Chemistry: Making a giant periodic table (with links for printable periodic tables)

The boys only have a few more (I)GCSE exams to take (in June), so I've been taking a small breather and trying to get back the rhythm of our old home ed. It's not easy when we've been totally focused on box-ticking and hoop-jumping for the year.

After several months of not-much-chemistry I'm picking up where I left off doing Ellen McHenry's 'The Elements" with dd. If you haven't checked out Ellen McHenry's website, please do. There are lots of fab freebie printables to download, as well as various downloadable curricula to purchase. We've used both The Elements and Carbon Chemistry (a follow-on programme) with my boys and I can highly recommend them. They are particularly ideal for that tricky pre-teen age, when children often seem to want a bit more of a challenge, but still want to do lots of hands-on learning. 

So, today we were back to the periodic table and learning about atoms by using Skittles sweets to show electrons in their orbits. Of course we use sweets for our demonstrations as much as possible. It gives me an excuse to go to the shop and buy chocolate for myself. Not that I need excuses ;)

Inspired by what we've learned today dd and I are now in the process of making a giant periodic table. The hope is to make one large enough that we can actually stick little bags of examples of the elements (the non-radioactive ones) onto the table. Or at least stick photos on. Well, that's the idea. 

Dogzilla not really helping with our giant periodic table

You can find various printable versions of the periodic table here. 

http://sciencenotes.org/printable-periodic-table/

(We have decided to use this totally blank periodic table so we can add our own pictures/samples and titles

http://sciencenotes.org/blank-periodic-table/ )

The files will print out to standard A4 size.

To print out a really massive version, on more than one A4 sheet:

1) Download the PDF of the table you prefer. 

2) Open up the PDF

3) Click on print. This will open up the various print options.

4) Select 'poster' (on my screen this is to the left of the print options, about half way down, and has a little picture of 4 sheets of paper)

5) Increase the size of the tile scale (I've just printed mine out at 500%). You might need to click in another box to refresh, but you should find a small image displayed showing how the pages will be arranged.

6) When you're happy with the size, confirm that you want to print.

7) Stick the pages together. You might find it helpful to click print again, put in the same tile scale and refer to the little preview to help you piece together the jigsaw of pages. 

Ellen McHenry Brain hats and St George's Day dragon puppets

Tomorrow I'll be running a session at our local home ed group on The Brain, so today we ran through a prototype 'brain hat', just to make sure everything will go as planned.

You can print the free brain hat templates here at Ellen McHenry's Basement website 

Meanwhile, I was trying to get around to doing something - *anything* -  for St George's Day. 

We're not great at doing anything for special days or festivals. I always have good intentions, but the date comes and goes and even though I know lots of great resources for all these excuses to do a themed something, somehow we never get around to it. 

Finally, today we had a brief stint on St George. Of course, being an independent-minded child, dd did it *her* way. She flatly refused to colour in the wonderful picture from Activity Village here and barely skimmed a read through the Scholastic St George's Day resources here . But she did get excited about making a dragon sock puppet here 

These were once my favourite pair of stripey socks, many years ago, and I can't think of a better way to reuse them :)

The weight of air (stand back, we're doing science!)

In another attempt to restore balance to what has become our far-too-table-based home education, I've been trying to carve out some time for some hands-on science.

I've been attempting to finish Ellen McHenry's 'Cells' with the two boys, but there are always other priorities for the eldest (IGCSE-related) so it's been slow progress.

But these past couple of weeks we've got as far as the dissolve-egg-shell-in-vinegar-and-demonstrate-osmosis-by-dunking-egg-in-syrup-or-water experiment.

It was supposed to take about 3 or 4 days for the egg shell to dissolve to the point where there was just a floppy sack of white and yolk. 8 days in and, apart from some minor bubbling at first, not much was happening. Just as I was wondering how much longer I would have to display softened smelly eggs in vinegar on our windowsill for the neighbours and anyone passing our house to see, I had an idea.

The problem, I deduced was that, being a cheapskate thrifty person we'd used a jar of old pickled onion vinegar. (We have a plentiful collection of random jars of pickled onion vinegar in the cupboard taking up much needed space, but alas I simply cannot dispose of them.)Trouble was, this old pickled onion vinegar was probably more dilute than nice fresh shop-bought vinegar...and it had year-old bits of pickled onion skin floating around in it which may have somewhat contaminated the experiment.

When we changed to fresh vinegar the eggs positively fizzled and the problem of *there's nothing happening mummy* was solved. 3 eggs fizzing on our windowsill...and later 3 eggs floating in syrup and water.

Does air weigh anything?

This is the question recently posed by the other science course we're using Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding (BFSU) Vol 1

 With a bit of scientific experimentation (otherwise known as fiddling the results) we discovered that if you dangled two bags on strings on a ruler, on a shoelace from the handle of a saucepan, over the edge of a table, then, yes, air does actually weigh something. It was just a little don't-move-or-you'll-mess-it-up amount of something.

