Between finding things that explode or pop or fizzle and trying to not set notes alight with Bunsen burners many of us will have fond memories of Chemistry lessons. But it’s not all parlour tricks and safety goggles, there’s a considerable amount of content to be learnt. Between the scientific terms and symbols, it can feel like an alien language for students and parents alike. So, just what are the best study methods to yield good results?
This week’s podcast episode is looking at Chemistry, why an understanding is important beyond school and how to prepare for the exams.
Nathan McGurl, Founder of The Study Buddy, is joined by Dr David Paterson. David is Chemistry Teacher and researcher. Previously David has been a subject advisor with a UK exam board. As well as being an author and blogger, David is active in working on teacher training and support with the Royal Society for Chemistry, amongst others.
Chemistry forms part of the core GCSE subjects for the vast majority. Students can struggle to get to grips with the content: grappling with terms, equations and approaches. Some question the need to do it at GCSE if they’re not planning on taking a science as an A-level in further education.
In this episode David talks about the importance of Chemistry in real life. In particular we look at how the scientific skills shape how we approach reasoning and problem solving. David also shares tips and advice on studying Chemistry at GCSE and A Level.
David has prepared Parent Primers on his blog, which cover the basics of chemistry. This can be a helpful way of being able to engage with your children over the subject. And each section has helpful questions which can prompt thought in the students (and perhaps wow your family!).
As promised in the episode, we have created and shared the Study Summaries for Chemistry based on the exam board specifications. These are yours to freely download.
| Select your exam board |
|---|
| > AQA |
| > Edexcel |
| > Eduqas |
| > OCR – Gateway |
| > OCR – 21st Century |
| > WJEC |
| > Cambridge – iGCSE |
| > Edexcel – iGCSE |
| > SQA – Nat 5 |
Our GCSE and A Level bundles contain everything you need to manage revision, straight out of the box. All tailored to the exact courses you need.