So, you want to do a “Magic Show!”
Student Presenter Packet for Y-Chem Outreach Program (10/11/2014)
INTRODUCTION
Thanks for your interest in sharing chemistry with the community! This packet is designed to help you prepare and present safely and effectively. The documents in this packet will assist you in planning and organizing your presentation:
DOCUMENTS (links):
Descriptions and presentation suggestions
Y-Chem Demo Request Form
Expectations
Safety Quiz
Presenter Training Checklist
Demonstration-Specific Instructions from LPL
CONTACT INFO
Scott Burt
OFFICE: C008A BNSN
PHONE: (801) 422-2404
EMAIL: scott_burt@byu.edu
Lecture Preparation Laboratory (LPL)
OFFICE: W136 BNSN
PHONE: 801-422-5807
LPL Hours: MWF 7-4 and TTh 7-2
PURPOSE
The purpose of the Y-Chem community outreach program is to inspire and motivate young minds towards science and chemistry. Service to the community is also a goal of the university. In a way this program also functions as an early recruiting tool, by demonstrating that exciting things happen at BYU. While the visually stimulating demonstrations will no doubt enthrall audiences, education is just as important as entertainment. You should start thinking about how you can use a memorable theme, message, or story to teach something to the audience. Go to the next page, and start looking through the demonstrations to see what is available and how each can fit your theme. The demonstrations are grouped by potential themes. Feel free to use all or some.
NEXT: Decide which demos to use in section 1.
Descriptions and presentation suggestions
Go through the following list of demonstrations and decide which items you would like to include in your presentation. Mark the boxes of the demonstrations you are interested in performing. After choosing the demonstrations you are interested in, read the instructions on how to perform the demonstration in Demonstration-Specific Instructions from LPL to review more specific information about each.
Potential Theme: “Chemistry is about change” □ Simple clock
30 sec. after equal portions of two clear and colorless solutions are mixed together, the mixture changes to a dark blue color.
Explanation/Teaching
Color change is one way to detect that a chemical reaction has occurred.
This is a complex chemical reaction, discussing the details of the chemical components would be difficult, especially to elementary school children.
Presentation suggestions
Option 1: Tell everybody that this is your favorite demonstration. Talk it up so that the students are really excited. Ask them what they think will happen when you mix the two solutions. Carefully add the two solutions. Stare at it for a second, and then look puzzled. Tell everybody that it didn’t work, or that they “broke it.” Ask the other presenter if they made the solution correctly. Blame them for it not working (clear it with them ahead of time), but some friendly banter could be entertaining for the 30 seconds it takes to react. When it does, the class should scream and shout. If they don’t, both of you can stare at the solution and look shocked.
Option 2: Mix the chemicals, use a magic word, and then act puzzled when it “doesn’t work.” Tell the students that it requires a different magic word. Ask each student in turn to say a magic word to make it go. Each time that a student says a word and it doesn’t go, tell the class that it must be a different word. When it finally changes, declare that they’ve found the right word.
When equal portions of three clear colorless solutions are mixed together, the resulting solution changes colors in an oscillatory manner between orange and blue.
Explanation/Teaching
This is a complex reaction involving several simultaneous reactions. One reaction generates blue products, but another reaction is using up those products and producing yellow products.
Presentation suggestions
Immediately after the components are mixed, quickly comment about how wonderful the yellow color is, but look away before it turns blue. From this point on, only look at the solution when it is yellow. Otherwise, look at it out of the corner of your eye as you ask them. When they tell you its blue, stall until it changes to yellow, and proclaim “See! It’s yellow!” A rule of comedy is that antics are only funny up to three times.
□ Shaker bottles (advance prep required)
A clear colorless solution in a flask is vigorously shaken causing the solution to change color. Two flasks are provided, one changes to a pink color, the other to a blue.
Note: Once prepared, this demonstration has a lifetime of about one hour.
Explanation/Teaching
Chemical changes are sometimes shown by a color change
Oxygen in the air dissolves in the solution, and reacts with an indicator.
Presentation suggestions
Make sure the bottles are labeled (pink and blue
Give the pink bottle to a girl, the blue to a boy, instructing them to hold the bottle tightly, but very still. Then tell them to shake the bottles as hard as they can. If you like, you can say, “See, chemistry is for boys and girls!”
□ Luminol
After equal portions of two clear colorless solutions are mixed, light emits from the resulting solution. This solution is poured into a funnel connected to the top of a long plexiglass tube. The glowing solution spirals helically downward and into a beaker.
Explanation
Some reactions can release energy in the form of light.
This is a similar reaction to that used in glow sticks.
Presentation suggestions
Pour the reactants at equal rates down the spiral tower (provided by lecture prep)
Make sure to put an empty beaker at the bottom
Great with the lights out.
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