The Ultimate 101 Prompt Guide for IB Chemistry (First Assessment 2025)

Introduction

This guide is designed to help IB Chemistry educators and students leverage the power of generative AI to enrich the learning experience. The prompts are tailored to the syllabus for first assessment in 2025, focusing on core concepts, practical skills, and assessment preparation for both Standard Level (SL) and Higher Level (HL).

The goal is not to replace critical thinking but to enhance it. For educators, AI can be a powerful assistant for creating tailored resources, differentiating instruction, and innovating assessment methods. For students, it can act as a 24/7 tutor, helping to clarify complex topics, practice skills, and prepare strategically for exams. Use these prompts as a starting point to build a more dynamic, responsive, and effective approach to teaching and learning IB Chemistry.

How to Use These Prompts:

Copy and Paste: Simply copy the prompt and paste it into your preferred AI tool (e.g., Gemini, ChatGPT, Claude).
Specify and Adapt: Replace bracketed text like [Topic] or [Concept] with the specific content you’re working on. Always specify SL or HL to get the most relevant response. The more specific your context, the better the AI’s output will be.
Combine and Iterate: Feel free to combine or modify prompts. Use the AI’s initial response to ask follow-up questions and dive deeper into a topic. For example, after getting a worksheet, you could ask, “Can you add a challenge question that connects this topic to periodicity?”

Section 1 – Educator Prompts (50)

Part A: Planning & Preparation (15 Prompts)

Unit Plan Outline: “Generate a detailed unit plan for IB Chemistry [SL/HL] Topic: Reactivity 1.1 – Measuring Enthalpy Change. The plan should span [number] of 60-minute lessons and include learning objectives, key vocabulary, suggested hands-on and virtual activities, formative assessment ideas, and explicit links to TOK and the Nature of Science.”
Lesson Hook Idea: “Provide three creative ‘hook’ ideas to begin a lesson on [Concept, e.g., Le Châtelier’s Principle] for an IB Chemistry [SL/HL] class. The hooks should be engaging and connect to real-world phenomena, such as blood oxygen transport or industrial chemical synthesis. For each hook, explain the setup and the key questions to pose to students.”
IA Research Questions: “Generate 5 sample research questions for the IB Chemistry Internal Assessment (IA) related to [Topic, e.g., Chemical Kinetics]. The questions must be suitable for a typical school laboratory, with clear independent and dependent variables. For each question, also suggest a potential methodology, list the key equipment needed, and identify a possible safety or environmental consideration.”
Differentiated Instruction Plan: “Create a differentiated instruction plan for a mixed-ability IB Chemistry [SL/HL] class covering [Concept, e.g., Covalent Bonding]. Include extension activities for advanced students (e.g., researching exceptions to the octet rule), scaffolding support for struggling students (e.g., providing pre-drawn molecule templates for Lewis structures), and a collaborative task that allows students of all levels to contribute.”
Connecting to TOK: “Suggest three Theory of Knowledge (TOK) discussion prompts related to IB Chemistry Topic: Structure 1.2 – The Nuclear Atom. Focus on concepts like models, evidence, and uncertainty in science. For each prompt, provide potential student arguments and counterarguments to facilitate a deeper discussion.”
Lab Activity Design: “Design a simple, safe, and effective lab activity for an IB SL class to demonstrate the concept of [Concept, e.g., Titration]. List the required materials, a step-by-step procedure, safety precautions, and sample data collection tables. Also, include a section on post-lab analysis with guiding questions for the conclusion.”
HL Extension Planning: “Outline the key differences and additional concepts required for HL students compared to SL students for Topic: Reactivity 3.2 – How Far? The Equilibrium Constant. Suggest how to structure the teaching of the HL material, including a diagnostic question to assess SL understanding before introducing HL concepts like the reaction quotient, Q.”
Key Vocabulary List: “Generate a key vocabulary list with student-friendly definitions for Topic: Structure 2.1 – The Covalent Bond. Format this as a three-column table with the term, its definition, and a sentence using the term in a chemical context.”
Real-World Application Link: “List five real-world applications of [Concept, e.g., Redox Reactions] that would be relevant and interesting to an IB Chemistry [SL/HL] student. For each, provide a brief explanation of the underlying chemistry and suggest a short research question a student could investigate.”
Practical Skills Integration: “Suggest opportunities to integrate practical skills (as per the IB guide) into the theoretical teaching of Topic: Reactivity 2.1 – How Much? The Mole Concept. Focus on skills like measurement uncertainty, propagation of errors during calculations, and the use of technology for data collection.”
Cross-Curricular Links: “Identify three potential cross-curricular links between IB Chemistry [Topic, e.g., Energetics] and IB Biology/Physics. Provide a brief explanation for each link and suggest a mini-project idea that would require students to apply knowledge from both subjects.”
Case Study Development: “Develop a short case study on the [Application, e.g., Haber-Bosch Process]. The case study should be suitable for HL students and include discussion questions that connect to equilibrium, kinetics, and the socio-economic impacts of the process. Include a data set for students to analyze.”
Flipped Classroom Material: “Create a script for a 10-minute introductory video for a flipped classroom lesson on [Concept, e.g., VSEPR Theory]. The script should be clear, concise, include prompts for students to think about before class, and suggest a simple at-home activity (e.g., using marshmallows and toothpicks) to model the concepts.”
Nature of Science Integration: “Provide examples from the history of chemistry that illustrate the Nature of Science theme of ‘[Theme, e.g., Models are representations of the real-world]‘ within the context of Topic: Structure 1.1 – Introduction to the Particulate Nature of Matter. Contrast the Dalton model with the Thomson and Rutherford models as an example.”
Essential Questions: “Formulate three ‘essential questions’ to guide student inquiry throughout the unit on Topic: Reactivity 1.2 – Energy Cycles in Reactions. These questions should be open-ended and promote critical thinking. Also, create a ‘driving question’ for a project-based learning activity related to the unit, for instance, ‘How can we design a cost-effective and environmentally friendly self-heating coffee cup?'”

