Chemistry on the Road
Overview
Chemistry on the Road is NC State’s classroom visitation program. The presentations are designed for grades K-12 and correlate with the current North Carolina Standard Course of Study. This program has been delivered to over 50,000 students in North Carolina. A current schedule of school or community center visits can be found on our Calendar. Currently, three different programs are available for K-12 classrooms.
The maximum group size is around 60 students (two combined classes or three small classes). Presentations do not adapt well to large groups in an auditorium but can be repeated multiple times during a day with groups moving to the presentation. The optimum duration is about 1 hour for early elementary and 1 1/2 hours for all other students. We welcome parents and teachers to participate in these presentations. Students will find the presentations entertaining and instructional, but parents and teachers also carry away an understanding of topics beyond what the student will get. We encourage parents and teachers to reinforce the material presented after the presentation.
States of Matter
This presentation can be tailored to early elementary, upper elementary and even middle school classes. For early elementary the program focuses on naming the states, describing their properties and illustrating the transitions between states. For upper elementary and middle school the general topic of states of matter is the same, but the property of density is emphasized and a chemical test for carbon dioxide is introduced. A more detailed outline of the “State of Matter” presentation can be found here.
Foods That Change Color
This set of demonstrations illustrates the fundamental concepts of acid/base chemistry. This program is best suited for middle and high school physical science and chemistry classes. The color of food is affected by pH, a unit that scientists use to measure acidity. The extracts from colorful fruits and vegetables change colors depending on the pH. Chemists, hobbyists and gardeners use similar colorful indicators to measure pH. More common laboratory pH indicators will also be examined to further explore the definition of pH. Many of the experiments presented here can also be repeated outside of class with common household products.
Chemical Energy Transformations
Demonstrations for energy transformations are most appropriate for high school chemistry classes. This program includes experiments which demonstrate four types of chemical energy conversions: conversions to light energy, electrical energy, mechanical energy and heat energy. Contact us to tailor a custom presentation for teachers who have specific needs. More information regarding concepts covered in this program can be found in the Energy Transformations Outline.
