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Students need a solid platform in numbers and a good understanding of 'relative scale' in order to fully get to grips with the concepts of the pH scale and links with concentration and dilution. The Maths skills course has a highly relevant section on powers of ten, Standard form.

Interactive activities link the magnitude of familiar objects to their size in numbers – from very large to extremely small. This provides some relevant examples to support their understanding of the magnitude of powers of ten. Subsequent pages include many useful examples and questions on manipulating powers of ten and base 10 logs.

What strategies may help to support students who have difficulties with logs?

Give students lots of practice. Give them practice at taking logs and back again, initially without pH as this can be added when the maths is more secure.

Practise the manipulation of exactly which calculator buttons to press when taking logs and back.

What else can help?

A secure understanding of concentration is also required. It is worth checking students' understanding, and that they are secure in working out concentrations of solutions. This can be followed by plenty of examples applied to pH.