Some interactive Jmol models of some common crystal systems and some geological systems.
Students construct models of ionic solids in class and answer a series of questions about the structures.
Miessler and Tarr is an inorganic textbook which is is best suited to an upper-division one-semester inorganic course, though there is more material than can be covered in a single semester, so some choice of topics is necessary. It is very well suited for a course oriented around structure, bonding, and reaction chemistry of transition metal compounds, but is very limited in its treatment of solids, main-group, descriptive chemistry, and bioinorganic. Pchem would be helpful but is not necessary. In particular, the treatment of MO theory is very in-depth. The quality of end-of chapter p
Housecroft and Sharpe (Inorganic Chemistry, 3ed): This is a comprehensive inorganic textbook designed primarily for students at the Junior/Senior level. P-Chem would not be needed as a prerequisite for this text, but would be helpful. It includes both theoretical and descriptive material along with special topics, enough for a two semester course though it is easily adaptable to a one-semester "advanced inorganic" course by choosing only some topics. It is written in a clear and generally readable style and the full-color graphic contribute to student understanding.
I have students construct Lewis structures on the board starting at the noble gases and working backwards to the group 14 elements. We talk about both second period then heavier elements. As we move across the period we transition from molecular solids to extended solids.
This is a nice transition from molecular chemistry to extended compounds. I use this as a bridge into the solid state portion of the course because it allows me to review Lewis structures, trends in bond energies, and provide some descriptive chemistry information.
I find that students get a better understanding of solid state structure by playing with models. I give students two fifty-minute class periods to look at the structure types that we discuss in class. This is an old in-class activity that needs massive updating.
In this activity, students look at the holes in different lattice types (simple cubic, ccp, hcp) and the CsCl, NaCl, CdI2, ZnS, and spinel structure types.