▶️ Reactions by Theodore Gray. This beautifully illustrated coffee table book is the final entry in Gray’s popular Chemistry trilogy (see Elements and Molecules) and should be appreciated by readers of all ages: “The book begins with a brief recap of elements and molecules and then goes on to explain important concepts the characterize a chemical reaction, including Energy, Entropy, and Time. It is then organized by type of reaction including chapters such as "Fantastic Reactions and Where to Find Them," "On the Origin of Light and Color," "The Boring Chapter," in which we learn about reactions such as paint drying, grass growing, and water boiling, and "The Need for Speed," including topics such as weather, ignition, and fire.” – All

▶️ What is chemical equilibrium? from TED-Ed. “When molecules collide, chemical reactions can occur—causing major structural changes akin to getting a new arm on your face! George Zaidan and Charles Morton playfully imagine chemical systems as busy city streets, and the colliding molecules within them as your average, limb-swapping joes.” – All

▶️ What triggers a chemical reaction? from TED-Ed. “Chemicals are in everything we see, and the reactions between them can look like anything from rust on a spoon to an explosion on your stovetop. But why do these reactions happen in the first place?” – Middle • High

▶️ Bubbles from Beautiful Chemistry. “Many chemical reactions generate gases. In solution, gases escape as bubbles. Here we show 4 bubbling reactions.” Also see Bubbling II and Bubbling III. – All

✏️ Reactants, products, and leftovers from PhET. “Create your own sandwich and then see how many sandwiches you can make with different amounts of ingredients. Do the same with chemical reactions. See how many products you can make with different amounts of reactants. Play a game to test your understanding of reactants, products and leftovers. Can you get a perfect score on each level?” – All

✏️ Balancing chemical reactions from PhET. “How do you know if a chemical equation is balanced? What can you change to balance an equation? Play a game to test your ideas!” – Middle • High

acids & bases

▶️ The strengths and weaknesses of acids and bases from TED-Ed. “Vinegar may have a powerful smell, but did you know it's actually a weak acid? In the chemical economy, acids actively give away their protons while bases actively collect them—but some more aggressively than others.” – Middle • High

✏️ pH scale from PhET. “Test the pH of things like coffee, spit, and soap to determine whether each is acidic, basic, or neutral. Visualize the relative number of hydroxide ions and hydronium ions in solution. Switch between logarithmic and linear scales. Investigate whether changing the volume or diluting with water affects the pH. Or you can design your own liquid!” – Middle • High

reduction & oxidation

▶️ Electrodeposition from Beautiful Chemistry. ”During electrodeposition, metal cations in a solution get reduced at the electrode connected to the negative terminal of a power supply. Beautiful metal structures can be generated in this process. In this film, the electrodeposition processes of 5 metals, including copper, tin, zinc, lead, and silver, were recorded under a microscope.” – All


▶️ Metal Displacement from Beautiful Chemistry. Eight types of beautiful chemical displacement reactions are presented in this short video. Also see Metal Displacement II. – All

precipitation

▶️ Precipitation from Beautiful Chemistry. This video features 5 precipitation reactions, each with its own “personality”. Also see Precipitation III and Precipitation IV. – All

catalysis

▶️ How to speed up chemical reactions from TED-Ed. “The complex systems of high school dating and chemical reactions may have more in common than you think. Explore five rules for speeding up chemical reactions in the lab that might just land you a date to a dance!” – Middle • High

Experiments

🖐️ Try Chemical Reactions. Chatterton’s Awesome Science Experiments for Kids has a lot of experiments that involve chemical reactions. Fill a balloon with carbon dioxide (a reaction product from the breakdown of sugar) in “Yeast Balloon.” Acids & Bases: Explore acid/base reactions with “Fizzy rocket,” “Exploding baggie,” “Fire extinguisher,” “Lava lamp,” and “Naked egg.” Reduction-Oxidation: Explore redox chemistry in “Does it Rust?” Catalysis: Observe how yeast catalyzes the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen gas in “Foam Explosion.” – Elementary

🖐️ Try Chemical Reactions. Check out Unit 4 (Change) and Unit 8 (Acid or Base) of Van Cleave’s Chemistry for Every Kid for some simple chemical reactions to try at home. – Elementary


🖐️ Try Chemical Reactions. Steve Spangler Science has a handful of good experiments to explore. Acids & Bases: Use acid-base chemistry to make everything from a carbon dioxide sandwich to a lava lamp to a naked egg. Learn how to make berry pH paper or red cabbage indicator, both of which can detect acids and bases. – All

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