Chem – LESSON 4: The Periodic Table

February 13th, 2011 |

Author: Andrew

What is this lesson about?

The periodic table is a tool to organize the elements that we use in chemistry. However, there are many different ways to look at that organization. This lesson explores those different ways to look at the periodic table.

Why is it critical to understand?

Once you are able to look at the periodic table in different ways, then you can also think about how to solve different kinds of problems you may see later in chemistry. Future chemistry lessons, both in your class and on this website, will build off all the information on the periodic table and you will be expected to interpret that information and relate it back to the ways you learned about it in this lesson. How the electrons viewed on the periodic table will be especially important. Since electrons are the outer most regions of an atom they act like the skin of an atom. Our skin determines how we interact with other things outside of ourselves. The “skin” of electrons does the same for the atoms. Whenever other atoms come in contact with each other it is their electrons that interact first and therefore it is their electrons that determine how the two or more atoms will interact when they collide. Depending on how electrons are arranged in an atom will determine things like how bonding works, what ions they can become, and even how they interact with things like light. Many of these concepts will carry over to lessons like electron orbitals and Lewis structures.

New Learning Sections:

—> Matter and the Elements

—> Periodic Symbols

—> Protons and Electrons

—> Neutrons

—> Isotopes

—> Periods, Rows, Columns, and Groups

—> Ions

—> Atomic Notation Part 1

—> Atomic Notation Part 2

—> Metals and Non-Metals

—> Further Divisions of the Periodic Table