks (matter, solid/liquid/gas, elements/periodic table, exploring materials) None of these have go-along kits, but the TOPS units of Analysis, Solutions would work for middle school, and possible Oxidation (although that one is a bit more advanced), and aren't too hard to match up with whatever text you're using. I would probably not recommend Conceptual Chemistry for middle school, unless the student is very strong and interested in the sciences, and/or you the parent are really strong at teaching the sciences. CC was written as an intro-level overview of Chemistry for college; the chapters on atomic structure were way more than what is needed at a middle school level, and there is a chapter on chemical equations and stoichiometry, and another on mole that involves more math than what most middle schoolers are probably ready for. Just our experience… You can check out the free videos and the free worksheets and teacher resources on the website to get a feel for if your middle schooler would be up for CC or not. BEST of luck in finding the best chem fit for your middle schoolers! Warmest regards, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 Re: The Rainbow This looks intriguing! I had never heard of them before. Have you used this, and if so, what is your critique of it? My older two are going to use The Rainbow this year - so I want to start off saying that I like what I see of it (not having used it yet) and sometimes bring it up to recommend it. HOWEVER, I think you can cross it off YOUR list. The Chemistry part is a semester-long section of the two year course. Some people with science-heavy kids go through Year 1 in only a semester. Based on your descriptions, that would probably mean that your daughter would go through a relatively pricey (unless you can buy it used) program for only 1/4 of a year of work. The lab kit ($$ unless you can find someone to sell you their never-used-one used) makes it open and go, but the text is really light. The meat of the instruction is in the labs, so they say, but some people complain that the labs are too light. The twice-per-week text reading + once per week lab-that-the-kid-can-almost-do-on-their-own is exactly what I'm looking for this year. Year 1 is half physics & half chemistry -- which is also great for us. I saw you are already leaning toward something else, but I wanted to let you know that you can cross The Rainbow off your list based on what I know of it. (And again, I think it is a fine program. I just want the OP to know it seems like a bad fit for her wants.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 Re: The Rainbow …. I think it is a fine program. I just want the OP to know it seems like a bad fit for her wants. Agreed; lots of good feedback on The Rainbow, BUT not a match for OP. Not only because the subject breakdown -- year 1 (Physics/Chemistry), and year 2 (Life Science/other topics) -- doesn't match with OP's need for 1 year of Chemistry, but because it is also a Christian program, and OP mentioned not wanting to mix science & religious perspective. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brookspr Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 It would be VERY easy to add some more experiments to Ellen McHenry. You could easily do both Elements AND Carbon Chem in a year, with tons of additional experiments/projects. This is what we are going to do for 7th grade chem. With two parents that have chemistry degrees, we will have no shortage of home experiments going on. What exactly they will be, I don't know yet :) We've made slime a million times when they were in PS and for fun at birthday parties. I have a few chem kits we've acquired, so we will probably start with those. Just wish one of us still worked in a lab where we could get our hands on all the cool glassware and materials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Sorry I didn't get back to you re the chem stuff. I rechecked recently and it's really just glassware and such. No chemicals or whatever. Hope you find a plan you like! (and I'm up in NoVa, so it's not that close) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cintinative Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Sorry if this is a repeat but did you look at Middle School Chemistry by the American Chemical Society? It is free, and the elementary product (also free) looks really good. http://www.middleschoolchemistry.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted July 6, 2014 Author Share Posted July 6, 2014 I did; they have some good experiments and I am tossing it around. It won't last us a full year though. Sorry if this is a repeat but did you look at Middle School Chemistry by the American Chemical Society? It is free, and the elementary product (also free) looks really good. http://www.middleschoolchemistry.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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