CHEMICAL REACTION

LO: To Explain what is a chemical reaction

Success criteria:  
All students will be able to define chemical reaction
Most: Students will be able to explain how the chemical reaction
takes place
Some: Students will be able to describe the steps involved in chemical
reaction

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• Starter
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=yIJ2qnUOOwQ
• What is a chemical and physical reaction
• List the difference,

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What is a chemical reaction?
A chemical reaction is a change that takes place when
one or more substances (called reactants) form one or
more new substances (called products).

reactants products

For example:

+ 

carbon + oxygen  carbon dioxide

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How can you spot a chemical reaction?
Chemical reactions can appear very different.

As you observe a chemical reaction, you may detect:

 a colour change
 precipitate (solid) forming
 energy being produced (fizzing, burning)
 an odour being produced.

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Does mass change during a reaction?

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What is a word equation?
A word equation uses the names of the reactants and
products to show what happens in a chemical reaction.

For example, when a piece of

sulfur is burned in oxygen gas
it produces a white solid called
sulfur dioxide.

The word equation for this

reaction is:

sulfur
sulfur + oxygen 
dioxide

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What is a symbol equation?

A symbol equation uses the formulae of the reactants and

products to show what happens in a chemical reaction.
A symbol equation must be balanced to give the correct
ratio of reactants and products.

S + O2  SO2

This equation shows that one atom of sulfur (S) reacts

with one molecule of oxygen (O2) to make one molecule
of sulfur dioxide (SO2).

+ 

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What do state symbols show?

State symbols are added to a symbol equation to show

whether the reactants and products are:
 solid – symbol is (s)
 liquid – symbol is (l)
 gas – symbol is (g)
 dissolved in water – symbol is (aq).

S (s) + O2 (g)  SO2 (g)

With state symbols in place, this symbol equation now

shows that the sulfur is a solid, the oxygen is a gas and
the sulfur dioxide is also a gas.

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Chemical reactions – true or false?

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