Help! I'm drowning in Organic!

[Kris10h]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I am trying to study for my organic test next week. I have at least 30 reactions to memorize, and i have been unsuccessful thus far at using my method of making notecards for mechanisms. Can anyone PLEASE share their methods of memorizing mechanisms? Please can you all share anything that helped you study for organic successfully!! Thank you so much!

 

[evilolive]

I am trying to study for my organic test next week. I have at least 30 reactions to memorize, and i have been unsuccessful thus far at using my method of making notecards for mechanisms. Can anyone PLEASE share their methods of memorizing mechanisms? Please can you all share anything that helped you study for organic successfully!! Thank you so much!

Do hundreds of problems. Literally. Repetition is the key to organic chemistry -about 95% hard work and 5% intelligence.

 

[vicky336]

haha my ochem teacher always says...never memorize. all i did in ochem was do all the problems in the book. even if i had no idea how to do the mechanism or the synthesis problem and i had to look up the answer, it made me familiar with all of them. it even sometime showed me that i could do certain things with reagents that i really never thought of. you really just need to be familiar with them. use your notecards to reference the mechanism when you're doing problems and just looking at them won't make them stick.

good luck. honestly just do all the problems in the book from the chapters you're getting tested over and any homework problems or old tests you can get your hands on. even if it's old tests from other teachers, at least there will be more problems for you to work out. it's tedious but it works. at least for me and i got As on all my tests. good luck!

 

[DownonthePharm]

I made flashcards.

 

[DrugDealer]

I have at least 30 reactions to memorize, and i have been unsuccessful thus far at using my method of making notecards for mechanisms. Can anyone PLEASE share their methods of memorizing mechanisms?

Maybe the memorizing is part of your problem. Organic isn't so much about memorizing as it is about understanding the mechanisms. If you understand the underlying principles, you should be able to rationalize your way through most of the mechanisms, even ones you've never seen before. You may not be able to instantly recite them off the top of your head (which there is no reason to do anyway), but you should be able to work them out in a minute or so.

I apologize if this does not help you in time for next week's exam, but maybe it's a strategy you could try for the next exam.

 

[beccala33]

I am trying to study for my organic test next week. I have at least 30 reactions to memorize, and i have been unsuccessful thus far at using my method of making notecards for mechanisms. Can anyone PLEASE share their methods of memorizing mechanisms? Please can you all share anything that helped you study for organic successfully!! Thank you so much!

The best advice someone can give you is - DON'T MEMORIZE REACTIONS!!! You'll get the hang of them from doing them... you'll start to recognize a pattern. The key is, try to figure out WHY they happen and what's actually going on in the reaction. It's annoying, but eventually you begin to be able to sort of see what's going to happen. My friend that had taken organic before I did told me the same thing when I was having trouble with the reactions, and it really helped me. There are some things that you have to memorize, but the more you practice, the better you'll be. Good luck!!!

 

[Kris10h]

Thank you so much for the help. I think you all are right about not memorizing, it really doesn't help unless the exact problem is on the test. I usually skim the end of chapter problems, but now i will focus on them. Thanks again for the help, you guys are such a great resource!

 

[ecalcutt]

I am trying to study for my organic test next week. I have at least 30 reactions to memorize, and i have been unsuccessful thus far at using my method of making notecards for mechanisms. Can anyone PLEASE share their methods of memorizing mechanisms? Please can you all share anything that helped you study for organic successfully!! Thank you so much!

I agree, definitely do not try to memorize mechanisms as if they were lyrics in a song. You have to understand why reactions proceed the way they do. Know what the good leaving-groups are, be able to spot a Lewis acid or base, recognize where the least stable bonds are, etc. Although, if all else fails, do what I did for my stats class....post the equations (reactions, mechanisms, definitions) EVERYWHERE: on your bathroom mirror, in the shower (laminate first, of course), on the fridge, even modify your screen saver....live, eat, and breathe chemistry for the few months of this class. Trust me, it'll be over soon! 🙂

 

[rxforlife2004]

Pure memorizing for OChem is definitely suicidal, especially OChem 2. Sure, you can (and should) memorize pKa for certain compounds, but there is NO WAY you can memorize mechanisms of actions of all the reactions. I used to have OChem with this one professor and he made us draw every darn Lewis structure with arrows showing where electrons are moving, and the midterm was 4 hours, the final exam is 6 hours long (1 break between no kidding!!!). Practice makes perfect....