We really don't need to be starting yet another science 'course'. We have a huge shelf of science books, many of which we never get around to reading or using. But... I love the idea behind BFSU. I love the discursive aspect of the course. I love how it's not just another 'do this experiment, get this result' science book.

But it is a very wordy book, and it does take some prep to be able to use it. The parent really has to be on board to lead/steer a discussion. It's written for a class of same-age children, so although it is home-ed friendly, it's not always easy to implement with a smaller group of different age children. Trying to lead a discussion ds2 (who is 12 and knows most of the answers)  and dd (who is a young 10 and would rather be blowing bubbles than pondering the difference between a liquid and a gas) takes some managing. The book is also supposed to be approached in a manner whereby the kids are doing biology and chemistry and physics side-by-side in an ongoing web of related activities and discussions. It does my head in just thinking about trying to juggle all of that. I've not seen anything like it before and it takes some getting used to. This is our second attempt at the book, and I'm hoping it will get easier as we go along.


And today...our BFSU science required some blowing of bubbles ('little packages of air particles')

And not all science is *that* sort of science. This is science too. At least I think it is science. Because I can't understand why else a child would play on the computer with a box on their head. Surely it's *got* to be an experiment.

Ellen McHenry "The Elements" Lesson plan/scheme of work

Our 'lesson plan' for Ellen McHenry's The Elements. I've included a selection of the activities, but feel free to add in more or alter to suit your needs. We found it best to pre-prepare all the games before we started the course as the prep can be quite time-consuming. Most of all, follow your kids' lead :) Mine liked to play the chemistry games, so we slotted in extra sessions just for game playing. Ellen McHenry can be found here :

You should be able to download and print the document using the download button at the bottom of the document.

Ellen McHenry The Elements SchemePDF by scifreak64

Ellen McHenry The Elements (2013)

We've done The Elements before with ds1 and ds2. It was a fun hands-on approach to chemistry and a fabulous stepping stone to GCSE level science. Ds1 did no other chemistry than Ellen before starting IGCSE  chemistry and recently passed (at age 14), so Ellen McHenry was obviously a great start..

This time dd is joining in with ds2. The games and nick-nacks that go with the course are already prepared from our last run-through, so that's saving us some time. 

I've written up a plan for the sessions (will post that up later for anyone who wants to use it). After doing the fly-by-the-seat-of-pants approach to home ed for many years it dawned on me that what I need is planning. Out goes chaotic use of resources, where we open the book only to find out we haven't got what we need. and in comes an organised session plan that makes those resources 'open-and-go'. Well, that's the theory. 

Electrolysis of water

Bubbles of hydrogen and Oxygen forming at the electrodes

Fishing for Elements

The Periodic Table game

Ellen McHenry science: eyes are bigger than stomach

I'm hoping to catch up with biology with the kids over summer. To kick off we've dug out the free Ellen McHenry invertebrate lift-the-flap classification chart from here.

It's a shame she never made a vertebrate version, but I rediscovered the classification cards that I'd lovingly laminated long ago when I was in a laminating mood and these are now velcroed to a felt board. I am starting to feel like a proper home educator ;)

Ellen McHenry's The Elements has made a reappearance. We've used it before so most of the printing and prep for games has already been done. I'm also planning to start Environmental biology IGCSE with ds1. Well, we are going to tentatively dip our toes in that direction (let's not get ahead of ourselves).

As you might have guessed, it's a case of eyes bigger than stomach. My enthusiasm to cover lots of subjects is larger than the time or energy we have to do it all.

Finally got around to...

the game 'Science Adventures in Antarctica' that I printed out free from Ellen McHenry's Basement Workshop.


The boys were interested for all of about 20 minutes {g}. But we gave it a go.

Actually, with other children who don't have cabin fever and insist on antagonising or wrestling with each other every few minutes, it could be quite a good game.

I made the mistake of laminating everything (I was having a laminating frenzy) which a) makes the game more permanent so we will HAVE to use it again (it now has it's own folder to go in) and b) meant that I kept stabbing my fingers on the sharp corners of the laminated cards (which put me in a bad mood and meant I had to go buy chocolate and cola to make me happy).
I feel I can well and truly tick off the 'polar' theme now.


Have you noticed how we seem to be getting more 'structured' in our home ed projects/ activities? I'm not sure if this is the influence of alittlebitofstructure forum (great site, check it out), or if it is the age of my eldest child (very soon to be teenager), or the increased cooperation of my children to do structured tasks (probably related to the age of eldest child), or my desire to see a few more boxes ticked (always a nice bonus), or because I have been persuing my own creative achievements and have needed to instigate some routine into the learning in the house (rather than the usual fluid way things are able happen when I am less self-preoccupied) or (more likely) whether it is just a natural development of where we've been going and where we've ended up.

