Leaving Cert Chemistry

glenn3ie

Anyone got any study tips for HL Chemistry? I'm aiming for a high B and can't really see any patters in the papers. What AWLAYS comes up? Any help appreciated.

G

KeyLimePie

know all your experiments
they're worth 37.5 percent
do as many short questions as you can
that gives you 50%
and then just choose some questions that you find easy and know those inside out

Piste

One thing which people slag me for but does work(!) is to make flashcards. You can by ridiculously luminous flashcards in Reads and on the ridiculously luminous side write a word, or a person, and on the back write the definition, or the discovery. This is great for learning definitions as you can earn a ton of marks that way!

dip

If you know your experiments and definitions you're well on your way to that B.

Wouldn't advise learning purely what you think might come up, but
Q6 has been oil/octane number/heat of combustion for the last four years in a row, fairly easy question methinks
Equilibrim and Le Chat's principle has been up every year since 2002, though it's often just a part (a) /(b) / (c) of a question.
Make sure you know the first few chapters really well (atomic radius, ionisation energy, radioactivity etc) as Q5 is usually based on this and is very do-able

Cost Boy!!

you should definitly learn all the experiments and definitions off well, alot of the organic stuff comes up every year as well, and practise calculations for pH, equilibrium etc.

glenn3ie

thanks folks, keep it coming!

rainbowtrout

Q5 is always atomic theory as was said before corresponds roughly to chapters 3 - 7 in Chemistry Live if that's the book you are working from

Q6 and Q7 are usually Organic Chemistry, one on fuels and thermochemistry and the other on organic synthesis


There is usually a question on Chemical Equilibrium, I would expect a mathematical one this year, it was theoretical last year.


Q11 c is the Option from the workbook. There are 3 parts to Q10 and Q11, if you attempt either of those questions you only need to answer 2 parts of each. So there is a guaranteed half question in there. Lots of stuff that doesn't warrant a full question is thrown into those two, like calcuting mole values, radioactivity, conjugate acids/bases.

Oh, they are pretty fond of water. It has come up in some shape or form every year so far.


Remember you can answer 2 experiments from Section A and 6 questions from Section B

OR you can answer all 3 experiments from Section A and 5 questions from Section B


but you must answer at least 2 of the experiements - so learn them properly.


Realistically you could do the following for the paper

All 3 experiments
Short answer questions (Q4) - you must know your definitions.
Atomic Theory (Q5)
Two organic questions (6 and 7)

and one other, maybe the one with the option.

eoinalmighty

Know your option cos it has to come up and learn radioactivity cos der usualy in the same q! Know Organic chemistry and thermochemistry inside out cos theres always 3.5 to 4 questions on this. Learn volumetric analysis aswell so if you know your volumetric and organic you will be able to do 2 experiment questions.

Or you could just learn everything! Dat covers you for everything! D course isnt as big as it looks if you condense it to the key points. There's a lot of superfluous stuff in the books

jhn_noln

EXPERIMENTS, EXPERIMENTS, EXPERIMENTS!!!! because if you know them inside out thats three questions straight away and then make sure to do every short question you can find, past exams, mocks, and from books etc. because the same types come up most years. Along with them there is at least a question and a half on organic (more than likely two) so that could set up up with six questions with just two more to look at!!!
Also last years radioactivity question about the spy who got killed was quiet a nice surprise in the exam hall, i predict another modern tpoic perhaps this year to keep the exam student friendly and more importantly interesting!!!!!!

Yuugib

The thingy that i did could be v. helpful too. I wrote out in the notebook all the exam qs and the anwers from the marking scheme that came up in particular topics and learned them off, that basicly covers most of the chapters material, then you just have to go back over a lil bits and pieces that are left.
The papers are like the bible in chemistry, they always tend to ask similar things.
So.. papers papers papers!

ps - Bleach titration is v. likely to come up

rainbowtrout

Yuugib wrote: »

ps - Bleach titration is v. likely to come up

yes, it has never come up before.

dip

Yuugib wrote: »

ps - Bleach titration is v. likely to come up

+1

marus aureilous

ya i agree chemistry is fine lik organic can be up to 4 and a half qs in sum papers lik u nearly hav an honour der q 5 is ch 1 to 7 industrial option hasnt bin up n ages but dey favour atmospheric, definitions 2 der worths 10 percent of da course if u spend 10 percent of ur time doin dis ur sorted. hope ph nd water cum up der grand flame test as half exp wud b gr8. also q 4 is gr8 4 pickin 50 out of 50 nly learned organic nd titrations 4 pre nd still pulled of 70 lik cudnt believe it. balls bout da date tho hand will b gone fter all da english pp2

rainbowtrout

marus aureilous wrote: »

ya i agree chemistry is fine lik organic can be up to 4 and a half qs in sum papers lik u nearly hav an honour der q 5 is ch 1 to 7 industrial option hasnt bin up n ages but dey favour atmospheric, definitions 2 der worths 10 percent of da course if u spend 10 percent of ur time doin dis ur sorted. hope ph nd water cum up der grand flame test as half exp wud b gr8. also q 4 is gr8 4 pickin 50 out of 50 nly learned organic nd titrations 4 pre nd still pulled of 70 lik cudnt believe it. balls bout da date tho hand will b gone fter all da english pp2

I hope you're not going to write like that in your English paper. try using the whole keyboard

Yuugib

marus aureilous wrote: »

ya i agree chemistry is fine lik organic can be up to 4 and a half qs in sum papers lik u nearly hav an honour der q 5 is ch 1 to 7 industrial option hasnt bin up n ages but dey favour atmospheric, definitions 2 der worths 10 percent of da course if u spend 10 percent of ur time doin dis ur sorted. hope ph nd water cum up der grand flame test as half exp wud b gr8. also q 4 is gr8 4 pickin 50 out of 50 nly learned organic nd titrations 4 pre nd still pulled of 70 lik cudnt believe it. balls bout da date tho hand will b gone fter all da english pp2

i gave up after the first few words arghh... my eyes!!