AP Chemistry Syllabus
Welcome
Welcome to AP Chemistry at Park View High! I am so excited to begin a new year and with each and every
one of you!!
Contact Information
Mrs. Suzanne Irwin
E-mail: suzanne.irwin@lcps.org
Phone: 571- 434-4500
Contact Information
Twitter
Follow me on Twitter: @su_irwin
Remind
All students must sign up for Remind. Remind is an easy way for me to send you information by text, and for
you to text me. I will use Remind to send out timely information about your class. You can also text me with
questions, (and I can text you) through Remind. In order to sign up, please text the appropriate code
below to the number 81010:
Block 2:
Block 3:
Block 4:
Block 6:
Block 7:
@sirw
@sirwi
@sirwin
@block6ap
@a0afea
Website and VISION
I will post all of our class notes and homework assignments on my VISION page and on my Google sites
website. This will be a partially flipped class, so you will sometimes have to watch videos as homework.
These videos will be located on these webpages. You may use either VISION or the Google site, whatever you
prefer. I suggest that you bookmark the page you prefer for easy access. The LCPS site will have links to both
pages, as well as my contact information.
LCPS Website: http://www.lcps.org/Domain/16341
Google Website: https://sites.google.com/site/irwinapchem
VISION: Look for Irwin AP Chemistry. The enrollment code is atom.
2016 AP Chemistry Exam
Monday, May 4, 2016, 8:00 AM
1
AP Chemistry Syllabus
Instructional Objectives
The purpose of Advanced Placement Chemistry is (1) to provide a college level course in chemistry and
(2) to prepare the student to seek credit and/or appropriate placement in college chemistry courses. I use
a flipped classroom approach for many lessons, in order to provide more classroom time for studentcentered labs and activities. This course is structured around the following six big ideas articulated in the
AP Chemistry curriculum framework provided by the College Board:
Big Idea 1: The chemical elements are fundamental building materials of matter. And all matter can be
understood in terms of arrangements of atoms. These atoms retain their identity in chemical reactions.
Big Idea 2: Chemical and physical properties of materials can be explained by the structure and the
arrangement of atoms, ions or molecules and the forces between them.
Big Idea 3: Changes in matter involve the rearrangement and/or reorganization of atoms and/or the
transfer of electrons.
Big Idea 4: Rates of chemical reactions are determined by details of the molecular collisions.
Big Idea 5: The laws of thermodynamics describe the essential role of energy and explain and predict
the direction of changes in matter.
Big Idea 6: Any bond or intermolecular attraction that can be formed can be broken. These two
processes are in dynamic competition, sensitive to external perturbations.
The big ideas are correlated and addressed by the units of study in the following manner :
Units
1. Atoms, Reactions and Stoichiometry:
Connecting the Macroscopic World to the
Microscopic
2. Reactions Involving Electron Transfer:
Single Replacement, Redox, and
Electrochemistry
3. Particles and Interactions: Energy, Gases
and Intermolecular Forces
4. Atomic Structure
5. Molecular Structure: Bonding in
Covalent, Ionic and Metallic Substances
6. Kinetics: How Fast Does It Go?
7. General and Solubility Equilibrium: How
Far Does It Go?
8: Acid Base Equilibrium
9. The Driving Forces: Chemical Energy and
Thermodynamics
10. (Mini-Unit) The Nernst Equation and
Electrochemistry Again
Big Ideas
1 and 3
1 and 3
2 and 5
1 and 2
1 and 2
4
6
6
5
3
Textbooks and Lab Books




The College Board. AP Chemistry Guided Inquiry Experiments: Applying the Science Practices.
Zumdahl, Steven and Susan Zumdahl. Chemistry, Eighth Edition.
Demmin, Peter. AP Chemistry, Sixth Edition. New York: D&S Marketing Systems Inc., 2005.
Fast Track to a 5 Preparing for the AP Chemistry Examination. Duncan, Pezzi, Knoespel
2
AP Chemistry Syllabus
Materials
 Spiral notebook to be used as an interactive notebook. At least 70 pages, college ruled, without
perforation (if you can find that). I will provide this notebook to you, but you are free to get your
own if you like. Notes, diagrams, handouts, quizzes, reflections, labs, and other class materials will
be created and kept in this notebook.
 Carbon copy lab notebook.