Part B: Delivery & Resources (15 Prompts)

Analogy for Complex Concept: “Explain [Complex Concept, e.g., Dynamic Equilibrium] using a simple, clear analogy suitable for an IB Chemistry student who is finding it difficult to understand. After explaining the analogy, also explain the limitations of the analogy to prevent misconceptions.”
Worksheet Creation: “Create a 10-question worksheet for IB Chemistry [SL/HL] on [Topic, e.g., Stoichiometric Calculations]. Include a mix of calculation and short-answer questions. Provide a full answer key with worked solutions. Add a final ‘challenge question’ that requires synthesizing knowledge from a previous topic.”
Interactive Activity Idea: “Design an interactive, in-class group activity to help SL students understand [Concept, e.g., Intermolecular Forces]. The activity should not require specialized lab equipment. For example, a ‘human chain’ activity to model the relative strengths of London dispersion forces, dipole-dipole forces, and hydrogen bonds.”
Data for Analysis: “Generate a sample dataset for an experiment investigating [Relationship, e.g., the effect of temperature on the rate of a reaction]. The data should have a clear trend but include realistic random errors. Format it as a markdown table. Also, ask me to perform a specific calculation with the data, such as calculating the average rate at two different temperatures.”
Presentation Slides Outline: “Create a slide-by-slide outline for a presentation on Topic: Structure 2.2 – What is the Shape of a Molecule?. Include key diagrams to illustrate, talking points for each slide, and interactive elements like embedded questions or a poll for the audience.”
Simplifying HL Concepts: “Act as a tutor. Explain the concept of [HL Concept, e.g., Hybridization] in simple terms, breaking it down step-by-step for an HL student. Start with the problem (e.g., the bonding in methane) that the concept of hybridization solves.”
Demonstration Script: “Write a script for a teacher-led demonstration of [Chemical Reaction, e.g., the combustion of magnesium]. The script should include what to do, what to say to the students to guide their observations, key safety warnings, and follow-up questions that link the macroscopic observations to the sub-microscopic (atomic/molecular) level.”
Common Misconceptions: “List common student misconceptions related to [Topic, e.g., Acids and Bases]. For each misconception, provide a scientifically accurate explanation to correct it and suggest a simple demonstration or question that would challenge the misconception.”
Inquiry-Based Prompt: “Create an inquiry-based prompt for students related to [Phenomenon, e.g., the properties of different allotropes of carbon]. The prompt should encourage them to ask questions and seek out information independently. For example: ‘You are a materials scientist tasked with selecting the best allotrope of carbon for a new lightweight bicycle frame. What properties would you investigate, and how would you justify your choice?'”
Video Resource Suggestions: “Suggest 5 high-quality YouTube videos or online simulations that would be effective for teaching [Topic, e.g., Galvanic Cells]. Provide a brief reason for each suggestion and a specific timestamp for the most crucial part of the video.”
Guided Notes Template: “Create a guided notes (cloze-style) template for students to complete during a lecture on [Topic, e.g., The Mole Concept]. Leave blanks for key terms, definitions, and sample calculations. Also, include a ‘summary’ or ‘key takeaway’ box at the end of each section.”
Role-Play Scenario: “Design a role-play scenario where students act as atoms to model [Process, e.g., the formation of an ionic bond between sodium and chlorine]. Provide specific ‘roles’ and ‘scripts’ for each student (e.g., ‘You are Sodium. You have one valence electron you really want to get rid of.’).”
Starter/Plenary Questions: “Generate 3 quick ‘starter’ questions to review the previous lesson on [Previous Topic] and 3 ‘plenary’ questions to summarize the key takeaways from today’s lesson on [Current Topic]. The plenary questions should require students to apply the concept in a new context.”
Whiteboard Diagram Plan: “Outline a step-by-step plan for drawing a clear, well-labeled diagram on a whiteboard to explain [Process, e.g., Fractional Distillation]. Include color-coding suggestions and annotations that explain what is happening at each stage of the process.”
Ethical Considerations Discussion: “Provide discussion points to raise with students about the ethical implications of [Application, e.g., the use of pesticides in agriculture] in the context of Topic: Reactivity 4.1 – How can we Alter the Yield of a Chemical Reaction?. Frame it as a debate with different stakeholder perspectives (e.g., farmer, environmentalist, consumer).”

