REActivities: Reformed Experimental Activities

"REActivate independence in lab learning! Organic chemistry REActivities (Second Edition) is a lab workbook designed to be student-guided and not instructor taught. Students are encouraged to self-guide, and interact with the instructor to answer questions and request help where needed.

Independent inquiry is encouraged as students must read the worksheets and follow the instructions step-by-step as they go along.

During the labs, students will have time to:

Practice:

When learning techniques for the first time, students will get time to practice before running the experiment, and recording in their lab notebook. It's not fair to ask that students first-ever attempt is recorded, so the workbook encourages students to have the room and comfort to make mistakes and know that learning techniques takes time and practice.

Work with Peers:

In science, it's important to talk about and compare your results with a lab partner. Students are often asked during a REActivity to stop and work with partners on concept questions, or to report and compare results with lab mates. It's difficult to gauge your success for a given task if you have nothing with which to compare.

Ask Questions:

The flow of these REActivities allows for the instructor to more freely wander around the lab and help students. There will be certain instances where students will need the instructor s approval before moving forward."