Chem 150 and 164
Welcome!
Dear Student,
I am Tara Buñag, your instructor for Chemistry 150 and/or 164. I am excited to get started, and I'm sure you have lots of questions about the course and how it will work. This site is available to help you prepare for your first week of class, and you are welcome to use the materials on this site whether you are officially enrolled or on the waitlist.
I look forward to "seeing" you in the Canvas course site!
-Tara
I prefer to be called Tara or Dr. Buñag, and my pronouns are she/her
About this Class
Week 1 How and when to attend class
Attendance for the first week is required. There are 2 parts to the required attendance:
Complete the syllabus quiz in Canvas by the end of the 3rd day of the class, or contact me for assistance.
Select your Final Topic by the end of the week. You may end up making changes to your topic as you work on it, but you will be most successful if you have your topic early.
How this course works
This course may be taught in a full semester or 7-week format. Each "course week" starts on Monday and ends on Sunday in either format. All assignments have flexible due dates. This means that the assignment has a specific due date in Canvas, but if you need an extra day or two to complete it, that's okay! You do want to complete assignments as close to the due date as possible, particularly for the 7-week class, and those weeks go fast! Discussions need to be completed within the week assigned, so that other students may respond. Contact me if you need an extension on posting to a discussion.
This course includes some flexibility. You do have some choices of how you can engage with the materials:
Read
All course readings are in Canvas, and are provided for free! The only cost is if you decide to buy a physical copy of the textbook or if you decide to buy the ingredients to perform any of the optional experiments over the semester.
Participate/Watch
Watch mini-lectures on the course topics for the week (in weekly video pages in Canvas) - this is also great for review
Attend office hours or contact me for help with specific topics
Do
Required Canvas homework based on the readings. These all include multiple attempts, and are auto-graded, so you can try them out until you really understand the content!
Additional optional practice - available for many different topics throughout the course.
For Chemistry 164: Lab experiments - there are virtual, simulated, and real lab experiments throughout the course. Most labs include a pre-lab quiz. Make sure to read the lab instructions, take the quiz, then complete the lab experiments. The pre-lab is designed to help you focus on the concepts most important to completing the lab correctly and safely. If you are in Chemistry 164, you will need a lab kit, so talk to me about how to get this!
Final Projects - There are no exams in either 150 or 164. Instead, both classes include a final project.
Chemistry 150 final project - writing a personally relevant case study for the textbook
Chemistry 164 final project - running and writing up your own chemistry experiment
Communication Essentials
How to Contact me
There are two very quick ways to contact me:
Send me an email at bunagt@yosemite.edu, and include the course you are emailing me about in the subject line or message.
If you are officially enrolled, send me a message from within Canvas - you can do this from the Inbox or the Help (? icon) in Canvas. Both are available on a computer or a mobile device. Once the course starts, you can also access the Teams space for the class, where you can send me text-style messages.
You can also contact me through the "Questions for my instructor" discussion in Canvas, once you have access to the course site. There are 2 advantages to using this discussion for general questions:
See if others have asked the same question
Other students may also share the answer they found to the question
How quickly can you expect a response?
I generally respond to emails within 24 hours on weekdays or up to 48 hours on the weekend. Generally, I respond to emails very quickly, but do remember, I have to sleep, too! I typically do not read emails during lecture times or office hours, since I am focused on students in the room. If you have a question during office hours, you can get an instant response by stopping into office hours.
Week 1 Success Kit
Week 1 and 2 in Chemistry 150
Read/Watch
Syllabus
Chapter 1 and 2 of the textbook
Overview of course assignments and projects
Math review
Complete These for Summer 2023
Note - assignments can be submitted early, and it is recommended to complete them as early as you can, to give yourself some flexibility
Monday, June 26, by the end of the day
Complete the syllabus quiz to stay enrolled in the course. You just need to attempt the syllabus quiz, you do not need a perfect score. You can continue to retake it all week.
