Written by: Mrs. Kamille L. Dawson

Middle School Science/Math Teacher

Bonjour! Our Chemistry history walk continues! First stop, the Periodic Table.  We must give a round of applause to Russian Chemist Dmitri Mendeleev for establishing the first periodic table in 1869. 

Mendeleev formulated the periodic law dependent on chemical properties and atomic mass. A lot of elements were unknown, and many gaps existed in his periodic table. The exciting thing is that Mendeleev successfully used the periodic law to predict properties of some of the missing elements. 

Hands down the creation of the Periodic Law is one of the fundamental discoveries of the 19th Century.  The formulation of the Periodic Law also was explained further with the discovery of the atomic number, and pioneering work in quantum mechanics that both illuminated the internal structure of atoms. 

Fast forward seven decades and we have another influential discovery that tremendously affected the Periodic Table. Let’s give a warm welcome to American Chemist and Nobel Prize co-recipient Glenn T. Seaborg with his discovery of the Actinide Series being f-block elements and not d-block in 1945. His discovery helped to modernize the Periodic Table into the table we know and learn today. 

The Periodic Table of Elements continues to evolve with the progression of modern Science. There are only elements up to atomic number 94 that occur in nature which makes it a necessity to create new elements in the laboratory. So far, 118 elements exist on the Periodic Table, with element 119 going through the process of becoming the newest element. 

The Periodic Table is not perfect. Chemical characterization is needed for heavier elements; there’s discussion on how the pattern will continue and if all the elements have truly been placed properly according to their characteristics. Nonetheless, the Periodic Table and Law are a central and indispensable part of modern chemistry.

                  All this foundational work helped me properly introduce the Periodic Table as an organizing tool to all the students.                             

Now it’s time to learn in a fun way!

How to read the Periodic Table?

After having a bit of fun with the students by showing them the massive Periodic Table and telling them they had to memorize it! We settled down and learned how to read the element boxes. 

Here’s a screenshot of what we went over.

Each student should have this breakdown in their Science Journal. Take and peek and see if you can spot it in their Science Journal.

Time to meet “The Families”!

Families of the Periodic Table Graphic Organizer

The first organization activity the students participated in was learning about the families of the Periodic Table and where they are located on the periodic table.

Here’s what they had to do:

• first, using their device, students looked up the Families of the Periodic Table
• next, students wrote in the family names in the correct place on their Periodic Table
• then, students used the key at the bottom of the GO to color-code each family for easier identification and memorization
• lastly, students had to carefully cut out their masterpiece and glue it in their Science Journal

Here’s a screenshot of what the finished product should look like.

When you get a moment, check your student’s notebook to see if it resembles the example.

Pick an Element or Two, and let’s do some research!

Using project based learning, all the students selected an element, researched their element, and created a Google Slide presentation on their findings.

Here’s some of the questions the students had to answer:

• What’s the origin of your element’s name? 
• Where was it discovered? Who discovered it? 
• What does it mean?
• What’s the element’s classification?
• How is the element used?
• Where is the element commonly found?

Here are some screenshots of the 7/8th graders’ Element Slides.

 

 

 

 

 

Here are pictures of some of the 6th graders during their presentation. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for taking the time to read my Blog.

Stay tuned to the next blog post, “All about the Maths,” featuring PNA’s Algebra/Geometry teacher Ms. Rainier Herczeg. 

But until then, I leave you with this quote by author Marty Rubin.

“Of all the elements in the Periodic Table, not a single one is indestructible.“