There is no 'one-way' of doing home ed. I try to encourage others, particularly newbies, not to get hung-up on a certain method or routine, but to be flexible and to seek out the way that works best for their family. It's very easy to get stuck in a rut, or to insist on 'seeing out' a particular curriculum or project, just because you have started it. But in the end, home ed works best when you are going 'with the grain' of the child, not against it.

So this is where we are now. And it's ok.

Fail to plan and plan to fail (or some other b******s)

Of course, having an assignment deadline, and a house that desperately needs pre-christmas attention, I am focusing on home education instead.

I like to have plans this time of year, just as I like to start after Summer with a sort of 'Autumn plan' (years of schooling have instilled strange seasonal behaviours into my neural networks - like the desire to buy stationery in September). We never stick to these plans. They just give me some reassurance that we are organised and have direction. And they give me a damn good excuse to spend money on Amazon.

So my plans are...

To 'do' Story of the World Vol 1 with ds2 and dd. In my enthusiasm I have already written out a schedule for the first three months of 2012 with lists of weekly SOTW activities and possible outings...let's see if we get past the first fortnight, shall we?

Attempt the Intel Design and Discovery curriculum with ds1 and ds2. As always, when I discover a new resource on the internet, one that is free and comprehensive and hands-on I cannot resist. I give this one 3-4 weeks. That's if we get past 'design a new paperclip' without rolling eyes and groans. It could all fall at the first hurdle. If so that rainforest may have been pulped in vain.

Something Shakespearian or Tudorian (yeah, I know that's not a word). There's a Shakespeare exhibition at the British Museum from summer 2012. It's a possible. Or I could just drag the kids to Stratford point at a few 'Ye Olde Barde livede here-e' and be done with it. But if we're doing ancient history with SOTW, then jumping into the Tudors might confuse things. But then again...do we EVER do anything in chronological order? Dinosaurs next then.

I downloaded this biochemistry module which we might start. Or we might not. We should, because I paid for it. But that's not always a good enough reason. I'm not sure how much it crosses over with Ellen McHenry's Carbon Chemistry. Perhaps we've already done too much chemistry and there will be mutiny among the troops. It'll be one of those 'suck it and see' things I think. Or a 'can I be bothered?' thing. Jury out.

And apart from that...

Er well of course my children will be knuckling down to their daily regime of hours of literacy and numeracy and latin and French, German, Spanish, Mandarin and Swahili, while studying for IGCSE's in performance arts and political history, and winning awards for essay writing, spelling, ice skating, dance and gymnastics. And then after breakfast...

Paper-chain alkanes and the health hazards of soda bread

My list of resource links has been getting rather raggedy and cumbersome, and so today I tweaked and rearranged it.

I do hate putting resources into subject categories because: a) websites often cover a wide range of subjects and b) home education has made me realise how pigeonholing information and learning into 'subjects' tends to be a very limiting way to think about education. But, I concede that a few more headings will make it easier for blog visitors to find the resources they want. And it will give me the opportunity to add more links as and when I have time.

And, talking about 'subjects', we've been doing some more chemistry from that wonderful site Ellen McHenry's Basement Workshop We completed The Elements a few months ago, had a break, and are now working our way through Carbon Chemistry .

Here's a photo of the kids making Alkanes (hydrocarbons with single carbon to carbon bonds) in paper-chain fashion. The idea was to make different length alkanes and then name them (Methane, butane, propane etc), but my kids had different ideas and ended up with a competition to see who could make the longest chain. [After years of home educating I've come to realise that where kids are concerned nothing ever really goes to plan and I just have to be flexible. I recommend that control freaks do not apply for the job.]

Often when we follow a set package or piece of structured learning it doesn't last long. A few weeks of enthusiasm, perhaps, followed by dragging of heels, stamping of feet, and worse, depending on how soon we abandon the project. But of all the structured things we've done, these chemistry packages have been by far the best.

Maybe it's because I'm a scientist by training (though I confess I was always hopeless at chemistry), but I'll continue to recommend Ellen McHenry's chemistry courses. Although they don't correspond directly with UK science syllabus I think they would make a marvellous pre-GCSE/pre-IGCSE foundation. And you can pick and mix what you learn, avoiding (as we do) the comprehension questions at the end of each chapter and simply sticking to the fun stuff - the games & experiments.

The other science I would recommend is The Happy Scientist. Great experiments that usually require few materials and can be done at home. Although many of the resources are free it is worth the small yearly fee so you can have access to all the experiment videos.

And in addition to Carbon Chemistry we are also dabbling in cooking. Yes, I know, scary. As I've said before our plan is to work our way through (some of) The River Cottage Family Cookbook by Posh Boy (Hugh Fearnley-whotshisname). We've made bread, and now, soda bread (see below). Sorry, no photos of the finished product - we ate it before I got the camera out!

(Read the recipe. I said READ the recipe. No, that's 2 teaspoons of salt. NOT tablespoons. Arrggghh!)

(No, don't look what's going into that soda bread mixture.

I try not to think of ds1's black fingernails as I taste the bread.

Mmmm...lovely)