Tuesday, June 27
Make your first post to the Introductory Discussion
Make sure to read about your final project!
Thursday, June 29
Final Project Topic Selection
Sunday, July 2
2 additional posts to the Introductory Discussion
Math Review Quiz
Sunday, July 9
Final Project Sources
Matter Quiz
Materials you will need for week 1 and 2
All course materials can be found in Canvas. Here's what you can access outside of Canvas:
Full course textbook - available from LibreText - select PDF or Downloads to download the entire book. The Downloads link can also allow you to order an optional print copy of the book, or you are welcome to print the pages you would like from the book. The Chemistry 150 textbook is used for both 150 and 164.
Computer - You will need regular access to a computer that meets Canvas technical requirements to be able to complete assignments. There are many other resources for online coursework. That site also has information about low-cost internet options.
Microsoft 365 Suite - This is available for free to all students! Highly recommended!
Scientific Calculator - Non-programmable,TI 30XA or TI 30XIIS recommended. No graphing calculators. If you do not have a scientific calculator, there are some online, such as the Desmos Scientific Calculator
A way to take digital pictures or video (phone, laptop, digital camera, etc.) and scan papers (a scanner or a phone app that allows scanning).
For Chemistry 164 - you will need to pick up the free lab kit from the college. More information will be provided the week before the class starts.
Optional (all materials below are free)
Canvas Student app for your phone or tablet. Available for Android or iOS. Most materials in the course can be viewed on a mobile device.
Scanning App (a couple options are below)
Adobe Scan app to create PDFs from images and/or a scanner.
Google Drive on your phone, you can also use that to scan to PDF. How to Scan to PDF with Google Drive.
YouTube videos for this course. If you find any issues with the videos, contact me so I can fix it right away - don't just press the downvote! I'd be happy to add/replace videos to help you!
Chemistry 150 Videos - I will be adding more videos, by request
A really great playlist of math review topics for chemistry:
The Math You'll Use in Chemistry, by Melissa Maribel
Pact
What you can expect from me as your instructor:
I will actively help you to succeed both in this class and the classes this is a pre-requisite for.
I will respond to emails promptly, typically within 24 hours, and I will keep you updated in Canvas if there will be longer delays.
I will listen to your feedback and needs to improve the course.
I will challenge you to achieve your best.
I will return graded assignments with feedback to you within one week of the due date.
I will ensure that Canvas is always updated with due dates, materials, and support to help you learn the weekly materials.
What I expect of you:
You will participate in the course by attending and participating in lectures, posting to discussions, or meeting with student groups.
You will log into Canvas regularly throughout the week and watch for notifications, alerts, emails, and feedback both in Canvas and your student email.
You will attempt to submit assignments on time, or as soon as practical.
You will contact me by email, office hours, or through Canvas when you have questions, concerns, or feedback.
You will spend approximately 18 (9 in the full semester format) hours on Chemistry 150 each week and 12 (6 in the full semester format) hours each week for Chemistry 164, selecting appropriate activities to learn the lab and lecture content.
Teaching Philosophy
Everyone (yes, that includes you!) can learn chemistry, and I am here to help you to find the ways that work best for you.
Chemistry is the central science, and it is important to everyone and everything. It has been studied by people from all walks of life, and it is incredibly important for people from diverse backgrounds, with diverse abilities, and with diverse goals study and participate in chemistry. I treasure the unique view each student brings to the course, and sharing these views makes the course better for everyone.
Learning chemistry requires action and interaction. Supported practice, interaction with the text, other students, and the instructor, and experimentation are all essential. These all will help you find your unique voice in chemistry.
Our classroom is a learning community, where I encourage students to make the connections and the social/emotional support that makes completing challenging courses so rewarding.
Mistakes are a part of the learning process, perhaps the most important part! Flexible due dates, choice in assignments, and other features are part of my courses to help you feel comfortable making and learning from your mistakes.