Part C: Assessment & Feedback (15 Prompts)

Multiple Choice Quiz (Paper 1 Style): “Act as an IB Chemistry examiner. Create a 5-question multiple-choice quiz (with 4 options each) in the style of Paper 1 for [SL/HL] on [Topic]. For each question, ensure one distractor targets a common calculation error, and another targets a common conceptual misconception. Provide an answer key with detailed explanations for why the correct answer is right and the distractors are wrong.”
Structured Question (Paper 2 Style): “Design a structured, multi-part question in the style of Paper 2 for [SL/HL] based on [Topic, e.g., Periodicity]. The question should include command terms like ‘State,’ ‘Explain,’ and ‘Calculate.’ Provide a detailed mark scheme that shows the point allocation for each step of the calculation and provides alternative acceptable wordings.”
Data-Based Question (Paper 3 Style): “Generate a data-based question (DBQ) in the style of the old Paper 3 for [SL/HL]. Provide a brief introduction, a table of experimental data on [Experiment], and a series of questions that require data analysis, graphing, and evaluation of the method. Include a question that asks students to suggest a specific and realistic improvement to the experimental design.”
Mark Scheme Creation: “Create a detailed mark scheme for the following student task: [Insert task/question here]. The mark scheme should allocate points clearly, provide acceptable answers, and include notes for examiners on what to look for and what to reject.”
IA Feedback Generator: “Act as an IB teacher. A student has submitted this draft for their IA introduction: [Paste student’s text here]. Provide constructive feedback focusing on the clarity of the research question, background context, and personal engagement. Structure the feedback using the ‘praise, question, suggest’ model.”
Command Term Practice: “Create a short assessment task that requires students to differentiate between the command terms ‘Describe’ and ‘Explain’ in the context of [Concept, e.g., the trend in atomic radii across a period]. Then, provide a model answer for both ‘Describe’ and ‘Explain’ to clearly illustrate the difference.”
Peer Assessment Checklist: “Develop a peer assessment checklist for students to use when reviewing each other’s lab reports for an experiment on [Experiment Name]. The checklist should be in the form of questions (e.g., ‘Is the research question clearly stated?’) and focus on structure, data presentation, analysis, and evaluation.”
Error Analysis Task: “Provide a sample student response to a calculation question about [Topic, e.g., Limiting Reactants] that contains a common error. Create a task that asks another student to identify the error, explain the conceptual misunderstanding that likely led to the error, and provide the fully corrected solution.”
Exit Ticket Questions: “Generate three quick ‘exit ticket’ questions to assess student understanding at the end of a lesson on [Concept]. The questions should be of increasing difficulty: one recall, one application, and one extension question.”
Predicting Exam Questions: “Based on the IB Chemistry [SL/HL] guide for [Topic], and analyzing the balance of questions from recent exam sessions, predict three potential long-answer questions that could appear on a final exam. Explain your reasoning, citing the specific syllabus points.”
Grading a Response: “Using the provided mark scheme [Paste Mark Scheme], grade the following student answer [Paste Student Answer]. Provide a score and a brief justification for the marks awarded for each part of the question. Offer one specific piece of advice for improvement.”
Test Review Sheet: “Create a test review sheet for an upcoming test on [Unit/Topics]. The sheet should list all key concepts, formulas, and types of problems students should be able to solve. For each topic, include a link to a relevant practice problem or online resource.”
Practical Work Evaluation: “Provide prompts for students to evaluate their own experimental method for the [Experiment Name] lab, focusing on identifying weaknesses and suggesting realistic improvements. Ask them to categorize weaknesses into systematic and random errors.”
Verbal Feedback Stems: “Provide a list of sentence stems for giving constructive verbal feedback to students on their graph-drawing skills, such as ‘To improve the clarity of your graph, consider…’ or ‘How could you modify the axes to better show the trend in the data?'”
Retake/Correction Task: “Design a ‘retake’ task for a student who performed poorly on a quiz about [Topic]. The task should require them to first correct their original answers, then complete a new set of problems on the same topic, and finally, write a short reflection on what they misunderstood previously.”

