Teaching about Lanthanides/ Rare Earth metals

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  • May 19, 2017 at 9:54 pm
    Linabean
    Participant

    Hello!   Looking for some experience with teaching the Lanthanides series of the periodic table.   I am supposed to teach a group of various ages, complete with experiments, activities, projects, and games.  So far, all I have is information and a couple ideas for games (that I am not sure will work yet) and videos.  It is REALLY hard to find ANYTHING that kids can actually DO with this group in the table!  Has anyone else tackled this topic and come up with something brilliant?  If so, would you mind sharing some of your brilliance with me?

    -hopeful

    May 20, 2017 at 8:15 pm
    retrofam
    Participant

    <i>Talk about where the lanthanites were discovered,  and talk about them by color because it is one of the only ways to tell them apart.  </i>

    The Elements by, Theodore Gray has great information and pictures.

    Neodymium magnets would be good for experiments.

    By the way,  this advice is all from my teen son who loves chemistry.

    Thorium is interesting because of its use in radioactive water, called Radithor.

    Uranium and plutonium are used in atomic bombs.

    You could test for radioactivity in pre1942 Fiestaware if available.

    Americium is used in smoke detectors.

     

     

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