Apologia Chemistry: Fall Prep

I’m not going to lie; I visit www.shopgoodwill.com nearly everyday.  Here I bid on glassware, calculators, microscopes, escience kits, anatomy models, etc.  Before I make a bid, I check Amazon and eBay to compare prices.  Right now, I’m bidding on used Xsplore GLX data loggers. 

I can hear the groans!  More tech!!!  This type of apparatus (GLX) links to sensors to collect temperature, pH, voltage, etc. data.  Pasco produces several interface devices which are compatible to most sensors.  Right now I have aSparkling Air, an Airlink 2, and a Spark Learning System.  I bought most of my sensors from eBay—after comparing prices with Pasco.  Yes, I did have training on these devices.  Kids, however, seem to pick them up and use them.  Pasco provides excellent training videos on their web site.

The GLX devices on Goodwill are exceptionally robust.  Often even used data loggers have been lightly used.  People (read teachers) are intimidated by them and they sit on shelves in schools all over the country.  This Heat Curve Lab is one of the labs I plan to do the first week of class.  (The Sparkvue software and the Spark Learning System has heat labs preloaded to try.)  The easiest way to use any of these data loggers is to plug in a temperature sensor or probe.  The device will detect the sensor and start recording the temperature data.  Kids can manually record data at 30 second intervals.

Is all this talk about data loggers too much?  The TI 84 graphing calculator has software for data collection preloaded on the TI84 calculator.  The EasyTemp probe connects directly to the graphing calculator.  Once connected, the calculator recognizes the probe and collects the data, which is stored in the Stats list on the calculator.  Again, the kids can use the digital display to record the temperature manually on paper at 30 second intervals.  Truthfully, we use the TI 84 with a temperature probe the most often whenever we need a thermometer for labs.

BTW, Vernier probes are compatible with the TI 84 and CBL data logger)—not Pasco.  I have both.  Usually, I introduce the different interfaces at different times.  I’m using graphing calculators and my CBL Week One.  Later, I’ll drag out the Pasco devices—all different, all purchased used.  It is so important for home-schoolers to get exposure to tech before they do off to college, especially if they pursue a STEM career.