Abstract Organic chemistry is an important undergraduate course in pharmacy. It lays the foundation for follow-up learning of key courses such as pharmaceutical chemistry and pharmaceutics. This article summarized the author's long-years-experience in teaching organic chemistry in pharmacy by employing the method of "learning based on the task" in the teaching. By choosing typical drugs which were suitable as starting points for teaching, we took functional groups in the specific drug structures as examples to teach composition and characteristics of the functional groups of organic compounds. The leaning of physical and chemical properties, identification methods and the stability of the typical drugs were incorporated into organic chemistry course. Furthermore, we guided students to use power point presentation, online data search, QQ and other modern methods of communication to consolidate have-learned-knowledge. This teaching method not only can mobilize students' learning initiative, but also can promote students' enthusiasm for the study of pharmacy. In the end, it achieved the purpose of "being able to apply what one has learned", and significantly improved the teaching results.
