Did you know that Butane is a gas sold bottled as a fuel for cooking and camping? If not, then you should. When it is blended with some other hydrocarbons such as propane, it is generally called liquified petroleum gas or LPG for short. We also use it as one component of petrol.Did you know that children learn this in Organic Chemistry in the FET phase? If you have chalk, you can write its structural, condensed and molecular formulae on a chalk board. Then it goes into a book and hopefully the learners will see the pattern of how to learn it properly.
Did you know that learners cannot visualize concepts in Chemistry? How do learners "see" a molecule such as butane? The condensed formula for a molecule of this gas is CH3CH2CH2CH3 and its molecular formula is C4H10 . How does a learner construct this molecule mentally? Using a ball-and-stick model (if available) an educator can give him/her an idea.
Another idea is to do it electronically. Using software a learner can visualize and manipulate the molecule to get a better understanding. Since many schools have laptops, data projectors and Interactive Whiteboards it will be good practice to use it in their Chemistry teaching.
Check this out on an Interactive Whiteboard.
Did you know that the Chemistry mark is brought down by the section called Organic Chemistry? Can we do something about it? YES WE CAN, ELECTRONICALLY!
