I almost feel guilty for reviewing this website because I believe most chemistry teachers are familiar with it. I typically review websites that discuss application based topics but this time I'm reviewing a website that is directly tied to high school chemistry content.
Chemmybear.com is a highly suggested resource for new chemistry teachers. The website is managed by a high school chemistry teacher in California, but has not been updated in three years.The content is a mix of introductory material and advanced placement material.
The website contains several experiments, simulations, and tips for taking the AP Exam. In addition the website has links to other pertinent information. I would say that chemmybear is most useful when explaining bonding and reactions. The animations that are provided greatly help students visualize events that would be difficult to describe.
Several different ways teachers could use this website would be by designing lesson plans in lower level chemistry courses to scaffold student's understanding toward the AP level understanding. Too often course material in the lower level courses is emphasizing memorization instead of explanation. I believe that this occurs to no fault of the teacher but due to a lack of information about what is needed at the AP level. The guidelines and handouts on the website are very helpful for developing lesson plans that promote the concept but not the complexity for younger chemistry students.
The website could be used by students as a way of self-studying but the website would not be very student friendly. The resources are more meant for teachers that can fill scaffolding activities around the resources provided so that the student can gain the appropriate conceptual base before receiving the condensed versions of the concepts. Some more advanced students could benefit from the condensed notes that are provided, but I would advise creating more level appropriate content for lower achievers. I believe the most useful resource for the chemistry student would be the graphics related to molecular shape and double bond formation due to orbitals. These models would be incredible lesson starters or beneficial as breaks in lectures if students have a mental block. I would say that the website is most appropriate for 9-12 students, but the experiments could be used for any grade level, especially if used as an interest builder. My only advice for the creators of the website would be to increase the variety of colors and visuals on the main page. The website does not look like a modern stylized website, but more like a mid-1990's frame based website.
Lastly, I believe the links are almost as helpful as the website. The links provide resources from national organizations, to publishers websites, and to other high school webpages that have many lessons and resources already built.
I really like chemmybear. It has a lot of wondrerful content and many links and pages for students to follow up on concepts they find intersting. I have to admit that I like websites to be updated regularly, and that this site has not been updated in three years is a negative. However, once looking at the site, it makes up for the lack of updating. I find the site to be student friendly and it would be use most effectively with high school students, but with the proper scaffolding it could be used with middle school students.
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