Teaching organic chemistry post-16

All living things are made of organic compounds. This means every object derived from a plant or an animal is comprised of organic molecules. In their post-16 education, students need to know that organic compounds are categorised by their chemical properties. This article looks at the detail of what they need to know, the threshold concepts and common misconceptions, as well as the things students often get wrong. It addresses some of these with suggestions for activities and strategies to introduce students to organic chemistry at post-16.