Part D: Enrichment & Extension (5 Prompts)

Beyond the Syllabus: “For an HL student who is excelling, suggest an advanced, related topic they could research that goes beyond the syllabus for [Topic, e.g., Organic Chemistry], such as stereoisomerism in drug design or the chemistry of supramolecular assemblies. Provide a few starting research questions and suggest a relevant scientific journal.”
Interdisciplinary Project Idea: “Design an interdisciplinary project connecting IB Chemistry [Topic] with IB Environmental Systems and Societies (ESS). The project should have a clear research focus, a tangible output (like a presentation or a policy proposal), and require students to gather and analyze both scientific and socio-economic data.”
Chemistry in the News: “Find a recent news article (from the last year) related to a breakthrough or issue in [Field, e.g., polymer science or battery technology]. Write a summary and three discussion questions that connect it to the IB Chemistry curriculum. One question should focus on the science, one on the application, and one on the ethical/social implications.”
Olympiad-Style Problem: “Create a challenging, multi-step ‘Olympiad-style’ problem for advanced HL students based on concepts from [Topics, e.g., Energetics and Kinetics]. The problem should have a narrative structure and require logical deduction in addition to calculation.”
Career Connections: “List five careers that heavily utilize the principles of [IB Chemistry Topic, e.g., Spectroscopy]. For each, briefly explain how the chemistry is applied in that profession and outline a typical ‘day in the life’ of someone in that role.”

Section 2 – Student Prompts (50)

Part A: Understanding Concepts (15 Prompts)

