Chemie im Kontext lessons link three contextual principles with a four phase lesson structure.

• Context orientation: Contexts, i.e. personally or societally relevant topics, are the main appeal and reference point for the students to develop chemical subject knowledge. In dealing with such contexts, they learn that it can be meaningful for them and their daily lives to occupy themselves with chemistry. Contexts could be, for example, »With hydrogen fuel cell cars into the future«, »Acids in the pantry« or »Energy drinks«.


• Cross linking knowledge to basic concepts: It is especially important in context-oriented teaching to offer the students a structure for the systematic and cumulative development of knowledge and understanding. Based on the subject knowledge acquired within the contexts, basic concepts are developed which underlie chemical knowledge (e.g. the donor-acceptor concept or the matter-particle concept). They form the basis from which further contexts can be explored


• Methodological diversity: Teaching according to Chemie im Kontext is characterized by the greatest possible methodological diversity. Self-directed learning becomes more important in various phases, and the traditional role of teachers and students changes.

Teaching according to Chemie im Kontext follows four sequential phases. After the contact phase, where students become familiar with the new context, there is a curiosity and planning phase, where they actively participate in various ways in further planning and structuring the work ahead. The elaboration phase then is characterized by as much independent student activity as possible, supported and moderated by the teacher. A large variety of methods is used here. In the final phase the freshly acquired chemical subject knowledge is extracted from the original context, linked to the basic concepts and applied to new contexts.