9/23-9/27

This week was pretty slow in AP Chem. We spent the first half of the week reviewing and taking our test on stoichiometry. The test covered limiting reactants, empirical formulas, and percent yield. I thought that the test was a good challenge and a good measuring stick for myself. I know I am capable of doing better, I just have to study more and do more practice problems before the test. For the rest of the time this week we went over Lewis structures.

            So far, I have found the material that we have gone over on Lewis structures fairly comprehensible. The main ideas that we covered on Lewis structures were how to figure out which atom is the central atom and how to form the covalent bonds. To figure out which atom is the inside atom, you must determine the electronegativities of the atoms. Then, you find out which atom has the lowest electronegativity and place it in the center. Then you form covalent bonds with unpaired electrons from the outside atoms to the inside atoms. We didn’t really go over this in class but resonance and bond order was discussed in the lectures. I found these two concepts a bit more confusing but I’m hoping we work on them in class so I can gain a better understanding.

            Overall, this week was pretty light so there isn’t too much to discuss here. I found the activities that we did to gain knowledge on Lewis structures pretty straightforward and the lectures on resonance and bonding orders a bit more complex. I learned from taking the test this week that I need to work harder on doing more practice problems and studying harder to get a higher grade on the test. I would still rate my understanding on the past material covered on the test and the new material that we learned this week at about a 4 out of 5. I was able to participate fully in all of the activities we did this week and that helped me broaden my thinking about Lewis structures and how they really work.

How to draw Lewis dot structures: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3F7LjTvdX0