 A folder to keep a limited number of papers that we cannot tape into our notebook.
 A scientific calculator for home use. A calculator will be provided during class. (TI-30X or
something similar. These are about $9. I have some used ones available for sale or rent.)
 Pen and pencil/eraser
Lab and Lab Writing
Communicating science is a critical part of doing science. Constructing an argument is a central
component of scientific communication. Scientists engage in communication when they discuss their
experiments informally at meetings or over the phone or email, present their research formally at
conferences, and publish their work in peer-reviewed journals. Scientific writing, and in particular
scientific arguments that include claims, evidence, and reasoning, will be an important part of this
course.
Lab reports are also an important part of this course. As part of AP Chemistry, our lab reports will
follow the following format in order to help us use writing to do and learn science. Because writing and
scientific argument are such an important part of this course, lab reports will be graded rigorously and
will constitute 25% of your grade for the quarter.
Every lab report will contain:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Title of Lab
Name
Name of Lab Partner(s)
Date
Pre Lab Questions (sometimes these will be placed in your interactive notebook)
Beginning Question(s): What are my questions about this experiment?
Tests and Procedures: What will I do to answer these questions?
Observations: What did I see (hear/smell/measure…) as I completed my tests and procedures?
Another word for observations is data.
Claim(s): What can I claim as a result of my tests, procedures and observations?
Evidence and Reasoning: What evidence do I have to support my claim? What mathematical
calculations can I do to show that my data supports my claim? How do I know? Do I know if my
data is precise and/or accurate? How? Why am I making these claims? Reasoning is the link
between your evidence and claims.
Reading and Questions: How do my ideas compare with others? If Mrs. Irwin has provided you
with questions to answer, they should be answered in this section.
Reflection: How have my ideas changed?
3
AP Chemistry Syllabus
Assessments
Your performance in this class will be assessed in a number of ways, both formally and informally. You will
keep all of your work in your interactive notebook. In addition to receiving feedback and grades for thesis
statements, labs and lab conclusions, and other assignments, you will receive a grade for you interactive
notebook at the end of each unit.
Assessment Type
Approximate
Percent
Homework
10%
Lab Writing
25%
Interactive Notebook
Included in
Lab Writing
Quizzes
15%
Unit Tests/Projects
50%
Description
Homework assignments, when assigned will be graded
for completion and will be due at the beginning of class.
We will be using a writing to learn approach in this
classroom. (We will be also do a lot of drawing and
labelling). We will write the answers to questions, claim
and evidence paragraphs, thesis statements, lab
conclusions, data tables, and reflections, among other
things. Rubrics/Guidelines will be provided.
All classwork, notes, and homework will be kept in an
interactive notebook in your interactive notebook. It is
important that you bring your notebook to EVERY
CLASS. If you choose, and there is no written homework,
you may keep your notebook in the bin for your block.
Instructions and a rubric for the notebook will be
distributed and discussed. The notebook will be
collected and graded at the end of each unit.
There will probably be at least one short quiz each week.
These may or may not be pre-announced. 15 points each
There will be an assessment at the end of every unit.
The format will vary, but may consist of multiple choice,
fill in the blank, matching and/or free response.
Retest Policy
Students who score below a 70% on a unit test will be invited to take a retest. In order to be allowed to
take the retest, the student must complete a test correction sheet for the original test. The retest grade will
replace the original grade in the gradebook. Retests will be offered during specific time periods, either
before or after school or during Pride. If students cannot be at school during those times, we will discuss
other options.
Late Work and Absences
All work must be turned in at the beginning of class or when I have said it is due. Work turned in late will
not be accepted except under the following conditions:
 Illness
 Field Trip
 Other legitimate reason (excused by your teacher).
Absences
If you are absent, it is your responsibility to make up any missed assignments.
Check your class period’s folder in the While You Were Out bin for missed work.
The scope and sequence, notes, assignments and their due dates will be posted on
4
AP Chemistry Syllabus
the class website. Any homework or classwork missed will be due the next class period. If you are absent
for a test, you are expected to make up the test. Appointments to make up a test must be scheduled ahead
of time to come before or after school or during a Pride.
Class Expectations



Respect yourself, and the opportunity you have been given to learn in this classroom.
Respect others and their needs, both in and out of the classroom.
