Chem Spring 2008

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Hi all,

Hoping to start a Chem study group for Spring 2008. I do not begin class until January 15th but figured I would see about getting a group together as soon as possible.

Specializes in Pediatrics, School Nursing, Pre/post op and PACU.

Hi everyone!!

I have a major question for you and would really appreciate your advice....

I am just finishing up my chem class and our final is tomorrow (:yeah:. Anyway our teacher has been displaying some really inappropriate behavior. Now, I have a B and have attended EVERY class and I know I am locked in to a B so my concerns are for the other classmates and future ones as well.

Our teacher has been increasing rude and snappy to our class. She always comes 5-20min. late for class. (I should say that she is pregnant but doesn't give you the right to be mean, I have been pregnant myself).

She always misgrades our papers and tests and it's up to the student to go see them and tell her about the mistake. She doesn't go back and change everyones, just the ones who pointed it out. She has also said she messes up on them bc she takes some kind of medication.

She also doesn't go over any questions, she either won't answer them or gives us the wrong information. She NEVER explains the labs and gets angry when we don't get it.

She has gone to other student's teachers and talked to them about how "lazy" the student is.

I could go on forever but these are the highlights. I have not done anything yet bc I was afraid she would find out it was me and mess up my grade.

Should I go the chem chair in person or write an annomous letter or something else

Thank you for your help:heartbeat

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart allieinaz!!! :heartbeat:heartbeat First of all thank you for the encouragement - as a pre-nursing student its hard stay upbeat about even an A- so thank you! Secondly, your tips were amazing - my text book was soo confusing compared to this and my teacher wasn't really willing to explain anything. I'm going to print your tips out and study with them, so thank you so much! :bow: :nuke:

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Hey Maria

Do you go to school at Bellevue Community College? I thought I read that in a post by you earlier in this sticky. Anyway, I am a BCC student, and taking pre-reqs for nursing as well. I have to take Chem 101 in the Fall and am wondering if you could give me your :twocents: about your professor. I am trying to decide who to take Chem from since I took in HS but now they require us to take a college level class. It's been 16 yrs since HS and I've been reading thru you/Allie/ posts. I have to say I'm so nervous because they look GREEK! I don't remember learning ANY of those things! Do you recommend your professor? Any other tips on other pre req's you've taken at BCC?

Also, I wanted to say that getting an A- is AWESOME! I think you should be proud!! I'm guessing you've been working your keister off for that grade, great job- we're half way thru the quarter!

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Specializes in Critical Care.
Hey Maria

Do you go to school at Bellevue Community College? I thought I read that in a post by you earlier in this sticky. Anyway, I am a BCC student, and taking pre-reqs for nursing as well. I have to take Chem 101 in the Fall and am wondering if you could give me your :twocents: about your professor. I am trying to decide who to take Chem from since I took in HS but now they require us to take a college level class. It's been 16 yrs since HS and I've been reading thru you/Allie/ posts. I have to say I'm so nervous because they look GREEK! I don't remember learning ANY of those things! Do you recommend your professor? Any other tips on other pre req's you've taken at BCC?

Also, I wanted to say that getting an A- is AWESOME! I think you should be proud!! I'm guessing you've been working your keister off for that grade, great job- we're half way thru the quarter!

Wow, its great to meet a fellow Bellevue Community College student!

First of all I'll give you my :twocents: about Chem 101 and my professor: To be honest Chemistry is a tough class, and I wouldn't take it with anything too hard alongside it! It requires alot of study time and I recommend going to the tutoring center WHENEVER you feel like it. You should also make sure you are at a Math 99 (Intermediate Algebra) level in math because it is quite math based. I'm taking a 'hybrid' class which means that I only go once a week and the class lasts 3 whole hours :bugeyes: Some of my classmates wish they had taken a class that meets more times a week for less hours. If your not taking any classes in the Summer I would buy the textbook in advance and study it over the summer. I sure wish I had had that chance! As far as my professor goes, her name is Cathy Lyle, and while she is nice, she definitely doesn't take alot of time to answer questions and she's not an easy grader! The tests are tough, but if you do well on all the in class quizzes, online quizzes, and lab work, you should get a decent grade. I would go to a website like RateMyProfessors.com and look up all the Chemistry teachers for BCC. Ms. Lyle is nice, but there may be easier teachers out there - however if you like the idea of a class that leaves most of your week free and you want a nice teacher take a 'hybrid class' with her. If you have any other questions about Chem. 101 at BCC, please feel free to ask! :nuke:

Now onto tips for other pre-reqs I've taken at BCC:

Psychology 101 and Developmental Psych. - I highly advise Julia Wales! I took her both times and got an A in both classes, the only thing that is difficult is that she wants you to do 'study guides' for extra points and these study guides are really a long series of questions (25-40 Long winded questions) relating to the upcoming test material that you have to type up all of the answers to. However, even if you didn't want to do these for extra points, since she tests using multiple choice from the test bank, if you study the book well you will do good and get an A. Another great thing about Ms. Wales is that she gives you a flat A if your in the A range (no A- nonsense!). She also has you do some APA journal assignments - but their not too hard. Also, she is really nice.

