Chemical Reactions

Grades 6—8

Written by Jacqueline Barber

An ordinary ziplock bag becomes a safe and spectacular laboratory as students mix chemicals that bubble, change color, get hot, and produce gas, heat, and odor. Chemical Reactions explores chemical change, demonstrates endothermic and exothermic reactions, and develops skills in observation, experimentation, and inference.

Like all GEMS guides, it includes assessment suggestions and literature connections, provides the teacher with necessary safety precautions, and provides guidance in assembling materials.

Chemical Reactions is a great introduction to chemistry and has often been adapted for lower grade levels. This "GEMS Classic" continues to be one of the most popular guides in the series, and would make an excellent overview before presenting the GEMS unit Dry Ice Investigations, which focuses on the properties of one intriguing substance in the greater context of chemical reactions in general.


NSTA Recommends   Chemical Reactions
"Every year as I work to eliminate fluff in my curriculum in exchange for good concrete practical skills, I never go wrong with the GEMS teacher guides. In particular, Chemical Reactions provides activities that allow students to think and act like scientists. Learning science does not come from reading an enormous science textbook but from doing, reading, experiencing, and concluding. Chemical Reactions fits the bill!"

—National Science Teachers Asociation Recommends

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