How to Study Organic Chemistry Effectively
Do practice problems., Actively review your notes and textbook., Ask for help., Number your carbons., Recognize the relationships between properties., Use the modeling kits., Use reaction maps for synthesis problems.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Do practice problems.
The number one way to study organic chemistry is by doing practice problems.
Problems are what you will see on tests and quizzes and they are how you prove your understanding.
The more problems you do, the better your understanding will be.
Once you have mastered one concept, move on to problems that are more difficult.Do a set of practice problems from your book every day to keep up with the material. -
Step 2: Actively review your notes and textbook.
Reading through your notes is definitely a good place to start, but actively reviewing your notes is even better.
Rewrite your notes and summarize the material.
Draw concept maps or visual summaries to illustrate how everything works together.When you come across a compound, draw the structure for it.
Read through the notes before class every day so that you will know what is coming up. , Your professor and teaching assistants will have office hours that are specifically available for students to ask questions and get help with the material.
Take advantage of this time and actually go ask for assistance.
They are there to help you learn and this is an opportunity to ask questions you might have been afraid to ask in class.Getting extra help from a one-on-one tutor can also be beneficial if you are really struggling. , When answering questions in homework or on an exam, it is easy to lose track of the number of carbons.
The number of carbons in the products should always equal the number of carbons in the reactants.You don’t have to number the carbons for proper labeling, just number them so you know how many there are and you can put them in the correct position in the products. , Organic chemistry relies heavily on understanding how different molecules relate to each other.
While there is rote memorization involved, it is much more important that you understand these basic interactions to succeed in organic chemistry.
Understanding the reason behind why these trends exist is also important.
To name a few examples:
As the pKa of an acid increases, the stability of the conjugate base increases.
As the polarity of a molecule increases, the boiling point increases.
When you increase the chain length of a hydrocarbon, the boiling point increases. , Modeling kits allow you build chemical structures in three dimensions.
Being able to visualize the structure can help you understand a compound better than just looking at the 2D version written on the board.The modeling kit helps you avoid mistakes when answering questions on exams and homework. , Reaction maps allow you to visualize all of the functional groups and the reactions that occur to produce them.
You can use the reaction maps to string together reactions to get from one compound to the final compound.Once you have identified the functional groups in the reaction, work the problem backwards (from product to reactant) using the maps as a guide. -
Step 3: Ask for help.
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Step 4: Number your carbons.
-
Step 5: Recognize the relationships between properties.
-
Step 6: Use the modeling kits.
-
Step 7: Use reaction maps for synthesis problems.
Detailed Guide
The number one way to study organic chemistry is by doing practice problems.
Problems are what you will see on tests and quizzes and they are how you prove your understanding.
The more problems you do, the better your understanding will be.
Once you have mastered one concept, move on to problems that are more difficult.Do a set of practice problems from your book every day to keep up with the material.
Reading through your notes is definitely a good place to start, but actively reviewing your notes is even better.
Rewrite your notes and summarize the material.
Draw concept maps or visual summaries to illustrate how everything works together.When you come across a compound, draw the structure for it.
Read through the notes before class every day so that you will know what is coming up. , Your professor and teaching assistants will have office hours that are specifically available for students to ask questions and get help with the material.
Take advantage of this time and actually go ask for assistance.
They are there to help you learn and this is an opportunity to ask questions you might have been afraid to ask in class.Getting extra help from a one-on-one tutor can also be beneficial if you are really struggling. , When answering questions in homework or on an exam, it is easy to lose track of the number of carbons.
The number of carbons in the products should always equal the number of carbons in the reactants.You don’t have to number the carbons for proper labeling, just number them so you know how many there are and you can put them in the correct position in the products. , Organic chemistry relies heavily on understanding how different molecules relate to each other.
While there is rote memorization involved, it is much more important that you understand these basic interactions to succeed in organic chemistry.
Understanding the reason behind why these trends exist is also important.
To name a few examples:
As the pKa of an acid increases, the stability of the conjugate base increases.
As the polarity of a molecule increases, the boiling point increases.
When you increase the chain length of a hydrocarbon, the boiling point increases. , Modeling kits allow you build chemical structures in three dimensions.
Being able to visualize the structure can help you understand a compound better than just looking at the 2D version written on the board.The modeling kit helps you avoid mistakes when answering questions on exams and homework. , Reaction maps allow you to visualize all of the functional groups and the reactions that occur to produce them.
You can use the reaction maps to string together reactions to get from one compound to the final compound.Once you have identified the functional groups in the reaction, work the problem backwards (from product to reactant) using the maps as a guide.
About the Author
Catherine Stevens
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