Math: I've taken math 98 using computer software in class and 99 online using the same software, and I loved the software format. The Math 99 final is hard, but I really advise taking Ms. Shook because she will help you. Ms. Shook is easily one of the nicest teachers I have ever known, so I highly advise her!

English 101: Go to RateMyProfessors.com and pick the teacher with the highest rating. Whatever you do don't take a online class with Rhonda Gilliam - she isn't nice and she's a tough grader!

I haven't taken A&P or Microbiology yet, but I heard that a good place to take A&P is actually Renton Technical College - everyone (I sure do agree) says that BCC prides itself on being the hardest Community College in WA - and apparently BCC's A&P is way hard. But the A&P classes at Renton Technical College are way more reasonable apparently and if your willing to make the drive its worth it because a good grade in A&P is critical for us pre-nursing students!

I've also taken some other classes for my Associate Degree in Arts and Sciences (alot of nursing programs at 4-year colleges want that completed) and I advise T. Perry for History because he is easy and an easy grader (he gives out bonus points every week too!). You won't learn that much in his class (he likes to show movies LOL) but since we're going into nursing (and not into history) who cares!

I hope all these tips helped and if you have any other questions please feel free to ask! Thank you so much for your kind words - I have indeed been working hard - and its great to hear such kind encouragment! :heartbeat:heartbeat

I hope I see you around BCC! :)

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Hi Maria!

I wanted to post here and thank you for taking YOUR time to reply with so much helpful information. I have found this site to be such a breath of fresh air about human beings! :yelclap::1luvu:

So many of the members are helpful and take time out of their busy schedules to help others succeed in school! I LOVE IT! You will make an amazing nurse someday. I sent you a private message so you can check your message with a few other questions. Thank you again, and thanks to ALL the wonderful members who care about their peers!:redpinkhe

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Specializes in Telemetry and Psych.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart allieinaz!!! :heartbeat:heartbeat First of all thank you for the encouragement - as a pre-nursing student its hard stay upbeat about even an A- so thank you! Secondly, your tips were amazing - my text book was soo confusing compared to this and my teacher wasn't really willing to explain anything. I'm going to print your tips out and study with them, so thank you so much! :bow: :nuke:

You are sooooo welcome! i'm glad that it made sense to you. Sometimes its hard to write on this when you need to use small numbers and symbols...etc..lol.

Well, I just took my final tonight! I am DONE!! Woo hoo!!!!! 1 more final to go....tomorrow evening for Bio 181. I will be soo happy this weekend knowing that i'm done with these two classes!

I will post as soon as I get my final grades.

Hang in there everyone!!!!

Busymom

If you get a chance...look thru the entire chem spring 2008 section. I have typed out notes to make it easier to learn some of the topics for chemistry.

the Z scale for understanding conversions from Kilo to deci...etc.

How to do conversions from mol to mol, mass to mass, mass to g, etc.

and a few other notes. Hope it helps out and good luck to you in fall.

:typing:):nurse:

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Ok this is too funny! This morning I searched through this entire Thread for all of your (Allie) posts and cut and pasted all of your Tips & hints into a Word document so when I start Chem in the Fall I will have them handy!!! I guess you could say we are on the same "wavelength"! :up: I can only hope that I will be as successful as you and Maria have been in Chemistry!

On another note, thank you very much for your positive words and encouragement. I feel SO incredibly BLESSED to have found this site. It gives me the confidence to know I can do it! You have no idea how much your words have helped me as I was very nervous and apprehensive about becoming a student after being a stay at home mom for the last 9 1/2 years. I was worried about being in the classroom with people as young as 16 years old but little by little I have realized that if I take one day at a time I, too, can be an A student and that if I believe in myself I can do anything. So thank you to all of you!:redpinkhe:redbeathe:redpinkhe

Good luck to you on your Biology final !

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A calculator question: is there one specifically that you would recommend? I don't have one and realized after reading thru the posts that I guess I'll need one for the fall when I'm braving Chem 101 ...figured I'd post the question to all of you now while this Thread is still near the top ! Thank you for your expertise!

Oh, and I wanted to tell Allie that you will have no problems in Psych 101, which I believe you said you start on Monday. I'm taking it right now, it's very interesting but pretty easy. If you can get an A in Chem you'll barely have to work for it for psych. Good Luck!

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Specializes in Critical Care.
Hi Maria!

