Years 10 and 11 - GCSE Chemistry
The aims of the course are to enable pupils to:
· enjoy chemistry
· organise their own written work tidily and in a way that
others can understand
· continue to use and improve the practical techniques they
have learnt
· use apparatus correctly in a variety of experiments
· understand the techniques used
· appreciate the need for safe working and know how to achieve it
· use scientific method learnt in earlier years
· continue to gain scientific understanding
· make sensible conclusions from practical experiments
· continue to develop an appreciation of the importance of knowledge
The specification followed is that set by AQA. Click
here for a link to the specification.
The externally examined course specific aims are to be able to grasp:
· The thinking behind the doing
· Fundamental ideas
· Observation as a stimulus to investigation
· Designing an investigation
· Making measurements
· Presenting data
· Using data to draw conclusions
· Societal aspects of scientific evidence
· Limitations of scientific evidence
Content comes from the following contexts:
· How do rocks provide building materials?
· How do rocks provide metals and how are metals used?
· How do we get fuels from crude oil?
· How are polymers and ethanol made from oil?
· How can plant oils be used?
· What are the changes in the Earth and its atmosphere?
· How do sub-atomic particles help us to understand the
· structure of substances?
· How do structures influence the properties and uses of
· substances?
· How much can we make and how much do we need to use?
· How can we control the rates of chemical reactions?
· Do chemical reactions always release energy?
· How can we use ions in solutions?
· How was the periodic table developed and how can it help us
· understand the reactions of elements?
· What are strong and weak acids and alkalis? How can we find
· the amounts of acids and alkalis in solutions?
· What is in the water we drink?
· How much energy is involved in chemical reactions?
· How do we identify and analyse substances?
Aside from GCSE studies, each year some of our Year 10 students apply to take part in the Salters Chemistry Camps, which run annually in the Summer. For a recent report on such an event click here.
Students interested in taking part in such an event should speak to their Chemistry teacher during the first term of their Year 10 course.
