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Welcome! Today we are going to explore the Periodic Table, which is like a giant map of all the ingredients used to build our entire universe.
The Periodic Table organizes all known chemical elements. Each square on the table represents a single element, which is a pure substance made of only one type of atom.
Every element has a unique chemical symbol, usually one or two letters, and an atomic number. The atomic number tells us how many protons are inside each atom of that element.
The table is organized into rows called periods, and columns called groups. Elements in the same group often behave very similarly, like family members sharing common traits!
Look at an element square with the symbol 'O' and the number 8 above it. Identify the element's name and how many protons it has in its nucleus.
- Find the chemical symbol 'O' on the periodic table.
- Identify 'O' as representing the element Oxygen.
- Look at the atomic number, which is 8, located at the top of the card.
- Conclude that because the atomic number is 8, a single atom of Oxygen has exactly 8 protons.