Hehe.... This is my first term in Hwa Chong and my first term in LSS (lower secondary science). We learnt many new topics, such as Hazard Symbols, Laboratory equipment, introduction to Science, measurements and the Scientific method. I have to admit that I was quite "blur" then and I did not understand all of what my Science teacher, Ms Chia, was saying. Luckily, she gave us stacks and stacks of notes which allowed us to revise by ourselves after school :P. However, LSS was much more interesting and fun then I thought. Before reaching Sec 1, I had no idea what the chemical symbols meant when I see them in factories or even at home. After attending a few lessons with Ms Chia, everything started to make sense.
Learning these hazard symbols were very important as they serve as a warning to us while handling chemicals. Using them in the improper way might cause serious injury or even death.
We also learnt the different equipment in the Laboratory. What excites me the most is the bunsen burner. Until now, I am still amazed that such a small equipment can produce so much heat! However, we were warned numerous times that we must adhere to the rules and follow the steps systematically while lighting the bunsen burner. The steps are as follows:
1) Close the air holes
2) Strike a match and bring it to the top of the barrel.
3) Turn on the gas tap with your other free hand
4) Adjust the air hole until a non-luminous flame is obtained!
WALA! Thats how you light the bunsen burner.
Also, we must also learn the different parts of the bunsen burner, as it would be tested in the test.
Last but not least, we learnt how to take measurements of things. We were thought how to use the metre rule,Vernier Calipers and the Micrometre Screw Gauge. Ms Chia told us that usually, while reading the metre rule, we met with parallax errors, as we positioned our eye wrongly or either because the object is not as level as the markings of the scale.
Hence, she thought us some ways to reduce parallax errors.
1)Use a thin ruler
2)Ensure that eye is placed vertically above the mark to be read.
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