This high school study guide is part two of a three-part course in high school chemistry. In this study guide, students will be introduced to the principles and tools of the study of chemistry. They will learn about gunpowder and fireworks, the chemical makeup of plants, nitrogen fixation, photosynthesis, and the invention of fertilizer. They will also learn the similarities and differences between natural rubber, fiber, and color pigments and their laboratory prepared counterparts, even making several themselves. Finally, they will learn several ways humans capture the sun’s energy and convert it into electricity (photovoltaic) and heat (solar thermal.)

The study guide includes reading assignments from the spine text, narration prompts, and open discussion questions. Experiments related to the reading are also included. Optional supplemental activities, such as current events, videos, and article suggestions when there is time, are also included. Finally, you will find a link to an exam for each course in the introductory material.

Pages: 66
Prerequisites: HS Chemistry, part 1. However, if you wish to combine students, your younger student can jump into the middle and return to the beginning in time.
This study can be used as one-third of a high school chemistry credit. Learn more about high school transcripts in this article.

Spine Text

This study guide accompanies the living book Wonders of Chemistry by A. Frederick Collins (Yesterday’s Classics, 2018, ISBN: 1633341046), which must be purchased separately.

260 pages, 20 chapters (76 pp, 6 chapters completed in this guide.)

Reading Level: grade 8-12 and up
I strongly recommend you purchase the newly reprinted Yesterday’s Classics version rather than using the older reprint as the older one is a print on demand from Archive.org and is missing several pages. However, the study guide provides page numbers for both versions.
If your student has reading difficulties, I am happy to share my own personal recordings of this book. (These include the readings for part 1 and part 2 only.) You can access them through DropBox.

Archie Frederick Collins (1869-1952) was a respected engineer, inventor, experimenter, and authority on wireless telegraphy. He wrote an incredible number of books and articles on topics including household mechanics, astronomy, chemistry, how-to manuals for piloting aircraft, submarines, rapid math, and more.

He wrote The Book of Stars to conform to the Tests of the Boy Scouts yet regarded it as a book that he hoped all would read. He thought all things in the sky, along with “the green grass, the trees, the birds and all other good things we have without price” should be looked at, enjoyed and valued to the fullest. In many of his books, A. Frederick Collins recommended that if the reader had any trouble or puzzles of understanding, they should write to him and he would gladly write back and do all he could to help. —Michele Jahncke (source)

Other Necessary Items to Complement This Course

Review the Supply List for this course.
The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe by Theodore Gray (Black Dog & Leventhal, 2012, 240 pp.) You may either purchase the book or the app. The book has also been reproduced on Theodore Gray’s website.
That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles by Joe Schwarcz (ECW Press, 2002, 273 pp.) Only three chapters are assigned this term, so it is an optional addition.

Schedule:

This study guide includes 33 lessons, each requiring approximately 30-40 minutes. You can either schedule it:

Three times a week for 11 weeks allowing for exams during the 12th week, or
Once a week for an entire year, allowing time for exams at the end of each term, and including other science subjects on the other days of the week.

Before SMH science guides, my older children dreaded science. The first guide we used was high school chemistry and they soon grew to appreciate God’s remarkable creation!

—Christina L.

Sample Lessons