Chemistry Solutions

The adolescent brain is like a partially formed lump of clay that is waiting to become something amazing. During this time of critical development, learning is shaped by everything teenagers do and by everyone they encounter.

Shaping the Clay

The author’s classroom with seating in clusters to build trust and confidence as students adjust to an interactive learning environment. Photo by author.

Teens learn from experience, from people, from trying new things, and even from failing. What happens during this formative time will help shape the ways they think, the ways they interact, and the ways they look at the world. As a high school chemistry teacher, I want to be a part of that experience!

My goal is to teach my students how to relate science to their everyday lives and to guide them as they build their critical thinking skills. The window of opportunity for teachers to positively influence the developing student brain is expansive. But the growing number of distractions, particularly with advancing technology, can shrink that window, leaving less and less room for students to grow and learn how to think for themselves.

I am a teacher who believes in the benefits of classroom routines. In my classroom, our daily routine begins with a “Do-Now” task. This typically involves a short, science-related reading for students, often just a few sentences, along with prompts to either review a prior session or to consider what they might know or be able to figure out about the day’s scheduled topic. After a short, timed period during which students record their own thoughts, they then use their notes to discuss Do-Now answers within their assigned groups.

In the beginning of this year, I became frustrated when my Do-Now routine wasn’t working. The cause didn’t seem to be the routine itself, but more so that the students weren’t getting on board with it. I considered whether I’d forgotten to do or say something when introducing the concept, whether we were facing even more distractions this year than in the past, or whether students were just slow getting back into the rhythm of school.

But no, it didn’t seem to be any of those things. Each day, despite repeating daily the directions for how each class would begin, it was like the previous day had been erased, and I needed to explain all over again the nature of a Do-Now task.

After several days of boiling inside, yet calmly repeating reminders for students to begin the task, something occurred to me. Despite constantly taking in content on their phones, students just as quickly forget what they’ve just watched. I started to wonder whether this “forgetting” behavior is being inadvertently programmed into our students’ brains!

With that hypothesis in mind, I decided to adjust some of my favorite routines in an attempt to help students break through the ever-growing list of distractions around them—so they could focus on truly learning.

Step One – Grab Their Attention!

With the assistance of AI, I decided to make my daily expectations abundantly clear. I created several versions of colorful signs (Figure 1) to enhance what is already posted in the front of the classroom.

My room is arranged to seat students in small clusters, like little families, because I’ve found that helping students to feel comfortable with the people around them helps them be more successful in my interactive class.

So I started placing several laminated, colorful signs at each seating cluster before class to grab students’ attention and encourage them to prompt their “families” to get started. This also lets them know they’ll only have a few minutes to complete the work before they’re required to participate together in a conversation about that work.

Step Two – Practice Makes Perfect Better

While my Do-Now questions are sometimes straightforward, they can never be answered with a simple “yes” or “no.” During my years teaching, I’ve noticed that students are not generally comfortable answering questions or even having small group discussions about anything that doesn’t have a quick, distinct answer.

I wondered if perhaps that fact had also contributed to the students’ reticence to begin their daily tasks?

Their discomfort would make sense according to Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. In his theory, the final “formal operational stage” of cognitive development begins around age 12 and continues into adulthood. Teenagers are still newcomers to this cognitive stage, and they’re only starting to learn to think more abstractly and to reason about hypothetical problems. So I decided to try to help them further develop this skill.

As a result, I began structuring the daily Do-Now questions so that those covering the early parts of a unit ease students into thinking beyond simple facts. Below are some examples of the newly structured questions:

• After learning about protons, neutrons, and electrons—but before learning overall atomic structure:
  • Based on what you know about the properties of subatomic particles, why might an electron that is farther from the nucleus have more energy than one that is closer to the nucleus?
• After learning about the basic nature of covalent bonds:
  • How might you assume single, double, and triple bonds to compare in strength? Why?

Framing these questions using words like, “might” and “assume” could possibly ease students fear of being wrong and allow them to “risk” coming up with an answer on their own. Questions like these also allow room for conversations to occur, as the causal reasoning will not yet be apparent since students haven’t yet learned the deeper concepts.

I generally encourage students to add to their original notes while discussing the Do-Now responses within their groups, but I ask them not to cross out anything they originally wrote. I want to instill in them the idea that all their thoughts are important, even initial ideas that may not have been correct or complete.

It’s beneficial to challenge teenagers’ learning boundaries, while also showing them that failure along the way is normal—and even expected.

I’ve learned to hold the more abstract questions until I’ve already taught all the essential concepts within a unit. Examples of those questions are below:

• After studying the nature of covalent bonding in molecules and contrasting it with other bonding types:
  • Based on properties of molecular compounds, why do you think coffee in fast food places is often served in Styrofoam cups?
• After studying atomic structure and performing flame tests:
  • How can you choose which elements would produce the best show when used in fireworks?

My thought is that the daily practice of abstract thinking—combined with the collaborative struggles experienced during small group conversations—will hopefully help students progress in their willingness and abilities to critically solve problems.

Step Three – Just Keep Trying!

The labs we do in high school do not generally require complex equipment or elaborate set-ups. So once I feel confident that students can work safely in the lab, I stop providing full procedures. Of course, I thoroughly address all safety precautions before students begin!

Instead of receiving detailed directions, students work in their groups to figure out which equipment and procedures could be used to accomplish the objectives I’ve provided. As guidance, I often have the appropriate equipment set out at their stations so they’ll only need to figure out how using it can address the lab goals.

Because this is another place where students are likely to resist the open-endedness of the tasks, I try to sit in on as many conversations as I can—so I can agree or disagree with their ideas.

My hope now is that each time they successfully figure out and complete a step or a process, they will experience a bit of instant gratification, like they are so accustomed to feeling when using their phones or social media.

My dream is to get students so interested in their classwork that they’re not thinking of where their cell phones or earbuds might be. Maybe this is unrealistic, but I’ll take as a win every little moment when something in my class distracts students from their distractions!

The developing teenage brain is a challenge for students and teachers alike to work with every day. It’s a challenge for my students to learn and for me to “win” their attention. And so I’m continuously looking for ways to keep these kids interested in what they need to learn each day.

As a teacher, I’m committed to continually challenging them, guiding them, and encouraging them. And, for their sakes, I will continue to examine my own routines to find ways to help students push through their distractions so they can keep molding their amazing brains.

Chemistry Solutions is a place where teachers share their solutions to problems, their perspectives on challenges, and their creative ideas. I invite you to explore the November 2026 issue to find advice, interesting stories, and innovative methods that some of your peers are finding to address everyday challenges.

• In the Featured Article on classroom safety culture, newly retired teacher Diana Gano reflects on how even the most safety-trained teachers can encounter lab accidents, but having a solid foundation can ensure that those accidents remain minor.
• Retired Army officer and early second career teacher Sean O’Halloran shares his challenges and successes in designing classroom structures to maximize student engagement in the learning and doing of chemistry.
• In her Nuts & Bolts article, experienced teacher Zeynep Araci outlines well-tested strategies she uses to reduce student cheating on in-class exams.
• In “Class Is in Session. Grab an Oar.”, longtime educator Diane Bunce tells the story of how a chance kayaking encounter in Canada led her small group of retired scientists to establish a recurring outreach program with a rural K-12 school in beautiful Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland.

The teenage brain is ever changing, while society and technology are ever advancing. As teachers, we have an important yet difficult job as we work to guide students through the stages of their cognitive development and try to teach them something along the way. It can be frustrating and it can be challenging, but with every new challenge, teachers can undoubtedly find a way through.



Carmen Foschino
AACT High School Ambassador
2026–2027