Hi everyone,

One of my GCE O Level Chemistry Sec 4 student from Anglo Chinese School (ACS) sent emailed me a challenging O Level Chemistry Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) and i would like to share it with you.

At first look, it seems to be a very challenging tricky question since you would not know which chapter / topic does the question belongs to. I was contemplating between using essential concepts from either ENERGY CHANGES (Exothermic & Endothermic) or TRENDS IN PERIODIC TABLE to answer the question.

Let’s take a look at the question:

Question 1:

Hi sean, I came across this question and I would like to know the answer.

Which pair of elements, described by their proton number, will react together most exothermically?

A. 1 and 8
B. 3 and 10
C. 9 and 19
D. 12 and 16

Suggested answer and reasoning by my student as follows (i always encourage my student to analyze the question for possible answers and propose it, before asking me for an answer, cos that is how they learn effectively):

I know for sure that B is wrong since proton number 10 is for an unreactive noble gas. My guess is 12 and 16, because both are 2+ and 2-, so the overall charge is greater than the rest.

Which is the correct answer? And on what basis do I use to determine the correct answer?

So all Chemistry students out there (be it GCE O Levels,  GCE A Levels, IGCSE, IB and IP Chemistry), what is your take?

Feel free to give your answers & reasoning in the “LEAVE A REPLY” section below. I would love to hear from you.

PS: I will come in at later stage to give my suggested answer and reasoning (more…)

Hi students,

Do you want to learn how to score at least 20 more marks for your Chemistry exam which is less than 3 months away ? If your answer is yes, please read on.

Else, you may forward it to friends who want the marks. We will be conducting an upcoming Organic Chemistry Mastery Workshop 2009 that can help you to score at least 20 more marks in your O Level Chemistry exams regardless of how you fare for previous Chemistry topics.As a gift to my readers of SimpleChemConcepts.com, i would like to first invite you to join us at this workshop before we officially launch it to the public. The best part is, if you hurry, you can enjoy the special “subscriber” early bird price. (But hurry because the normal price will resume once we launch to public)

Q) Why 20 more marks some might asked?

Answer: This is because the weightage of Organic Chemistry in GCE ‘O’ Levels Chemistry Exams is very high. For 2008 papers, it is worth a total of 21 marks!

During the 3 days workshop, get ready to learn:

• Comprehensive coverage of 100% fundamental concepts of the GCE ‘O’ Level Organic Chemistry syllabus through Associations, Analogies, Applications & Accelerated Learning Technologies^TM
• The art of application of basic Organic Chemistry concepts to real examination questions through simple step-by-step approaches
• The secrets to understand Organic Chemistry quickly and easily without rote learning or facts memorization

As seats are extremely limited, do not miss out this opportunity to learn how to score at least 20 more marks in your Chemistry exam.

>>Click HERE for Early Bird Registration for Organic Chemistry Mastery Workshop 2009<<

See you at the workshop!

To Your Academic Success in Chemistry
Sean Chua
Master Trainer & Author

PS: Workshop will be conducted locally in Singapore.

PPS: This workshop is suitable for both Pure Chemistry & Combined Science (Chemistry) students

PPPS: Registration will stop once seats are all taken up, without prior notice (more…)

What would happen to your O Level Chemistry Grade when you Master your Organic Chemistry quickly and effectively within 12 hours?

Be Back Here on 5th (Thank you for your patience) July 2009. We have something exciting to announce! =)

Hello everyone,

My sincere apology for missing in the month of June. =)

I was busy with coaching several groups of committed O Levels / IGCSSE / IB / IP students that wanted to improve their Chemistry Concepts (and thus their academic grades) in an intensive manner during the June School Holidays in Singapore. Phew! It’s finally over!

Topics that were discussed included the followings:

1. Atomic Structure & Chemical Bondings – Basic but Most Important Essential Concepts
2. Acids & Bases – relate to our everyday life actvities i.e. shampoo, coffee, rainwater, etc
3. Salts & Qualitative Analysis – Super Memory Techniques & Flow-Charts for effective learning and ease of memorisation
4. Periodic Table Trends & Metals – discussion on O Level Examination Application Questions
5. Rate of Reactions & Energy Changes – Applications questions in O Levels Chem Exam. No way you can score well just by memorising definitions
6. Redox & Electrolysis – a “4-Step System” taught to ensure students will always get the answer correctly with confidence
7. Mole Calculations – “See-Saw Method” plus other Systems taught to ensure students answer questions confidently & correctly

The above topics will cover about 70 – 80% of the syllabus for GCE ‘O’ Level Examinations.

This Intensive Revision Programme (in which ALL essential concepts were discussed for each topic) was physically tiring but mentally & emotionally fullfilling. The feeling was estatic each time when we finished one workshop (2 topics), when i see students having more interest in the topics and scoring better in the Post-Tests (as compared to their Pre-Tests). I am confident to say that the students leave the workshops with more confidence and desire to score the grades they truly deserved.

You can view the video below on selected photos that were taken:

You can check out the URL HERE.

If you have missed our June Intensive Revision Programme, you can be posted of our upcoming workshops by filling up your details HERE. In addition, we will also be conducting our annual ‘O’ Levels Organic Chemistry Mastery Workshop 2009 in late July. More information will be furnished within the week.

In the next 2 weeks, i will be blogging more on the misconceptions and common mistakes that i observed during this June Intensive Programme.  Stay Tuned! =) (more…)