Ask Slashdot: Teaching Chemistry To Home-Schooled Kids?

First time accepted submitter mikewilsonuk writes "I have a 10-year-old grandson who has shown an interest in chemistry. He is home educated and doesn't read as well as schooled kids of his age. He hasn't had much science education and no chemistry at all. None of his parents or grandparents have chemistry education beyond the school minimum and none feel confident about teaching it. My own memories of chemistry teaching in school are of disappointment, a shocking waste of everyone's time and extreme boredom. I think there must be a better way. Can anyone suggest an approach that won't ruin a child's interest?"

Comments

A book so good it was banned!

[Abraxas26]

A good place to start is "The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments" by Robert Brent. Some of the material is a bit dated but the overall presentation is great.

Re:A book so good it was banned!

[Anonymous Coward]

There's a link to a Free Download of this book here:
http://chemistry.about.com/b/2011/11/02/download-the-golden-book-of-chemistry-experiments.htm

Khan Academy

[BadPirate]

http://www.khanacademy.org/#chemistry

Sounds to me like home schooling is letting the kid down a bit. I loved my public Chemistry / physics education... Making rockets, playing with Science Olympiad, Egg Drop contests. I remember on the first day in my High School chem class, the teacher demonstrated infra-red radiation and the speed of light by taking a bowl filled with soap water, and a propane tap, and creating (and then lighting on fire) propane bubbles. He pointed out that as soon as you saw the flash, you felt the heat, and then went into a lecture about wave radiation and the light spectrum.

You can probably do that with your own kid, but there is something to be said about the benefits of learning something from someone who is passionate about the material.

Video vice Reading, try Khan

[Anonymous Coward]

http://www.khanacademy.org/#chemistry

Re:i have an idea

[Anonymous Coward]

As a student of the US education system, I can personally attest to the problems of the public system. I didn't fail any of my classes, perfect attendance for years, and in my senior year I was told I would be there again next year. Turns out those 'qualified educators' scheduled and taught me classes, but not the ones needed to meet state requirements, my parents pulled me out and I finished that year in a private school taking independent study.

Now I have a 8 year old boy who seems fine to me in second grade, that is until the 4th nine weeks and 2 suspensions from school. One for eating his sandwich into the shape of a gun, then later that day making "finger guns", and going "pew pew" like boys do. They said he was threatening the school with violence. Two weeks before he was suspended for "not keeping his hands to himself" I asked the teacher and found out he was trying to play tag at recess.

I have zero tolerance for zero tolerance school policies.

FYI all of this occurred in the Florida, Treasure Coast area.

KEEP HIS INTEREST ALIVE?

[Jeremiah Cornelius]

Well, you can teach him to make things that blow-up and things that burn through counter-tops. Thatt ought to maintain the attention and interest of a ten-year-old boy, for many years to come!

Seriously, try Aurora Lipper's site. She produces age-level appropriate, experimental science education for home schoooling and kid's programmes.

http://www.superchargedscience.com/

Science teachers, in underfunded districts use this, too.