[tlaspires2rn]

Hi everyone. I'm in great need of a pep talk here. I just got the grade back on my 2nd chem exam and I got a 66%! This is after getting a 96% on the first one. I'm just not getting this stuff and the further into he goes the more difficult it becomes. Over half the class flunked this exam. Is it me, or is something wrong with that picture? I'm seriously thinking of dropping the class and maybe trying it somewhere else next fall, or with a different professor. I was so excited initially, but now, I'm so confused, whenever I see a word problem I just freak! I don't know what is the "given" what I need to find, etc. It just all runs together. I'm just sooooo confused. Any suggestions? Anyone? I don't mean to whine, this just really has me down.

[itsa307]

Originally Posted by tlaspires2rn

Hi everyone. I'm in great need of a pep talk here. I just got the grade back on my 2nd chem exam and I got a 66%! This is after getting a 96% on the first one. I'm just not getting this stuff and the further into he goes the more difficult it becomes. Over half the class flunked this exam. Is it me, or is something wrong with that picture? I'm seriously thinking of dropping the class and maybe trying it somewhere else next fall, or with a different professor. I was so excited initially, but now, I'm so confused, whenever I see a word problem I just freak! I don't know what is the "given" what I need to find, etc. It just all runs together. I'm just sooooo confused. Any suggestions? Anyone? I don't mean to whine, this just really has me down.

I know how you feel. Every class is a struggle for me and I always seem to be a class behind before I "get" it. I totally freak when I see the problems on tests too. I have to almost pull myself back and say to myself "you CAN do this." What worked for me on our last quiz is that I did every problem in the book for practice and that gave me more confidence on the quiz. My problem is mole to mole conversion set up. That's what I need practice on. What are you working on? Does your professor offer extra credit? Our's is letting us do a 2 page paper for 5pts on a household chemical cleaner and we can do 3 of them. Now I just need to get working since I'm currently on spring break. This is not a easy class but I think that if we all can just keep up that it is possible to pass. An A is not possible with my professor so I'm hoping for an B but would settle for a C. I really want that B though......

[allieinaz]

Hiya all,
I'm feeling your pain as well. Chemistry is starting to get harder...ugh. I have an exam in about another week and freaking out. we are doing nomenclature, molarity, conversions....all on one test! All I can think is....that's a lot of information!!!
My instructor has helped make the conversions as simple as possible. If there's a question regarding the conversions, I can try and help to make it a little easier. I'm hoping it's regarding to Avagadro's number (amu, molecules, mols, atoms) to liters...etc.
Let me know. =o)
Allie

[Maria895]

Hi everyone! I'm so happy I found this forum (I'm new to the site)! I'm starting Chemistry 101 in 2 days and I'm SO scared!

I went to see my new Chem. instructor (everyone tells me she is good) and she said that if I did good in my math class, I would do o.k. in Chem. Fortunately I did well in both Math 098 and Math 099 (got A's in both - was best in class in both), so I'm hoping everything will be o.k.! Please tell me what you all think - I'm taking the class at Bellevue community college in WA state, by the way (in case anyone who goes here might know a little more about the class). One problem is is that I never took Chem. in high school, so I have no knowledge about the subject whatsoever!

I'm a bit of a worrier (grades are a big deal for us Pre-nursing students!) so when I looked at my new Chem. books, I didn't know whether to cry or start praying LOL! Please let me know if I should be SO worried! - I'm so scared (in case you couldn't tell LOL)!

[itsa307]

Originally Posted by Maria895

Hi everyone! I'm so happy I found this forum (I'm new to the site)! I'm starting Chemistry 101 in 2 days and I'm SO scared!

I went to see my new Chem. instructor (everyone tells me she is good) and she said that if I did good in my math class, I would do o.k. in Chem. Fortunately I did well in both Math 098 and Math 099 (got A's in both - was best in class in both), so I'm hoping everything will be o.k.! Please tell me what you all think - I'm taking the class at Bellevue community college in WA state, by the way (in case anyone who goes here might know a little more about the class). One problem is is that I never took Chem. in high school, so I have no knowledge about the subject whatsoever!

I'm a bit of a worrier (grades are a big deal for us Pre-nursing students!) so when I looked at my new Chem. books, I didn't know whether to cry or start praying LOL! Please let me know if I should be SO worried! - I'm so scared (in case you couldn't tell LOL)!

It's great that you've taken math recently, that will help alot. I only took biology in HS....15 yrs ago and Chemistry is very hard for me. I also have a hard not so nice teacher. But I think it is doable. The best advice someone gave me is to do all the questions in the book. I think it really helps you figure out what you don't understand. It takes a while to do them all but really helps prepare you for quizzes, tests, and labs. Also try to stay a chapter ahead. I am always a chapter behind now in figuring stuff out and it's really hard to stay afloat! It sounds like you have a nice teacher. Good luck & try not to worry too much!

[AnnieMc]

Originally Posted by Maria895

Hi everyone! I'm so happy I found this forum (I'm new to the site)! I'm starting Chemistry 101 in 2 days and I'm SO scared!