Respect our environment: in the classroom, in the school, and outside.
Safety Expectations
Safety is of the utmost importance in chemistry. For this reason, you will be expected to wear goggles and
follow lab rules during every lab. Failure to wear goggles will result in removal from that lab and a grade of
0. Lab safety will be discussed in detail at the beginning of the semester.
BYOT Expectations
We will use our technology, including our phones, as a learning tool in this classroom. In order to respect
each other and give ourselves the best environment to learn, we will follow the follow technology
guidelines:
RED: Possession Only
 All devices/phones/ipads/tablets must be SILENT and OUT OF SIGHT.
 Electronic devices may be confiscated by faculty if visible or in use.
YELLOW: Specified Use
 Electronic Devices are permitted only for a specific purpose as instructed.
 Permission may be revoked if off task.
GREEN: General Use
 Usage is permitted without distracting others.
 Making or receiving phone calls is not appropriate.
 Loss of network access or other consequences possible for violating Acceptable Use Policy.
Charging: You may charge your phones/other devices as needed in the SPECIFIED AREAS. Ask Mrs. Irwin
where the specified areas are.
Poll Everywhere account: We will use poll everywhere as a way to answer quick questions and complete
formative assessments during class. Everyone will sign up for a poll everywhere
Inappropriate Behavior
Safety Shower: Students are not permitted to pull the safety shower handle unless it is
an emergency. Any violation of this policy will result in time spent cleaning the room and an additional 10
hours of community service for the science department.
Eye Wash: Students are not permitted to play with or turn on the eye wash unless it is an emergency
Vandalism: Please take care of all furniture and equipment. Any violation of this policy will result in
immediate disciplinary action from administration.
Cheating/Plagiarism
It is expected that you will follow the Park View Honor Code at all times. Cheating, plagiarism and other
academic dishonesty will result in a 0 for that assignment. Plagiarism includes not citing your source
correctly or copying someone else’s work word for word.. Cheating includes copying someone else’s work
5
AP Chemistry Syllabus
or letting other people copy your work. There will be a lot of group work during labs in this class, but
everyone must turn in their own work in their own words.
Extra Help
Ms. Irwin will be available for extra help on Tuesdays and Thursdays before school and on Wednesdays
after school, and by appointment. If you need help and those times do not work for you, please ask and we
can arrange a time. Ms. Smith is also available after school on most days for extra help.
Labs
1. AP Chemistry Investigation #7: Stoichiometry: Using the Principle That Each Substance Has Unique
Properties to Purify a Mixture: An Experiment in Applying Green Chemistry to Purification (LO 3.5)
2. Hostage and Fosset: Experiment #1: An Introduction to Qualitative Analysis
3. Guided Inquiry: AP Chemistry Investigation #8: Redox Titration: How can we determine the actual
percentage of H2O2 in a drugstore bottle of hydrogen peroxide. (LO 3.9)
4. Hostage and Fosset #17: Exploring Electrochemistry—Building a Daniel Cell
5. Molar Volume of Gas: Students use Dalton’s Law and the Ideal Gas Law to measure the amount of
hydrogen gas collected over water.
6. AP Chemistry Investigation #5: Chromatography: Sticky Question—How Do You Separate Molecules
That Are Attracted to Each Other (LO 2.10)
7. Guided Inquiry: AP Chemistry Investigation # 12: Calorimetry: The Hand Warmer Design Challenge:
Where Does the Heat Come From? (LO 5.7)
8. AP Chemistry Investigation #1: Spectroscopy: What Is the Relationship Between the Concentration of
a Solution and the Amount of Transmitted Light Through the Solution? (LO 1.15)
9. Guided Inquiry: AP Chemistry Investigation #6: What’s in That Bottle? (LO 2.22)
10. Factors Affecting Reaction Rates (Carolina) (Introductory Lab)
11. Guided Inquiry: AP Chemistry Investigation #10: How Long Will That Marble Statue Last? (LO 4.1)
12. Guided Inquiry: AP Chemistry Investigation #3: What Makes Hard Water Hard? (LO 1.19)
13. AP Chemistry Investigation #13: Equilibrium: Can We Make the Colors of the Rainbow? An
Application of Le Chatelier’s Principle. (LO 6.9)
14. Hostage and Fossett Experiment #10: Calculate the Acid Ionization Constant of a Weak Acid Using
Three Methods (LO 6.13)
15. Guided Inquiry: AP Investigation #16: Buffer Design: The Preparation and Testing of an Effective
Buffer: How Do Components Influence a Buffer’s pH and Capacity? (LO 6.18)
