Common Misconceptions
"Organic" chemicals are exclusively not man made
This stems from hearing about organic foods. The main issue here is that the term "organic chemical" is not actually strictly defined, but the common usage of organic chemistry is to refer to hydrocarbons and the chemicals they can create through various reactions. It's important to note for the students that all carbon containing compounds are not organic (such as CO2)
Nomenclature mistakes
In naming ethers students will often name the shorter chain as the alkyl group and the longer chain as the alkoxy group. The easiest way to help this is to remind students that the -OR group is a functional group similar to the -OH functional group, just with a carbon chain replacing the hydrogen.
Esters present the exact opposite issue from ethers, which is likely where some of the confusion comes from. In ethers the longer chain is named for the alkane. With esters (and their similarly spelled name), students will often choose the longest chain the name as the "base" chain, and the shorter one to name as the akyl group. It's important to reinforce that the ester group starts with the carbon which has bonds with two oxygens, even if it is a much shorter chain.
Amides and amines are often confused, likely due to the fact that they only vary by one letter. A way to use the letter to your advantage in distinguishing the two is to tell students that amiNes only have nitrogen beyond the normal carbon and hydrogen in organic compounds, while amiDes are made from two (D for Di) chemicals.
Another common mistake is when writing the -COOH group, students will think the group is C-O-O-H and not a carbon double bonded to an oxygen and to a hydroxyl group.
This stems from hearing about organic foods. The main issue here is that the term "organic chemical" is not actually strictly defined, but the common usage of organic chemistry is to refer to hydrocarbons and the chemicals they can create through various reactions. It's important to note for the students that all carbon containing compounds are not organic (such as CO2)
Nomenclature mistakes
In naming ethers students will often name the shorter chain as the alkyl group and the longer chain as the alkoxy group. The easiest way to help this is to remind students that the -OR group is a functional group similar to the -OH functional group, just with a carbon chain replacing the hydrogen.
Esters present the exact opposite issue from ethers, which is likely where some of the confusion comes from. In ethers the longer chain is named for the alkane. With esters (and their similarly spelled name), students will often choose the longest chain the name as the "base" chain, and the shorter one to name as the akyl group. It's important to reinforce that the ester group starts with the carbon which has bonds with two oxygens, even if it is a much shorter chain.
Amides and amines are often confused, likely due to the fact that they only vary by one letter. A way to use the letter to your advantage in distinguishing the two is to tell students that amiNes only have nitrogen beyond the normal carbon and hydrogen in organic compounds, while amiDes are made from two (D for Di) chemicals.
Another common mistake is when writing the -COOH group, students will think the group is C-O-O-H and not a carbon double bonded to an oxygen and to a hydroxyl group.