Learning Objectives For AP Chemistry - All Six Big Ideas

• Big Idea 1
  • The chemical elements are fundamental building materials of matter, and all matter can be understood in terms of arrangements of atoms. These atoms retain their identity in chemical reactions
    

• Big Idea 2
  • Chemical and physical properties of materials can be explained by the structure and the arrangement of atoms, ions, or molecules and the forces between them

• Big Idea 3
  • Changes in matter involve the rearrangement and/or reorganization of atoms and/or the transfer of electrons

• Big Idea 4
  • Rates of chemical reactions are determined by details of the molecular collisions

• Big Idea 5
  • The laws of thermodynamics describe the essential role of energy and explain and predict the direction of changes in matter

• Big Ideal 6
  • Any bond or intermolecular attraction that can be formed can be broken. These two processes are in dynamic competition, sensitive to initial conditions and external perturbations