Being Successful in this Course

"Oh, I can do that later. . ."

I want you to be successful in this course. Each week you will have reading, discussion boards, online lessons, and chapter tests to complete. There is a temptation to think in-person activities are more urgent than your online work. The problem is, then your online assignments pile up and you fall behind. Follow the weekly schedule and stay on top of your assignments.

I recommend that you log in at least three times per week to complete your work.  Use the Canvas Calendar and create alerts in your phone or on your computer for lesson due dates or anything else you think you might forget! Set up your Notifications in Canvas Links to an external site. as well. (You can receive notifications via text Links to an external site..)

Take your tests from a reliable computer, preferably one with high speed or a t1 line. I will not reopen tests if they are missed or lock up after the day they are due so please give yourself enough time to find a solution if there is a problem.  

I'm sure you understand that it is your responsibility to get to a computer to complete your work on time. Solano College is loaning Chromebooks.  You can apply for a loaner Chromebook at this link:

Fall 2020 Solano Community College Chromebook Loaner Service Links to an external site.

 Go to school, your local library, or a friend’s house if your computer crashes or your Internet goes down.  Please do not contact me for extra time on assignments.  You have options so I strongly urge you not to wait until the last minute to do your work.

Course Syllabus 

The course syllabus (see "Syllabus" in left menu) contains important information about class procedures, due dates, grading policies, etc. It's a guideline for what you can expect of me and what I expect of you throughout the term.

Student Activities:

In order to achieve the student learning outcomes you will be evaluated through the following assignments:

  • Exams: To assess general knowledge of course material and critical thinking skills, students will course exams.  
  • Discussion Forums: To make sure students engage each other over the material, each student will be graded on discussion forums dispersed throughout this course worth points.  These posts must be professional, meaningful and incorporate specific examples from the text or Learning Modules. 
  • Reading Assignments: In order to understand chemistry students must complete reading assignments for certain chapters in our online textbook.  
  • Laboratory: We will use a combination of at-home labs, dry labs, and simulations to replace the hands-on labs. Students must complete and submit lab reports for at-home and dry labs, while the simulations include tasks and quizzes worth points.
  • Homework: Chem101 one-semester license required ($29.95)
  • Self Check Quizzes: These Chem101 quizzes are open book, open note quizzes that allow you to check your understanding of the reading (and earn homework points).  

Contacting Me

I value an interactive and personal learning environment and I want to make sure you know that you're not alone in the course. Please contact me with questions, concerns or just to dig deeper into that week's material. Please use Canvas Mail to contact me for routine matters. For urgent matters, call me by phone (530-304-2076) - please do not send texts!

Canvas Mail

inbox iconIf I need to get a hold of you this semester, I'll contact you through Canvas mail.  You can access this feature by clicking "Inbox"  in the left-hand global navigation bar. I will post major items as "Announcements" inCanvas.

I usually respond to email within 24 hours, Monday through Friday. I reserve the right to wait until Monday to reply to messages sent over the weekend.