Pre-Chemistry Course Overview:

This Pre-Chemistry homeschool course for middle school and and high school students will focus on introducing students to the basic structure of elements and how elements combine to form compounds. Upon completion of this middle school course, students will be familiar with the Period Table, the structure of an atom and the mechanism involved in ionization and compound formulation.

Everything you hear, see, smell, taste, and touch involves chemistry and chemicals. And hearing, seeing, tasting, and touching all involve intricate series of chemical reactions and interactions in your body. With such an enormous range of topics, it is essential to know about chemistry at some level to understand the world around us.

Grade Levels

6-9

Prerequisites:

N/A

Example Class Video

Facebook Live Science Experiment

Curriculum:

1) Friendly Chemistry, ISBN 978-1-4565-1136-4
2) Elements of Faith, ISBN 978-0-89051-547-1

Required Equipment:

Minimal lab supplies are required.

Syllabus Download:

Pre-Chemistry Syllabus – Fall 2019 [PDF]

Syllabus Outline:

• Introduction to Pre-Chem (Unknown Powders Lab)
• Inside an Element (Electrolysis Lab)
• Electron Orbits (Slime Polymers Lab)
• Orbital Notation (Test 1)
• Electronic Configuration Notation (Hollow Penny Lab)
• Trends of the Periodic Table: Reactivity (Test 2)
• Trends of the Periodic Table: Ionization Energy (Graphing Lab 1)
• Trends of the Periodic Table: Atom Size (Graphing Lab 2)
• Ion Formation (Generation of Chlorine Gas Lab)
• Determining Charges (Fluoride Protection Lab)
• Forming Compounds (Test 3)
• Polyatomic Ions (Electroplating Lab)
• Balancing Equations (Generation of CO2 Lab)
• Gas Laws (Animated Gas Lab)
• Review for Final Test (comprehensive and required)

Course Reviews:

“My daughter just finished Mr. Leingang’s PreChemistry class and loved it! I highly recommend!!” ~ Erin

“I took Pre-Chemistry in fall, 2016, with Mr. Leingang during my seventh grade school year. He was my first online teacher. I liked him because he made us work hard and expected the best from us. He could make complex ideas very simple. He likes kids, but does not tolerate misbehavior. He himself works hard at teaching us, and it motivated me to work hard for him. I would love to take another class with him because he’s the best science teacher ever!” ~ Joshua

“My son and daughter (8th and 9th grade) took your Pre-Chemistry class this fall. It was NOT easy, however, they learned SO much and you made them work. You have high expectation and the kids learn to respect you and DO the work! I was so impressed with how they were able to rise to the challenge and with the level they were learning. This course is excellent! I love the book, the labs, the tests and homework. I also appreciate how quick you are with keeping the kids on topic with chat! You are an excellent online teacher! Can’t wait for the kids to take High School Chemistry with you next year!” ~ Suzy

Meet the Teacher

Chris Leingang

Pre-Physics, Physics, Pre-Chemistry, Chemistry, Forensic Anatomy, Creation Science

The desire to be a teacher was birthed in me during my 8th grade year. After graduating high school, I entered college with that desire still burning inside. In 1996, I graduated from Portland State University with a B.S. in Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and Physics and then went on to graduate from Concordia University [...]