Garreth Tinker The Chemistry Coach

19/08/2026

I help pupils succeed and reach their full potential. My name is Garreth. I'm the chemistry coach, and my goal is to help young adults succeed on the journey from school through university and onto work by mastering chemistry.

I'm opening up a completely free Zoom call, which will be open to questions and available to anyone. It is going to take place on Thursday the 20th at 7:30 pm. It's for students who need to get their personal statement written, and it's about getting that one thing done so you don't feel stressed in what is one of the toughest years you'll do: Year 13.

If you're going into Year 13, or you're goini in Year 12 and you want to know what it's going to be like and what hurdles you're going to have to jump across, then come and join the session. There's nothing to sign up to. You just need to come and join along. There are no sales. It's just here as a complete help.

If you do want any further information or you want a recording of it, you can send me through your details, and I can send them across to you. Hopefully, you'll all get a lot out of it. It's going to be delivered by someone who's studying medicine at Cambridge. Her personal statement was excellent, and it covers all of the key principles that you need to get into your personal statement. It is kept on the desk and gets you that all-important interview.

I'll stick the link in the comments.

19/08/2026

Are you starting to think about your university application?

Join us for a live Personal Statement Masterclass with Fiona, a Cambridge medical student who is about to begin her fourth year.

The session will have a definite medical focus, so if you’re considering Medicine, Dentistry or Veterinary Science, I would say it’s essential.

However, the ideas and thought processes Fiona will cover will also be valuable for anyone preparing to write a personal statement for university.

📅 Thursday 20 August
⏰ 7:30 p.m.
💻 Live on Zoom

Join here:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89272798605?pwd=5ChZtihgBSm1kB6b7hOf6Jbwp51wIW.1

Meeting ID: 892 7279 8605
Passcode: 229606

Start thinking about your personal statement before you return to school this summer.

16/08/2026

16/08/2026

Which has the higher melting point: sodium or potassium? 🧪

Knowing the answer is one thing. Being able to build the explanation from fundamental chemical principles is what matters at A-level.

Potassium has an additional occupied principal energy level, so K⁺ is larger than Na⁺. This means the delocalised electrons are, on average, further from the positive metal ions in potassium.

The electrostatic attraction between the positive ions and delocalised electrons is therefore stronger in sodium. More energy is needed to overcome its metallic bonding, giving sodium the higher melting point.

This is A-level Chemistry: connecting atomic structure, periodic trends and bonding to explain an observable property.

Did you predict the correct answer before the explanation?

Follow The Chemistry Coach for more support with understanding—not simply memorising—chemistry.

16/08/2026

Are you starting A-level Chemistry this year? 🧪

Before September, make sure you are confident with these GCSE foundations:

1️⃣ Writing chemical formulae
2️⃣ Balancing equations
3️⃣ Calculating relative formula mass
4️⃣ Converting between mass and moles
5️⃣ Using ratios from balanced equations
6️⃣ Identifying limiting reactants
7️⃣ Atomic structure and electron configurations
8️⃣ Ionic, covalent and metallic bonding
9️⃣ Explaining trends in the periodic table
🔟 Oxidation, reduction and oxidation states

You don’t need to begin learning the whole A-level course early—but weaknesses in these areas can make the first few months much harder than they need to be.

How many of the ten are you genuinely confident with?

Save this checklist and send it to someone starting A-level Chemistry.

Follow The Chemistry Coach—I’ll be testing and teaching each of these skills before September.

15/08/2026

Are you starting A-level Chemistry in September? 🧪

Before you begin, you need to be confident answering questions like this.

Can you work it out?

Put your answer—and your method—in the comments. I’ll reveal the solution in the next video.

Send this to someone who is about to start A-level Chemistry and see if they can do it.

12/08/2026

Wishing the very best of luck to everyone receiving their A-level results tomorrow! 🤞🍀

Try to get a good night’s sleep tonight, have everything ready and—most importantly—make sure you have a Plan A, a Plan B and a Plan C.

Remember: the route you have planned is a path, but it isn’t the only path. If your results don’t go quite as you hoped, it is not the end of the world. There is always another way through.

I’ve worked with many pupils who didn’t receive the results they wanted the first time around. They regrouped, took a different route or tried again—and ultimately achieved the grades they needed.

Whatever happens tomorrow, your results do not define you or what you can achieve. Take a breath, consider your options and ask for help if you need it.

Best of luck—you’ve got this!

12/08/2026