This Introductory Chemistry textbook was developed by the Chemistry faculty at Montgomery College, and provided by Professor Patricia Takahara. The book is meant for students with very little or no background in chemistry. Concepts here are presented at a very basic level in order to provide the foundation for college-level general chemistry. This book is used in Introductory Chemistry, a non-credit, preparatory course at Montgomery College (Maryland).

Students wear nametags of an ion and find others throughout the school with whom they can create ionic compounds.

This activity will take complex molecules and polyatomic ions the students have learned and construct them out of marshmallows and redhots. This develops understanding in VESPR structures and hybrid molecules.

How do microwaves heat up your coffee? Adjust the frequency and amplitude of microwaves. Watch water molecules rotating and bouncing around. View the microwave field as a wave, a single line of vectors, or the entire field.

How do microwaves heat up your coffee? Adjust the frequency and amplitude of microwaves. Watch water molecules rotating and bouncing around. View the microwave field as a wave, a single line of vectors, or the entire field.

Small molecules are chemicals that can interact with proteins to affect their functions. Learn about the structure and biological functions of various small molecules like sugar and caffeine. Also featured on the HHMI DVD, Scanning Life's Matrix: Genes, Proteins, and Small Molecules. Available free from HHMI.

Students are challenged to use computer-aided design (CAD) software to create “complete” 3D-printed molecule models that take into consideration bond angles and lone-pair positioning. To begin, they explore two interactive digital simulations: “build a molecule” and “molecule shapes.” This aids them in comparing and contrasting existing molecular modeling approaches—ball-and-stick, space-filling, and valence shell electron pair repulsion (VSEPR)—so as to understand their benefits and limitations. In order to complete a worksheet that requires them to draw Lewis dot structures, they determine the characteristics and geometries (valence electrons, polar bonds, shape type, bond angles and overall polarity) of 12 molecules. They also use molecular model kits. These explorations and exercises prepare them to design and 3D print their own models to most accurately depict molecules. Pre/Post quizzes, a step-by-step Blender 3D software tutorial handout and a worksheet are provided.

In this interactive activity from ChemThink, learn about covalent molecules and how the VSEPR theory predicts the shapes of covalently-bonded molecules.

Students will predict bond polarity using electron negativity values; indicate polarity with a polar arrow or partial charges; rank bonds in order of polarity; and predict molecular polarity using bond polarity and molecular shape.

Explore molecule shapes by building molecules in 3D! How does molecule shape change with different numbers of bonds and electron pairs? Find out by adding single, double or triple bonds and lone pairs to the central atom. Then, compare the model to real molecules!

Explore molecule shapes by building molecules in 3D! Find out how a molecule's shape changes as you add atoms to a molecule.

This lesson combines a powerpoint lecture with the use of a reading activity to teach students about the theory and structure of molecules. 

Do you ever wonder how a greenhouse gas affects the climate, or why the ozone layer is important? Use the sim to explore how light interacts with molecules in our atmosphere.

Students research the structure of salt to understand the difference between molecular compounds and ionic compounds

In this high school physical sciences unit, students investigate why some substances absorb heat when they react, while others release it. Students first solve the mystery of where the energy goes in endothermic reactions by examining salt dissolution and using magnets as models for bonds. They then expand their investigations to look into where the energy comes from in exothermic reactions. The model they continue to develop using magnets, helps them account for why breaking bonds absorbs energy from the surroundings and forming bonds releases energy back into the surroundings. The end of the unit naturally motivates a new question to pursue in future units, “Why are some types of particles more attracted to one another than others?"

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Organic Chemistry research involves the synthesis of organic molecules and the study of their reaction paths, interactions, and applications. Advanced interests include diverse topics such as the development of new synthetic methods for the assembly of complex organic molecules and polymeric materials, organometallic catalysis, organocatalysis, the synthesis of natural and non-natural products with unique biological and physical properties, structure and mechanistic analysis, natural product biosynthesis, theoretical chemistry and molecular modeling, diversity-oriented synthesis, and carbohydrate synthesis.

This intermediate organic chemistry course focuses on the methods used to identify the structure of organic molecules, advanced principles of organic stereochemistry, organic reaction mechanisms, and methods used for the synthesis of organic compounds. Additional special topics include illustrating the role of organic chemistry in biology, medicine, and industry.

This intermediate organic chemistry course focuses on the methods used to identify the structure of organic molecules, advanced principles of organic stereochemistry, organic reaction mechanisms, and methods used for the synthesis of organic compounds. Additional special topics include illustrating the role of organic chemistry in biology, medicine, and industry.

This 7-minute video lesson shows how to represent the structures of organic molecules. [Organic Chemistry playlist: Lesson 1 of 73].

This self-paced course was originally designed to help prepare incoming MIT students for their first Introductory Biology Course (known at MIT as 7.01). It will also be useful for anyone preparing to take an equivalent college-level introductory biology class elsewhere. It includes lecture videos, interactive exercises, problem sets, and one exam.  Lecture Topics: Molecules of Life, The Cell and How it Works, Information Transfer in Biology, Inheritance and Genetics, and Building with DNA.
Go to OCW’s Open Learning Library site for Pre-7.01: Getting up to Speed in Biology. The site is free to use, just like all OCW sites. You have the option to sign up and enroll in the course if you want to track your progress, or you can view and use all the materials without enrolling.