16. Guided Inquiry: Determination of Chloride in Solution By Titration Using Mohr’s Method.
AP Chemistry Unit Overview
Unit 1: Atoms, Reactions and Stoichiometry: Connecting the Macroscopic to the Microscopic
Class Periods for Instruction: 6
Zumdahl Chapters: 1,2,3
Essential Questions:
 How do we obtain the desired quantities of products from chemical reactions?
 What determines the product of a chemical reaction?
Labs:
 AP Chemistry Investigation #7: Stoichiometry: Using the Principle That Each Substance Has Unique
Properties to Purify a Mixture: An Experiment in Applying Green Chemistry to Purification
 Hostage and Fosset: Experiment #1: An Introduction to Qualitative Analysis
6
AP Chemistry Syllabus
Unit 2: Reactions Involving Electron Transfer: Single Replacement, Redox, and Electrochemistry
Class Periods for Instruction: 9
Chapters: 4,18
Essential Questions:
 When the auto mechanic informs you that your car battery is “dead”, what does that mean at the
molecular level?
 Why do saltwater fishermen place Zn plates on their boat’s engine?
 What are the costs and benefits of using disposable batteries?
 Why do only some substances react when mixed?
Labs:
 APChemistry Investigation #8: Redox Titration: How can we determine the actual percentage of
H2O2 in a drugstore bottle of hydrogen peroxide.
 Hostage and Fosset #17: Exploring Electrochemistry—Building a Daniel Cell
Activity:
 Metals in Aqueous Solutions and Metal/Metal Ion Reactions: a Laboratory Simulation.
 Voltic Cell 2.0 Simulation: Students are presented with an electrochemical cell simulation. Students
determine what conditions must be present to make the cell function based on voltage data and
nanoscale animations of redox reactions. Students list the solutions and metals that make
electrons flow in the cell.
Unit 3: Particles and Interactions: Energy, Gases and Intermolecular Forces
Class Periods for Instruction: 11
Chapters: 5,6,10,11
Essential Questions:
 What complications can arise in scientific investigations based on making assumptions about gas
behavior?
 Why do physical data, such as boiling point, sometimes deviate from predictions?
 Which deviations on the nanoscale best explain behavior on the macroscale?
 How are energetic changes in reactions represented?
Labs:
 Molar Volume of Gas: Students use Dalton’s Law and the Ideal Gas Law to measure the amount of
hydrogen gas collected over water.
 APChemistry Investigation #5: Chromatography: Sticky Question—How Do You Separate Molecules
That Are Attracted to Each Other
APChemistry Investigation # 12: Calorimetry: The Hand Warmer Design Challenge: Where Does
the Heat Come From?
Activity:
 Eduweb Online Heating and Cooloing Curve Simulations.
Using the eduweb lab simulation website, students heat an unknown and graph its temperature as it
cools, giving them the ability to calculate the energy released.
7
AP Chemistry Syllabus
Unit 4: Atomic Structure
Class Periods for Instruction: 6
Chapters: 7
Essential Questions:
 What are the implications if the quantum model is inaccurate?
 How does Coulomb’s Law explain the structure of the atom and the periodic trends?
 How can the quantum mechanical model of energy levels in conjunction with Coulomb’s Law
explain periodic trends?
 How can we use light to measure the concentration of particles dissolved in a solution?
Labs:
 APChemistry Investigation #1: Spectroscopy: What Is the Relationship Between the Concentration
of a Solutino and the Amount of Transmitted Light Through the Solution?
Activity [CR3a]
 PhET Model of the Hydrogen Atom.
Unit 5: Molecular Structure: Bonding in Covalent, Ionic and Metallic Substances
Class Periods for Instruction: 7
Chapters: 8, 9
Essential Questions:
 What can and can’t we know about a chemical bond?
 How does the arrangement of the outer electrons in an atom determine how the atom bonds to
others and forms materials?
Labs [CR] and [CR6]:
 APChemistry Investigation #6: What’s in That Bottle?
