Unit B: Matter and Chemical Change

Cars driving through thick smog

How Vehicles Pollute the Air

Learn how vehicles affect air quality, including their contribution to smog.

fuel cell car header

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles

Learn about vehicles that use hydrogen for fuel.

Test tubes with colourful liquids

Evidence of Chemical Change

Learn how to tell if a chemical reaction has taken place.

Periodic Table with molecular model

Introduction to the Periodic Table of the Elements

Learn about the elements of the periodic table and how they are organized.

Hand writing chemical equations

Chemical Equations

Learn about how to write and balance chemical equations.

Heating a liquid over a flame in a lab

Types of Chemical Reactions

Learn about the four main types of chemical reactions.

Electroplating equipment

Chemical Reactions: Conditions & Speeds

Learn about the special conditions that let some chemical reactions take place.

Colourful liquids and periodic table

Describing and Classifying Matter

Learn about the physical and chemical properties of matter.

Timothy Burkhart

Query a Career Profile

Students will explore career profiles and relate them to what they are learning in science class.

Platinum crystals

Catalytic Converters

Learn about how catalytic converters make vehicle emissions less harmful.

Hamilton Street Railway bus in downtown Hamilton, Ontario © Adam E. Moreira [CC BY-SA 3.0], Wikimedia Commons

Fueling Internal Combustion Engines

Learn about the wide variety of fuels used in vehicles.

Hamilton, Ontario industrial area with Toronto skyline in the background

What are Greenhouse Gases?

This backgrounder explains what greenhouse gases are and how they contribute to climate change.

Nitrogen symbol from periodic table

Understanding the Nitrogen Cycle

What is the nitrogen cycle? How do human activities such as using fertilizer affect the nitrogen cycle? How can this cause greenhouse gases?

The newest chemical elements

The Newest Elements on the Periodic Table

The periodic table was last updated in 2016 with four new chemical elements. What is a chemical element? What is the atomic structure of the newest chemical elements? How did they get their names?

Keplers Supernova. Image © NASA

The Life and Death of Stars

The life and death of stars form the chemical elements that make up Earth, making stars critical to life as we know it.