Date: ____________________________ Name: ______________________________

CHEMICAL REACTIONS: BALANCED CHEMICAL EQUATIONS

TEACHER GUIDE:

The purpose of this activity is to show students chemical reactions, and what balanced chemical
equations look like using manipulatives.

Materials: student handout (2 pages) & molecular model kits.

Set up: students can work in pairs

Procedure:
1. Review modeling kits: write on the board, the legend for atom colours.
Example, small white atoms represent Hydrogen, they have one hole.
2. Do the 1st example together:
 Build two water molecules. Use this opportunity to explain the difference between a co-
efficient and subscript is.
 Explain that when chemical reactions take place, bonds break and get rearranged. So at
this step, you will break apart the two water molecules, and rearrange them to make 2
hydrogen molecules and 1 oxygen molecule.
 There can be NO leftover molecule in a balanced chemical equation.
3. Allow students to complete the rest of the worksheet, building their reactants first, and using
ONLY their starting materials to make the products. Students should draw stick models of all
their molecular structures during the activity.
 Date: ____________________________ Name: ______________________________
CHEMICAL REACTIONS: BALANCED CHEMICAL EQUATIONS
5. Hydrogen peroxide is chemically broken down to produce water
Purpose: and oxygen
- To show that the number of reactant atoms is the same as the Reactants: 2H2O2  2H2O + O2 Products:
number of product atoms in a balanced chemical equation Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
- To show the difference between a coefficient and a subscript in a atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms
balanced chemical equation

Observations: 
1. Rocket fuel may be produced from the decomposition of water
Reactants: 2H2O  2H2 + O2 Products:
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
reactant molecules product molecules
6. Natural gas (mainly methane) is burned as a heating fuel to
atoms atoms produce carbon dioxide and water
H 4 H–H O=O H 4 Reactants: CH4 + 2O2  CO2 + 2H2O Products:
 H–H Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
O 2 O 2 atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms


2. Hydrogen gas and chlorine gas react to produce hydrochloric acid
Reactants: H2 + Cl2  2HCl Products:
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms

 7. Nitrogen gas will react with fluorine gas to produce nitrogen

trifluoride
Reactants: N2 + 3F2  2NF3 Products:
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
3. Chlorine gas reacts with oxygen to form dichlorine monoxide
atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms
Reactants: 2Cl2 + O2  2Cl2O Products:
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
reactant molecules product molecules 
atoms atoms


8. Carbon tetrachloride (a toxic solvent) may be produced from
carbon disulfide and chlorine
4. Nitrogen gas and hydrogen has combine chemically to produce
Reactants: CS2 + 3Cl2  CCl4 + S2Cl2 Products:
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
ammonia for fertilizers
Reactants: N2 + 3H2  2NH3 Products: atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms 


 Date: ____________________________ Name: ______________________________

Questions:
1. Write out in words what is described by the skeletal
chemical equation below
I2 + Cl2  ICl

2. Using the kit, construct the atoms involved in the above

chemical reaction. Fill in the chart and remember that there
must be equal number of reactant atoms compared to
product atoms.

Reactants: Products:
Symbol # of Structural diagram of Structural diagram of Symbol # of
atoms reactant molecules product molecules atoms

3. What is the new balanced chemical equation for the reaction

shown in #1?

Conclusion:
Based on the activity you have just completed, conclude what
information the subscript of a chemical formula tells you, and what
the coefficient of a chemical equation tells you.