Activity [CR3b]
 PhET Molecular Shapes Simulation: Students will use the simulation to develop rules they can
follow regarding the shapes of molecules based on number of bonds and lone pairs.
Unit 6: Kinetics: How Fast Does It Go?
Class Periods: 6
Chapters: 12
Essential Questions:
 What potential hazards can arise from ignoring rates of reaction?
 How do molecules actually interact during a chemical reaction?
 What happens at the microscopic level that helps us understand that concentration,
temperature, surface area and catalysts affect rates of reactions?
 What are the industrial and environmental benefits of catalysts?
 Does a reaction mechanism accurately tell scientists what occurs at the molecular level?
Labs:
 Factors Affecting Reaction Rates (Carolina) (Introductory Lab)
 AP Chemistry Investigation #10: How Long Will That Marble Statue Last?
Activity
 Online Kinetics Activity
Using a web-based simulation, students will study the elementary steps of a mechanism and
how it relates to reaction rate and collision theory.
8
AP Chemistry Syllabus
Unit 7: General and Solubility Equilibrium: How Far Does It Go?
Class Periods for Instruction: 7
Chapters: 13, 14
Essential Questions:
 What economic impacts result from limits in equilibrium yields of industrial products?
 How did the manipulation of the ammonia equilibrium with its elements prolong World War I and
decrease global starvation?
 How does calcium carbonate solubility in the ocean affect your daily life?
Labs:
 AP Chemistry Investigation #3: What Makes Hard Water Hard?
 AP Chemistry Investigation #13: Equilibrium: Can We Make the Colors of the Rainbow? An
Application of Le Chatelier’s Principle.
Activity:
 Iowa State University Simulation: Students view the NO2/N2O2 Equilibrium simulation available
on the General Equilibria Animations Index page at Iowa State University and verbally report
and discuss their answers to questions.
Unit 8: Acid Base Equilibrium
Class Periods for Instruction: 9
Chapters: 15,16
Essential Questions:
 If our blood were not buffered, what activities and foods could be fatal to our bodies functions?
 How can we determine how much more acidification our oceans can take?
Labs:
 Hostage and Fossett Experiment #10: Calculate the Acid Ionization Constant of a Weak Acid
Using Three Methods
 AP Investigation #16: Buffer Design: The Preparation and Testing of an Effective Buffer: How Do
Components Influence a Buffer’s pH and Capacity?
Unit 9: The Driving Forces: Chemical Energy and Thermodynamics
Class Periods for Instruction: 5
Chapters: 17
Essential Questions:



How can an endothermic reaction ever be thermodynamically favorable?
How is it possible for solutions to form when they have endothermic heats of solution?
Combustion is thermodynamically favored, so why hasn’t all of the combustible material in
the world already burned?
Labs:
 Determination of Chloride by Titration Using Mohr’s Method
Water pollution by sodium chloride is a problem in our local area after snow removal. During the
winter of 2014-2105, the water in Montgomery County turned brown, and the County claimed the
cause to be increased solubility of manganese levels in the water as a result of high levels of sodium
chloride in the water supply from snow removal efforts. Students will gather a sample of water from
a local source in the fall and again in April. They will analyze both sources to compare the levels of
chloride in the water at different times of the year, and complete a report analyzing possible sources
of the difference and ramifications of the sodium chloride pollution.
Activity: Salt Solution (Iowa State)
9
AP Chemistry Syllabus
(Mini) Unit 10: The Nernst Equation and Electrochemistry Again
Class Periods: 1
Chapters: 18
AP REVIEW
Class Periods: 5
Chapters: All
AP EXAM: Monday, May 4, 2016, 8:00 AM
Final Words
Don’t panic if some concepts or vocabulary seem difficult or confusing. Ask for help, and we will work
through the concepts together. The key to chemistry is to develop problem solving strategies. Decide
what you know, what you want to find out, and come up with a strategy to get from the first point to the
second. Even if you don’t arrive at the “accepted” answer, you will make progress in your learning if you
follow your logic.
Signatures
I have read a copy of the syllabus and grading policy.
Student Name: _______________________________ Signature: ___________________________________________
Parent Name: ________________________________ Signature: ___________________________________________
Phone # (h): ______________________ (w): _________________________ (c): _________________________
Parent Email: ____________________________________________________
Concerns:
10
Chemistry Syllabus
Mrs. Irwin
12