Interactive applets developed at the King’s Centre for Visualization in Science (KCVS), The King's University College, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, allow learners to visualize the molecular world of chemistry and to playfully understand chemical connections.
These visualizations build bridges between the learning that happens for students through classroom lectures and their individual study outside of class. They support innovative teaching and learning, and help students engage deeply with chemistry content. These interactive visualizations also bridge chemistry and sustainability; facts and the evidence that supports those facts; theory and application; and the molecular, symbolic and macroscopic levels.
Successful bridging requires careful attention to the learning needs and conceptual understanding of students, and to the design and implementation of interactive visualizations to meet those needs.
An example is a set of resources that visualizes the fundamental science underlying our climate. The user is able to play around with different parameters to experience impacts and learn to ask good questions about the underlying science.