I went to see my new Chem. instructor (everyone tells me she is good) and she said that if I did good in my math class, I would do o.k. in Chem. Fortunately I did well in both Math 098 and Math 099 (got A's in both - was best in class in both), so I'm hoping everything will be o.k.! Please tell me what you all think - I'm taking the class at Bellevue community college in WA state, by the way (in case anyone who goes here might know a little more about the class). One problem is is that I never took Chem. in high school, so I have no knowledge about the subject whatsoever!

I'm a bit of a worrier (grades are a big deal for us Pre-nursing students!) so when I looked at my new Chem. books, I didn't know whether to cry or start praying LOL! Please let me know if I should be SO worried! - I'm so scared (in case you couldn't tell LOL)!

I think you'll be fine if you're ready to memorize a bunch! In our class, we had to memorize all the polyatomic ions in the book and their charges. We also had to memorize the solubility rules, so I'm not sure what your teacher expects. If you have a lot of time to study, I'd say go for it! As far as math goes, there are a lot of word problems in Chemistry and a strong math background definitely helps. Sometimes my math skills help me to figure out a problem on a test without even knowing what i'm doing

[tlaspires2rn]

Does anyone have a good way to break down word problems? Maybe a trick to weed out the information that's just thrown in to make the problem harder than it really is? Our TA always tells us that they put a lot of "extra" information in a problem simply to make it harder and then she'll cross out about half of it. Somehow, I can never figure out what's needed and what isn't. I'm treading water here, but I feel like I'm just about to go under. I really don't want to have to take Chemistry a second time. Ouch!

[allieinaz]

Originally Posted by Maria895

Hi everyone! I'm so happy I found this forum (I'm new to the site)! I'm starting Chemistry 101 in 2 days and I'm SO scared!

I went to see my new Chem. instructor (everyone tells me she is good) and she said that if I did good in my math class, I would do o.k. in Chem. Fortunately I did well in both Math 098 and Math 099 (got A's in both - was best in class in both), so I'm hoping everything will be o.k.! Please tell me what you all think - I'm taking the class at Bellevue community college in WA state, by the way (in case anyone who goes here might know a little more about the class). One problem is is that I never took Chem. in high school, so I have no knowledge about the subject whatsoever!

I'm a bit of a worrier (grades are a big deal for us Pre-nursing students!) so when I looked at my new Chem. books, I didn't know whether to cry or start praying LOL! Please let me know if I should be SO worried! - I'm so scared (in case you couldn't tell LOL)!

Welcome to the chem group Maria! Everyone here is very helpful and positive! There is a lot of information on this forum that will help you through the class as you go along. One of the best things that I did to help me through my chemistry class is to purchase the "cliff study solver - Chemistry." Going through the problems in your textbook along with the study solver will help you understand things a lot better. I wish you luck in your class! PM if you have any questions.

Originally Posted by tlaspires2rn

Does anyone have a good way to break down word problems? Maybe a trick to weed out the information that's just thrown in to make the problem harder than it really is? Our TA always tells us that they put a lot of "extra" information in a problem simply to make it harder and then she'll cross out about half of it. Somehow, I can never figure out what's needed and what isn't. I'm treading water here, but I feel like I'm just about to go under. I really don't want to have to take Chemistry a second time. Ouch!

I'm feeling ur pain tlaspires.....i asked my instructor regarding the word problems as well. She said the best way to look at it is to find..
1. What is the given in the problem.
2. what are they asking for in the answer
3. is there conversions involved? ensure to follow the steps for conversions that are needed.

Hopefully this helps a little bit....this has helped me in some of the problems. good luck.

[Maria895]

Originally Posted by allieinaz

Welcome to the chem group Maria! Everyone here is very helpful and positive! There is a lot of information on this forum that will help you through the class as you go along. One of the best things that I did to help me through my chemistry class is to purchase the "cliff study solver - Chemistry." Going through the problems in your textbook along with the study solver will help you understand things a lot better. I wish you luck in your class! PM if you have any questions.



I'm feeling ur pain tlaspires.....i asked my instructor regarding the word problems as well. She said the best way to look at it is to find..
1. What is the given in the problem.
2. what are they asking for in the answer
3. is there conversions involved? ensure to follow the steps for conversions that are needed.

Hopefully this helps a little bit....this has helped me in some of the problems. good luck.

Oh, thank you so much!!!! I just checked out the book you recommended on Amazon and I'm feeling a lot better already - it looks just like what I needed! I'm going to order it first thing tomorrow! Thanks for the warm welcome and encouragement ! - I do believe this is one of the best websites I've ever found! Everyone here is so nice and its nice to know there are people who can relate to how hard it is to get into nursing school!

[itsa307]

Ok I need some calculator help here. When using Avagdro's number (6.02 x 10 23rd) to calculate molar mass what do I type in the calculator to make it work. I'm doing something wrong here and my midterm is Weds!