 

[dgroulx]

Pure memorizing for OChem is definitely suicidal, especially OChem 2. Sure, you can (and should) memorize pKa for certain compounds, but there is NO WAY you can memorize mechanisms of actions of all the reactions. I used to have OChem with this one professor and he made us draw every darn Lewis structure with arrows showing where electrons are moving, and the midterm was 4 hours, the final exam is 6 hours long (1 break between no kidding!!!). Practice makes perfect....

We had to push the electrons around with arrows, too. If you used a full arrow head when it should have been a half arrow head, you lost points. The structures had to be perfect, or you lost points. The arrows had to be going in the right direction, or you lost points.

By drawing everything over and over, I did actually learn it. We had a large study group where we did example problems. If one person didn't understand a specific mechanism, another person would explain it. I wouldn't have made it through without my classmates.

 

[mjroswar]

When I was struggling with mechanisms one of my TA's told me to get a dry erase board (10 bucks or so) and to just keep writing the reactions over and over on the board even as I watched TV, etc. I think the repetition really helped me learn the reactions, and then I was able to recognize the patterns that were occuring more easily.

Good Luck, it sounds like you're working hard and I'm sure you'll find a strategy that works best for you!

 

[letjin]

We had to push the electrons around with arrows, too. If you used a full arrow head when it should have been a half arrow head, you lost points. The structures had to be perfect, or you lost points. The arrows had to be going in the right direction, or you lost points.

By drawing everything over and over, I did actually learn it. We had a large study group where we did example problems. If one person didn't understand a specific mechanism, another person would explain it. I wouldn't have made it through without my classmates.

That's how my teacher was EXACTLY..and it actually helped to memorize the reactions, since I understood why things were doing what they're doing....but then for the sake of the coming exam I guess repetition is the only way.. (not just reviewing flashcards but draw)

 

[iluvflashy]

I agree with that as well. I just rewrite my lecture notes several times. It helps if you rewrite things over and over again.

 

[eddavatar]

I am trying to study for my organic test next week. I have at least 30 reactions to memorize, and i have been unsuccessful thus far at using my method of making notecards for mechanisms. Can anyone PLEASE share their methods of memorizing mechanisms? Please can you all share anything that helped you study for organic successfully!! Thank you so much!

Memorization is suicidal not only in OChem, but it is also bad for college in general.

For me, I just do practice questions w/ answers and look into the logic of cracking the questions.

I think the most important thing about OChem is about understand how the electron get pushed. There are only 2 things in the world of OChem: Nucleophile and Electrophiles.

Then again, OChem is not the strongest part of my arsenel.

 

[freshbeatschris]

Although, if all else fails, do what I did for my stats class....post the equations (reactions, mechanisms, definitions) EVERYWHERE: on your bathroom mirror, in the shower (laminate first, of course), on the fridge, even modify your screen saver....live, eat, and breathe chemistry for the few months of this class. Trust me, it'll be over soon! 🙂

I did the same thing. I got a large dry-erase board and would write them, erase them, write them, erase them, look at them when I was brushing my teeth, etc.

I always tell my teachers, "It can't all stick the first time." And I know they believe this as well. Try to get most of them down via whatever method ends up working for you best and then remember to RELAX!

I had a panic attack during my Orgo II final. My mind went blank for about 15 minutes there. The powers that be must've been looking over me, because I still managed to get an A for the class. Trust me, if I can do it, you can do it too! 😀

Chris

 

[pharmacology]

Way back when I took Ochem, I knew students who just studied their notes. They didn't do too well. Writing out the reactions, understanding the functional groups involved, and understanding the movement of electrons for the particular molecule structure invovled helped enoumously.

You really do need to draw out the reactions...completely and understand why the reaction happens.

Once you and your other Ochem friends can synthesis (on a blackboard) lysergic acid diethylamide from just a few chemical components using organic reactions then you likely understand how things work. That is what my friend and I did....of course we were geeks back then

 

[twester]

This has been a good thread. I'm going to try a couple of the suggestions. I especially like the white board one.

I'm pretty frustrated with o-chem II this semester. We had our first exam last Monday. Today, the professor spends 30 full minutes railing on us because the average score was 42 with no one breaking 70.

He very clearly believed that it's all our fault that the exam resembled almost NOTHING we'd been working on for the last four weeks. You know, spend 2 minutes talking about organic synthesis using Gilman reagents in lecture, but make it 20% of the points on the exam. There were subjective questions like "Which substance smells the best?" I don't know - thiols kind of remind me of the skunky smell of home. I pick that one!