Explain It Simply: “Explain the concept of [Concept, e.g., Electronegativity] as if you were explaining it to a 10th grader. Use an analogy to help me understand. Then, re-explain it using precise IB terminology.”
SL vs. HL: “What is the difference between the SL and HL understanding of [Topic, e.g., Acids and Bases]? List the additional concepts HL students need to know and provide a practice problem that only an HL student could solve.”
Concept Map: “Create a mind map or concept map linking the key ideas in Topic: Reactivity 2.1 – How Much? The Mole Concept. Include terms like Avogadro’s constant, molar mass, empirical formula, and limiting reactant. Show the relationships between the concepts with connecting phrases.”
Step-by-Step Process: “Provide a step-by-step guide on how to [Process, e.g., determine the empirical formula from percentage composition data]. Include a simple worked example and then a more complex one with a trick, like needing to calculate the percentage of oxygen by subtraction.”
Visualizing Molecules: “Describe the 3D shape and bond angles of the following molecules using VSEPR theory: [List of molecules, e.g., CH4, NH3, H2O, CO2]. Explain why they have these shapes, referencing the number of bonding pairs and lone pairs.”
Key Definitions: “Define the following terms in the context of IB Chemistry [Topic]: [List of terms]. Provide an example for each, and then ask me a question to test my understanding of the term.”
Why Does This Happen?: “Explain the chemical principles behind why [Phenomenon, e.g., ionic compounds have high melting points]. Your explanation should refer to both structure and bonding at the particulate level.”
Compare and Contrast: “Create a table that compares and contrasts [Concept 1, e.g., Ionic Bonding] and [Concept 2, e.g., Covalent Bonding] based on their formation, properties, structure, and examples of substances for each.”
Summarize a Topic: “Summarize the most important points of IB Chemistry SL Topic: Periodicity in 500 words or less. Then, create a 5-point ‘cheat sheet’ of the absolute must-know trends and facts from that summary.”
Breaking Down a Reaction: “For the reaction [Chemical Equation], explain what is being oxidized and what is being reduced by assigning oxidation states. Identify the oxidizing agent and the reducing agent, and write the half-equations.”
Interpreting a Graph: “Explain how to interpret a [Type of Graph, e.g., Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution curve]. What do the axes represent, and what does the area under the curve signify? Show me how the curve changes if the temperature is increased.”
Real-World Context: “How does the chemistry of [Topic, e.g., Catalysis] apply to [Real-world example, e.g., the catalytic converter in a car]? Explain the specific reactions that occur and why the catalyst is important.”
Unpacking a Definition: “The IB definition of an acid is a ‘proton donor.’ Unpack this definition for me. What is a proton in this context, what does it mean to donate it, and why is the Brønsted-Lowry theory more comprehensive than the Arrhenius theory?”
Identifying Forces: “For a sample of [Substance, e.g., liquid ethanol, C2H5OH], what types of intermolecular forces are present? Rank them from weakest to strongest and explain how they influence the substance’s boiling point.”
Translating Equations: “Translate the following chemical equation into a sentence describing the reaction: [Chemical Equation]. Include the state symbols in your description and specify the mole ratios.”

Part B: Practicing & Applying (15 Prompts)

Practice Problems: “Generate 5 practice problems on [Topic, e.g., Gas Laws] for an [SL/HL] student. Include a mix of difficulty levels and provide a full answer key with worked solutions. For each problem, state the specific concept being tested.”
Flashcard Creation: “Create a set of 10 digital flashcards for [Topic]. The front should have a key term or a question, and the back should have the definition or answer. Format this as a table I can copy into a flashcard app.”
Worked Example: “Show me a fully worked example of a calculation involving [Type of Calculation, e.g., Hess’s Law]. Explain each step of the calculation clearly, and highlight any common pitfalls or tricks to watch out for.”
Predicting Products: “Predict the products for the following reactions and write the balanced chemical equations: [List of reactants, e.g., HCl(aq) + NaOH(aq)]. Classify each reaction (e.g., acid-base, redox, precipitation).”
Drawing Organic Molecules: “Give me the IUPAC names for 5 different organic molecules containing [Functional Group, e.g., a carboxyl group], and ask me to draw their structures. Then, provide the correct structures for me to check my work.”
Lab Data Calculation: “I have the following data from a titration experiment: [Paste data here]. Calculate the concentration of the unknown acid. Show all your steps, including how to calculate the average titre from the concordant results.”
Limiting Reactant Practice: “In the reaction [Equation], if you start with [mass] of reactant A and [mass] of reactant B, which is the limiting reactant? What is the theoretical yield of the product? Also, calculate how much of the excess reactant is left over.”
Applying Principles: “Using Le Châtelier’s Principle, predict the effect of the following changes on the equilibrium: [Equation and list of changes, e.g., increasing pressure, decreasing temperature]. Justify each prediction.”
Identifying Errors: “Find the error in my calculation for this problem: [Paste problem and your incorrect solution]. Explain my mistake, tell me the conceptual misunderstanding that likely caused it, and show me the correct method.”
Naming Compounds: “Give me 10 chemical formulas (e.g., Fe2O3, N2O4) including ionic compounds with polyatomic ions and transition metals, and ask me to provide their correct IUPAC names.”
Writing Formulas: “Give me 10 chemical names (e.g., Copper (II) Sulfate, Dinitrogen pentoxide) and ask me to write their correct chemical formulas. Include some hydrated salts.”
Balancing Equations: “Give me 5 unbalanced chemical equations, including some complex redox reactions. Ask me to balance them using the half-equation method for the redox reactions.”
Mechanism Practice (HL): “Show me the step-by-step mechanism for the [Type of reaction, e.g., SN2 reaction between bromoethane and a hydroxide ion]. Explain the movement of electrons using curly arrows and describe the transition state.”
Spectroscopy Interpretation (HL): “Given the following data from Mass Spec, IR Spec, and H-NMR for an unknown organic compound: [Provide data], deduce the structure of the compound. Justify how each piece of data contributes to your final answer.”
Buffer Calculation (HL): “Calculate the pH of a buffer solution made by mixing [volume and concentration] of a weak acid with [volume and concentration] of its conjugate base. The Ka of the acid is [value]. Then, calculate the new pH after adding a small amount of strong acid.”

