Fulfill your High School Chemistry requirement at home with training from Penn Foster High School. We’ll guide you through the course with class notes, textbooks and unlimited instructor support. Each lesson has been specifically designed for independent study – you’ll learn Chemistry in no time.

Course Description
 
This is a survey course in chemistry, which is concerned with the nature of our physical world and seeks to explain how and why matter behaves as it does. The five main subjects are:

• Matter as Energy and Structure
• Chemical Families
• The Nature of Chemical Reactions
• Dynamics in Chemical Reactions
• Organic and Nuclear Chemistry

• Explain the basic states of matter and the basic relationship of energy to matter
• Describe the structure of the atom and the nature of nucleons
• Explain the importance in chemistry of valence electrons
• Describe the different kinds of bonds between atoms and the shapes of molecules
• Explain the nature of attractions between molecules
• Write chemical formulas and balance them
• Explain and use the Periodic Table of the Elements
• Describe the properties of eight groups of common elements as ordered by the Table
• Perform basic chemical calculations
• Explain the chemical dynamics of solutions
• Describe and explain factors that influence the rates of chemical reactions
• Explain chemical reactions at equilibrium and factors that influence equilibrium
• Describe the forces of enthalpy and entropy as they drive chemical reactions
• Differentiate acids and bases, and assess different levels of pH
• Explain the basics of reduction and oxidation reactions, and of electrochemistry
• Describe the nature of organic compounds and how basic reactions occur
• Explain the basic concepts of nuclear chemistry: radioactivity, nuclear fission, etc.

Course Outline

Lesson 1: Matter as Energy and Structure

What Is Matter?; Changes in Matter and Energy; Heat Measurement; Units of Energy; Gases; Gas Laws; Liquids; Evaporation; Vapor Pressure; Solids; Attractive Forces; Fusion and Crystallization; The Atom; Atomic Mass; Isotopes; Electronics in Atoms; Bohr Model; Quantum Mechanical Model; Electron Configurations; Valence Electrons; Ionization Energy; Electron Affinity and Electronegativity; Formation of Chemical Bonds; Bonds Between Atoms; Shapes and Polarities of Molecules; Attractive Forces Between Molecules; Bonding and the Solid State

Lesson 2: Chemical Families

Writing Chemical Formulas; Using Formulas to Find Mass; Chemical Equations; Types of Chemical Reactions; Origins of the Periodic Table; Modern Periodic Table; Hydrogen and Alkali Metals; Alkaline Earth Metals; Aluminum Family; Carbon Family; Nitrogen Family; Oxygen Family; Halogens; Halogen Halides; Noble Gases

Lesson 3: The Nature of Chemical Reactions

Expressing Quantity; Percent Composition; Empirical Formulas; Molecular Formulas; Mole Relationships in Chemical Reactions; Quantitative Relationships in Chemical Reactions; What Is a Solution?; Dissolving Process; Factors That Influence Solubility; Quantitative Composition of Solutions; Some Properties of Solutions; Factors That Determine Reaction Rates; Changing Reaction Rates; Kinetics and Chemical Equilibrium; Factors That Affect Chemical Equilibrium; Solutions and Equilibrium; Reactions That Go to Completion

Lesson 4: Dynamics in Chemical Reactions

Chemical Energy; Enthalpy; Entropy; Spontaneous Reactions; Free Energy Change; What Is an Acid and What Is a Base?; Acid-Base Theories; Reduction and Oxidation; Predicting Oxidation-Reduction Reactions; Electrochemistry; Redox Reactions

Lesson 5: Organic and Nuclear Chemistry

Organic Compounds; Hydrocarbons; Derivatives of Hydrocarbons; Naming Organic Compounds; Some Types of Organic Reactions; Radioactivity; Radioisotopes; Energy of Nuclear Changes; Other Uses of Radioisotopes

After registering for the Chemistry course, all of your learning materials will be shipped directly to you. If you like, you can also go to our website and download some of your study materials to get a head start. Your learning materials will guide you through the course content, explaining concepts and operations through a series of lessons. After each lesson, you’ll take an exam which you can submit by phone or our website. As you pass each lesson, you’ll proceed to the next topic until you complete the course.

There are five exams that need to be passed to complete your course in Chemistry and you’ll have up to 15 weeks to complete the course.
 
Support
If you should ever need help with your studies, you can e-mail or call our instructors who will gladly help you with any questions that you might have.

Study Time
Since there is no set class schedule, you study when and where it’s convenient for you. You can complete your course as quickly as you’d like.

Completion
When you have successfully completed your course, you will receive a letter of completion along with an official transcript listing your completed course(s) and grades. You can apply your course towards our Diploma Program or a diploma from your local High School (be sure to check with your school authorities regarding mandatory attendance policies and whether they agree that the Penn Foster High School Program is acceptable toward the completion of your high school education). 
 
Accreditation
Penn Foster High School is accredited by The Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools; has met the high standards of integrity and performance set by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), Washington D.C., and is licensed by the Pennsylvania State Board of Private Licensed Schools.

Whether you’re looking for accelerated studies or credit recovery, regionally and nationally accredited Penn Foster High School provides the courses you need to complete your High School Diploma.