The Reactivity Series and Extracting Metals — Interactive Lesson (Ages 14–16)

Why is gold found as nuggets but iron has to be extracted from rock? It all depends on reactivity. This 22-slide interactive lesson on reactivity series takes pupils from first ideas to exam-style explanations, with 13 self-marking activities and nothing to prepare beforehand.

Teaching The Reactivity Series and Extracting Metals in GCSE Chemistry

Pupils put metals in order of reactivity, describe their reactions with water and dilute acids, and predict displacement reactions such as iron with copper sulfate. They define oxidation and reduction in terms of oxygen and explain why gold is found as the element, iron and zinc are extracted by reduction with carbon and aluminium by electrolysis, with examples from Nigeria's iron ore and gold deposits.

What Pupils Will Learn

• Put metals in order of reactivity.
• Describe how metals react with water and acids.
• Predict and explain displacement reactions.
• Define oxidation and reduction in terms of oxygen.
• Explain how a metal's position in the series decides how it is extracted.

What’s Included

• 22-slide interactive lesson on reactivity series
• 13 self-marking activities: multiple-choice questions, true-or-false checks, sorting tasks, drag-and-drop categorising and fill-in-the-gap questions
• Step-by-step teaching cards that reveal one point at a time
• A written explanation task with a model answer for self-assessment

Why Teachers Love It

• No prep — open it on an interactive whiteboard, laptop or tablet
• Instant feedback explains every answer, right or wrong
• Everyday examples make chemistry feel real
• Works for whole-class teaching, independent study or revision

Curriculum Alignment

Supports UK GCSE Chemistry and Combined Science (AQA, Edexcel and OCR) and the Nigerian Senior Secondary Chemistry curriculum (SS2), including WAEC and NECO exam preparation.

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FAQ

What year groups is this for? Years 10–11 (ages 14–16), and SS2 in Nigeria.

Is it self-marking? Yes — all 13 activities give instant feedback.

Do pupils need to log in? No. The lesson runs in any modern web browser.

Can I use it for revision? Yes. Pupils can replay it as often as they like, and the results screen shows which questions to review before a test.