Part C: Revising & Preparing for Assessment (20 Prompts)

Revision Checklist: “Create a detailed revision checklist for my final [SL/HL] exam covering [Topic, e.g., Topic 1: Stoichiometric Relationships]. List all the key concepts, formulas, and skills I need to know. Turn this checklist into a series of questions I can use to test myself.”
Quick Quiz: “Quiz me with 10 rapid-fire questions on [Topic]. Just give me the question, I’ll answer, and then you can tell me if I’m right and provide the correct answer. Focus on questions that test common areas of confusion.”
Explain it Back: “I’m going to explain [Concept] to you. Please correct any mistakes in my explanation and ask me questions to check my understanding. Here is my explanation: [Type your explanation here]. Ask me one question that would require me to apply the concept to a new scenario.”
Simulate Exam Conditions: “Give me a single, multi-part question from [Topic] in the style of Paper 2, with a total of [number] marks. I will answer it, and then you can provide a detailed mark scheme for me to grade my own response, explaining where each mark is awarded.”
IA Research Question Review: “I’m thinking of this for my IA research question: ‘[Your RQ]‘. Is this a good research question for the IB Chemistry IA? What are its strengths and weaknesses? How could I improve it to make it more focused and allow for the collection of sufficient, relevant data?”
Study Plan: “Create a 7-day study plan for me to revise the entire IB Chemistry SL syllabus before my final exam. Allocate topics to each day and suggest a mix of revision activities, such as ‘review notes,’ ‘do practice problems,’ and ‘watch a summary video.'”
Mnemonic Device: “Help me create a mnemonic or acronym to remember [List of items, e.g., the activity series of metals or the types of intermolecular forces]. Make it funny or memorable.”
Past Paper Analysis: “Analyze the common types of questions asked for [Topic] in past IB exams. What skills are most frequently tested (e.g., calculation, explanation, data analysis)? Create a new practice question that is in a similar style.”
Common Mistakes to Avoid: “What are the most common mistakes students make on exam questions related to [Topic, e.g., Equilibrium]? How can I avoid them? Give me a ‘red flag’ to look for in a question that might indicate a potential trap.”
Data Booklet Navigation: “Explain which sections of the IB Chemistry data booklet are most relevant for solving problems in [Topic, e.g., Energetics] and how to use them. Give me a practice problem where I absolutely must use the data booklet to solve it.”

Section 3 – Bonus Universal Prompt (1)

Interdisciplinary Challenge: “Act as a panel of experts from different fields (a chemist, an economist, an environmental scientist, a public health official, and a policy advisor). A company has developed a new, highly efficient method for producing [Product, e.g., a biodegradable plastic or a new pharmaceutical drug]. The chemical process is [briefly describe the process, e.g., a catalytic reaction using a rare earth metal], and the proposed manufacturing plant is in [Location, e.g., a developing country]. Discuss the pros and cons of scaling up this production globally. Each expert should present their viewpoint, considering the chemical principles, economic viability, environmental impact, supply chain ethics, and public health implications. Conclude with a final recommendation to the ‘World Council’ on whether to approve the project, with specific conditions for approval.”