I wanted to post here and thank you for taking YOUR time to reply with so much helpful information. I have found this site to be such a breath of fresh air about human beings! :yelclap::1luvu:

So many of the members are helpful and take time out of their busy schedules to help others succeed in school! I LOVE IT! You will make an amazing nurse someday. I sent you a private message so you can check your message with a few other questions. Thank you again, and thanks to ALL the wonderful members who care about their peers!:redpinkhe

Hi BusyMomof5! I'm SO glad I could help you! Going to BCC can be tough, so I'm glad I could help a fellow student out. I too have found this site to be one of the kindest, and most helpful sites I have ever found! Getting to know such kindhearted people like you and Allieinaz has been the highlight of my week! :1luvu::icon_hug: I'm sorry its taken me so long to get back to you! Thank you for your kind words - its great to know I'll be going into a profession where I'll be working with people as nice as yourself! I'm going to send you a private message back with my advice, so go ahead and check your messages. Don't worry about Chemistry - you can do it! Being a mom is the hardest and most important job of all - you're doing that and I have every confidence you can do well in Chemistry !! As far as calculators go I recommend the Texas Instruments TI-30X IIS 2-Line Scientific Calculator. Feel free to ask any more questions! :nuke:

Good luck on your Biology final Allieinaz and thanks again for all your help!:nuke:

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A calculator question: is there one specifically that you would recommend? I don't have one and realized after reading thru the posts that I guess I'll need one for the fall when I'm braving Chem 101 ...figured I'd post the question to all of you now while this Thread is still near the top ! Thank you for your expertise!

Oh, and I wanted to tell Allie that you will have no problems in Psych 101, which I believe you said you start on Monday. I'm taking it right now, it's very interesting but pretty easy. If you can get an A in Chem you'll barely have to work for it for psych. Good Luck!

Yes -- after buying and trying several, I found I love the Casio fx-115MS. It is very intuitive, it has all the functions you'll need for Chem I, its display is easy to read, you can back up easily and correct inputting errors... I love it. And it was inexpensive. And it's solar/battery. And I got an A in both Intro Chem and Chem I! (I know, the calculator probably had nothing to do with it... LOL) Here's the link to Amazon's page for it:

http://www.amazon.com/Casio-FX-115MS-Plus-Scientific-Calculator/dp/B00004TVDO/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1210252611&sr=8-2

Check for prices elsewhere; you may be able to get it cheaper at Wal-Mart or Staples.

I *hated* the TI my school recommended for Chem I. I never could easily do exponents (which you'll use a lot in Chem, because of scientific notation) or square roots or logarithms. And the display on the TI I had was awful.

Anyway, my 2 cents!

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I still have another month, my school's schedule is just bizarre.

And right now I'm going crazy because I can't at all remember how to set up a problem to find the second temperature w/ Charles's Law. I'm just feeling completely stupid. Chem's just been "clicking" for me and now it's... not.

For Charles' Law, the equation is always:

V1/T1 = V2/T2

The easiest thing to do when working with gas problems is to remember the COMBINED gas law, and then it doesn't matter whether you have a Charles' Law problem or Boyle's, or Ammonton's or Avagadro's. The Combined gas equation goes like this:

V1 x P1 = V2 x P2

------- --------

n1 x T1 n2 x T2

(With the dashes representing the line between the numerator and the denominator.) If you know that equation, then you just cross out whatever variable(s) you don't need. So with a Charles' Law problem, the only two variables are volume and temperature, so you'd cross out the n on each side (number of moles) and the P on each side (Pressure), leaving you with just V1/T1 = V2/T2

Once you have your equation set up, you have to isolate either V or T, depending on the wording of the problem. So to find V2, it becomes:

V1 x T2 = V2

-------

T1

Notice that T1 is still in the denominator, but T2 is now in the numerator due to the algebra you had to do to isolate V2. (You had to multiply both sides by T2 to get it out of the right-hand side.)

Don't feel stupid, honey. I did great in Chem, but I did tons and tons of problems so that I felt really comfortable with each type.

Here's a great website with lots of gas law problems for you to practice with:

http://chemistry.alanearhart.org/Tutorials/GasLaws/index.html

Fabulous site; I could kiss that professor. Check out his other wonderful tutorials and quizzes. He saved my bacon when I was struggling with Lewis structures!

(If you haven't done the Ideal Gas equation, PV = nRT yet, then don't click on his Ideal Gas problems, just do combined gas law problems.)

Best of luck!

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Specializes in Telemetry and Psych.

Ok, had to post really quick. I ended up being so tired last night that I went to bed at 8:45pm!! Good lord, I don't think I have ever gone to bed that early! LOL.

Then getting up with the birds this morning! Is this what a morning is suppose to be??? LOL.

Now i'm sitting here at my desk with my cup of coffee and about to start studing for my bio final that's tonight. Have to leave for work in a little bit but glad that i went to bed early to give me a little more time this morning to study.

I can't believe the semester is going to be over by tonight....don't get me wrong..i'm glad its done but will truly miss the classmates i have met along the way.....

Have a wonderful day everyone!

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