Incorporating AACT Multimedia Resources into Your Chemistry Curriculum

By Kim Duncan on June 4, 2019

Many students have a hard time visualizing what really happens when a chemical or physical change occurs. Luckily, multimedia resources such as animations, simulations, and videos can help them connect their macroscopic observations with microscopic representations. AACT has an ever growing library of multimedia resources that include 18 simulations, 11 animations, and 4 video series made up of 31 total videos:

  • Simulations: All of our simulations are unlocked so that your students can interact with them. AACT teacher members also have access to instructions, teacher notes, and a student activity for each simulation.
  • Animations: Our collection of animations integrate particle diagrams to help students understand what is happening at the molecular level. They do not have sound, allowing you to speak to your students as the animation plays, stopping as needed to further discuss the content.
  • Sam Kean’s Disappearing Spoon: Each of the 11 videos in this collection tell the story of an element from the periodic table. The content has been adapted, from the book, The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements, by Sam Kean.
  • Founders of Chemistry: The 12 videos in this series allow your students to explore the lives of the most influential men, women, and events in chemistry. Each video includes video questions for your students to complete as they view the content.
  • Chemistry of Cars: The 4 videos in the Chemistry of Cars series highlight the chemistry involved in aspects of production and operation of automobiles. They are part of a larger Chemistry of Cars resource collection, sponsored by the Ford Motor Company.
  • Chemistry of Color: The 4 videos in the Chemistry of Color series highlight the real-world chemistry of paint and explore the chemical composition of paint, the technology used to match paint samples, and the future potential of paint. They are part of a larger Chemistry of Color resource collection, sponsored by PPG.

During the 2018 – 2019 school year AACT put together a series of unit plans that include lessons, labs, demonstrations, and multimedia resources for all of the major topic areas for chemistry. Below, we highlight where each of our multimedia resources might fit in to your curriculum.

Chemistry Basics

Chemical Measurements

Atomic Structure

The Periodic Table

Chemical Bonding

Stoichiometry

Gases

Phase Changes and Heat Transfer

Aqueous Solutions

Thermodynamics

Chemical Equilibrium

Acids and Bases

Chemical Kinetics

We hope that these multimedia activities will help you to reinforce your students’ understanding of complex chemical concepts and allow them to connect macroscopic observations with microscopic representations.