I'm venting on the prof because I couldn't vent at him in class this morning (although if my eyes shot fire, he'd have gone *poof*). I think he's an incredibly intelligent man, clearly a master chemist. He's a good teacher as well. I think he's really devoted to his students. It's just that his exams are a little out-of-whack.

Maybe I just didn't study well enough. However, I already put in a good 12-15 hours a weeks outside of class on o-chem, I don't think I can give it any more than that. So I'm resolving to study smarter. Anyway...thanks for letting me vent.

Troy

 

[beccala33]

This has been a good thread. I'm going to try a couple of the suggestions. I especially like the white board one.

I'm pretty frustrated with o-chem II this semester. We had our first exam last Monday. Today, the professor spends 30 full minutes railing on us because the average score was 42 with no one breaking 70.

He very clearly believed that it's all our fault that the exam resembled almost NOTHING we'd been working on for the last four weeks. You know, spend 2 minutes talking about organic synthesis using Gilman reagents in lecture, but make it 20% of the points on the exam. There were subjective questions like "Which substance smells the best?" I don't know - thiols kind of remind me of the skunky smell of home. I pick that one!

I'm venting on the prof because I couldn't vent at him in class this morning (although if my eyes shot fire, he'd have gone *poof*). I think he's an incredibly intelligent man, clearly a master chemist. He's a good teacher as well. I think he's really devoted to his students. It's just that his exams are a little out-of-whack.

Maybe I just didn't study well enough. However, I already put in a good 12-15 hours a weeks outside of class on o-chem, I don't think I can give it any more than that. So I'm resolving to study smarter. Anyway...thanks for letting me vent.

Troy

I can't believe that your professor gave you a question about Gilman reagents worth 20% of your exam. I don't even remember what that is, and I feel like I am pretty well-versed in organic chem. I hate teachers who nitpick about things that are irrelevant to anything you will ever need to know in the future. Know what I mean?

 

[ButlerPharm.D.]

Hey, that's O-Chem for ya!

 

[stickandstone]

This has been a good thread. I'm going to try a couple of the suggestions. I especially like the white board one.

I'm pretty frustrated with o-chem II this semester. We had our first exam last Monday. Today, the professor spends 30 full minutes railing on us because the average score was 42 with no one breaking 70.

He very clearly believed that it's all our fault that the exam resembled almost NOTHING we'd been working on for the last four weeks. You know, spend 2 minutes talking about organic synthesis using Gilman reagents in lecture, but make it 20% of the points on the exam. There were subjective questions like "Which substance smells the best?" I don't know - thiols kind of remind me of the skunky smell of home. I pick that one!

I'm venting on the prof because I couldn't vent at him in class this morning (although if my eyes shot fire, he'd have gone *poof*). I think he's an incredibly intelligent man, clearly a master chemist. He's a good teacher as well. I think he's really devoted to his students. It's just that his exams are a little out-of-whack.

Maybe I just didn't study well enough. However, I already put in a good 12-15 hours a weeks outside of class on o-chem, I don't think I can give it any more than that. So I'm resolving to study smarter. Anyway...thanks for letting me vent.

Troy

i know what you are going through. Our ochem teacher gave us the practice test and 10% of the real test resembled the practice test. if he didnt grade on a curve, only one person would have gotten an A and most of the students would be struggle to get a C. It's really the teacher and not the students that's failing the class. Chemistry teachers are brilliant individuals but they dont know how to convey the ideas to the students...

 

[twester]

To my professor's credit, his curve is generous. And he's letting us redo the exam as a take-home. The scores of the two attempts will be averaged. I just wish his exams didn't make me feel like such an idiot. It almost seems sadistic.

Oh well, thanks for the commiseration.

Troy

 

[ButlerPharm.D.]

Everyone has to pay their dues...you'll be fine 😛

 

[genesis09]

The best way to study is to do the mechanisms over and over again.

 

[YO YO YO]

Memorization is suicidal not only in OChem, but it is also bad for college in general.

For me, I just do practice questions w/ answers and look into the logic of cracking the questions.

I think the most important thing about OChem is about understand how the electron get pushed. There are only 2 things in the world of OChem: Nucleophile and Electrophiles.

Then again, OChem is not the strongest part of my arsenel.

Well, it is clear that spelling is the strongest part of your arsenal!!

 

[utpharmdude]

Try to understand the material instead of memorizing. It will make things alot easier.