What Makes a Compound Organic? — Interactive Lesson (Ages 11–14)

Food, clothes, petrol and plastic bottles all have something in common: carbon chains. This 18-slide interactive lesson on introduction to organic chemistry takes pupils from first ideas to exam-style explanations, with 10 self-marking activities and nothing to prepare beforehand.

Teaching What Makes a Compound Organic? in KS3 Science

This bridge lesson prepares pupils for GCSE and Senior Secondary organic chemistry. Pupils learn that organic compounds are carbon compounds, explain catenation and why carbon forms millions of compounds, identify hydrocarbons from their formulae, and spot organic compounds in everyday food, fuels, plastics and medicines.

What Pupils Will Learn

• Describe what an organic compound is.
• Explain why carbon can form so many compounds.
• Identify hydrocarbons from their formulae.
• Give examples of organic compounds in everyday life.
• Tell organic compounds apart from inorganic ones.

What’s Included

• 18-slide interactive lesson
• 10 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 the UK Key Stage 3 Science curriculum and Nigerian Junior Secondary Basic Science (JSS3–SS1), building the foundations pupils need for GCSE, WAEC and NECO.

Love this? You’ll love…

• Carbon, Allotropes and the Carbon Cycle — Interactive Lesson (Ages 11–14)
• Pressure in Solids, Liquids and Gases — Interactive Lesson (Ages 11–14)

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FAQ

What year groups is this for? Year 9 (ages 11–14), and JSS3–SS1 in Nigeria.

Is it self-marking? Yes — all 10 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.