Brain&Force
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Chemistry in schools
What have your experiences been with being able to do chemistry in schools?
For me, it was really easy at my high school. I had access to pretty much everything I needed, and my mentor was kind enough to donate antipyrine and
terbium. I just asked about doing research for a science fair. (In retrospect, I should have picked an easier topic, as my research never got off the
ground.) I could grab whatever I needed in the storage room. Glassware and other equipment were also not a problem.
I'm going to a university next year, and I'm hoping to pitch some research ideas to my professors.
At the end of the day, simulating atoms doesn't beat working with the real things...
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Texium
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That's really nice. My chemistry teacher gave me some stuff, such as element samples for silicon, tin, and indium, and a bit of some fairly benign
reagent grade chemicals as well as some nice used reagent bottles. She refused to let me have tellurium and antimony though, due to legal liabilities.
It's doubtful that she'd let me take any glassware unless it was going to be tossed out anyway. She's been very nice to me and supportive of my
interest, although not usually the most engaging teacher during class, particularly for the other students who don't care as much.
And there's another thread very similar to this in miscellaneous: https://www.sciencemadness.org/whisper/viewthread.php?tid=29...
I'm sure that you were aware of it, as you participated in it, but I figured I'd throw it out there for anyone interested.
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MrHomeScientist
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What's wrong with antimony?
It's great to hear there are still teachers these days that are actually excited about chemistry and are willing to help out their students. For the
most part, it seems, everyone is too worried about liability to do anything interesting in class.
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Brain&Force
Hazard to Lanthanides
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Completely forgot about that thread. 
But this thread is more of "will your teachers support your pursuit of amateur chemistry?"
A few other teachers were a little worried about my chemical interests. But I was always able to find someone who was supportive of my hobby, whether
it was another student or a teacher.
At the end of the day, simulating atoms doesn't beat working with the real things...
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Texium
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Well, it was antimony powder, which could potentially be inhaled (even though I swore that since it was for my collection it would stay safely in a
closed vial) and antimony can cause effects similar to arsenic poisoning… or rather that's what she told me, although now after looking to confirm
that this is true so as not to post wrongly, I find that it isn't...
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prof_genius
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When I was in 6th grade the high school chem class came in to do a demonstration, they were doing something with a dilute aqueous solution of sodium
hydroxide (probably 0.5% or less), they told us to run to the sink if we got it on our hands, don't drink it etc. I think the teacher was a bit
paranoid.
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Texium
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Damn legal liabilities. You just can't get away from them. That's always the problem: legal technicalities and chemophobia making chemistry scary and
dangerous even when it's not.
Teachers have to be paranoid like that simply because they're afraid that some kid is going to get chemicals on themselves and then tell their parents
who freak out (even though the kid wasn't harmed in any way whatsoever) and sue the school or something, possibly resulting in the teacher losing
his/her job over what is essentially a trivial issue.
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Brain&Force
Hazard to Lanthanides
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And the problem just makes itself worse: teachers become chemophobic because they hear all of these rules and regulations, and don't bother to see
what's really hazardous and what's not.
At the end of the day, simulating atoms doesn't beat working with the real things...
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Texium
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I know! It even got me thinking that you could DIE from accidentally breathing in a bit of antimony dust...
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Tdep
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My teachers were very reasonable but they would never even think of giving out any chemicals from the supply room to students, let alone give a
student free access to those chemicals.
I can actually understand this though. The chemicals are at school for school use only and if anyone gets hurt at home with the school chemicals it
would be a huge deal.
That being said I would try to smuggle some chemicals left over from pracs out of there. I would take apart my pens and fill them with chemicals such
as oxalic acid, sodium thiosulphate and calcium metal... made sure not to chew on the end of the pen full of calcium that's for sure! haha
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