Advice to prepare for intro chemistry and English 1?

jnichox2 · May 29, 2014

English 1 or Composition 1 is based around a lot of writing. It may be different for you but for me I had to write 4 essays, a bunch of journal entries on a theme for the semester, and in class discussions. At the end of the class we had to submit a portfolio with a cover letter of certain work. I would say that if your at a CC, check out your academic support center. See if your college as a writing lab and get some one on one with a tutor. That can go over your MLA, thesis, etc.

For Intro to Chem. Lab was always interesting. For lecture I had to memorize chemist and their achievements in the scientific community. I had to know most of the elements, but there was always a periodic table in class. You'll start with the basics for the first couple of weeks (atoms and charges) The elemental forms (gases-Noble gases, Solids, Liquids, metals non-metals, etc.), Types of compounds (ionic, covalent, polar covalent, hydrogen). Things that were important to remember were formulas for reactions (synthesis, decomposition, acid-base, decompsoition, combustions) and gas laws (Charles, Avargado, Boyle's, Ideal). The only math that was really required of us was to balance chemical equations and solve the formulas I listed above. Hope this helped a little.

tbbtpeach · May 29, 2014

Hey! Utilize a tutor if you feel the need. You may find as the semester continues that you feel more comfortable by yourself. Try to keep your bases covered now and check out the resources at your school for a tutor. For Chem, the best advice I can give is to study, study, study. There is some math, but a lot of comprehension questions as well. I loved chem! My prof was a sweetheart. Check RateMyProfessor.com and look up your prof to make sure that they have good ratings BEFORE you take the class. Keep ahead in the reading and take good notes; always go to lecture. You'll do great and you will pass! Good luck!

Natasha A., CNA, LVN · May 29, 2014

@jnichox2

Thank you! I will definitely check out my CC tutor writing lab.

@tbbtpeach

Good idea. I'm at home learning the basics just so I can be prepared for

When class starts for english.

Thanks for the link and I will check the teacher rating. I hope to have the same enthusiasm attitude like you for chemistry! :) thx

Folkeye · May 29, 2014

I was terrified of Math AND Chemistry. Considering I'm 34 and hadn't been in any form of school in about 12 years... needless to say getting back in the swing of things didn't allow me to choose where to start since I didn't have priority registration after that long of an absence.

I started with the the Int Algebra, and actually shocked the pants off myself and got an A. It was doing the homework and having a most awesome rocket scientist (literally) as a friend who LOVES math and was a great tutor, and I decided to pay for one every two weeks to also help. Between the two of them it went very well and they made my brain hurt less. Things work out in the end and glad this happened BEFORE chemistry, which I wanted to come back in as my first class choice....

I got my Chemistry completed a few weeks ago and was pretty scared of it when I started. Never had chemistry before, just generic high school sciences classes way back when, so I had no clue what to expect. Did I have to memorize EVERYTHING? Would that periodic table come back to haunt my dreams? Thankfully the answer is no, it did not. Though I did dream of chemistry too often when I did homework before bed. Busy dreams! My teacher had a more practical approach. He knows 'in the real world' most people would just pull out their phone and look up any of the info they wanted so he took a different approach. He had handouts we were allowed to use, things that showed us strong and weak acids, the species of different element charges, and full use of the periodic table. He wasn't worried about us having the basic info in front of us, it was being able to know how to use it that was important. We did have to memorize some of the basic elements by name, and spell them correctly of course but not to an insane extent.

As for the math, it's not difficult, very basic, and had a lot of it for a while. The problem I had was getting the numbers in the proper place. Doing the conversion factors... such as going from minutes to hours, easy. Throw in a few more steps and ways to get from step A to step E, sometimes I had trouble with. It was more about just learning how to convert things and get them in the right place to solve the problem through simple division and multiplication. Learn how A relates to B relates to C...and all is good.

If you get bored and want to see what my class covered, check this out: chemistry 4

If you scroll down to the first set of links for Chapters 1-16 you'll see the Power Point handouts that were used during the lecture and the homework questions he got from the book. Might give you a good idea what to expect :)

He was very organized, the labs weren't super difficult... but not always that interesting. It got much more interesting when the organic part was covered.

I did have my ups and downs in the class, but did study, did get help from a friend and worked with a classmate at the library so that helped a lot. Also, the internet is your friend to help find various explanations that might make understanding clearer. I got A's and B's on the tests/quizzes and pulled through with an A (thanks to some extra credit I think!)

Natasha A., CNA, LVN · May 29, 2014

@folkeye

Very well explained and put together. Thank you and I will check out the link you posted. I see that by you having a tutor and a study partner helped you succeed tremendously in class. :)

Nursing24/7, LVN · May 29, 2014

Library. Check out MLA English guides & chemistry for dummies or the chemistry demystified series to get yourself comfortable with the material before you take the class, so you aren't completely in the dark. I highly recommend this for those who have been out if school for many years &/or folks who already struggle with sciences.

And I agree with the others on the tutor. Even if you think you have the material down pact, it doesn't hurt to see a tutor 1x a week to make sure you stay on the right track. It'll be worth it in the end. If you can get A's in all your prereqs & core reqs you'll be in a more competitive position as a nursing student. Good luck!