1. Elements & Atoms

2. What is an element? An element is the simplest type of substance (material made of one kind of matter). An element can't be broken down into anything simpler by ordinary physical or chemical methods. Compounds are mixtures or combinations of elements.

3. What are element symbols? Element symbols are a useful AND universal way to abbreviate the name of an element. A chemical symbol has one, two, or three letters, taken from the name of the element it represents (either English or Latin). The first letter in a symbol is always capitalized and any other letter is always lowercase.

4. Matching – In Notes ELEMENTSYMBOL OxygenHg ZincAl NitrogenCa GoldC MagnesiumO CopperZn AluminumAu CarbonN MercuryCu CalciumMg Match each element on the left to its symbol on the right. Why do you think the symbol is not always the first letter or two letters of the element name? Which symbols were the hardest to match & why?

5. Tuesday Bell Ringer: What do you know about atoms? What are the parts of an atom and what do you know about each part?

6. Atoms An atom is divided into two different areas: the nucleus and the electron shells. In the nucleus, you can find protons and neutrons. A proton is a particle that is heavy (for an atom) and has a positive charge. Remember, “pro” means positive. A neutron is a particle that is heavy (for an atom) and has no charge. Remember, “neutr-” means neutral or no charge.

7. Nucleus Protons and neutrons are located in the nucleus of an atom. The atomic number of an atom is the number of protons or electrons in that atom. The atomic mass of an atom is the number of protons + the number of neutrons. What is the atomic number of the atom shown? What is the atomic mass of the atom shown?

8. Electrons Electrons are located outside the nucleus in what are called electron shells. They are light and have a negative charge. You can think of electron shells as a series of rings outside the nucleus. The shell closest to the nucleus has the lowest energy and is called the ground state. The farther away you get from the nucleus, the more energy the electrons have. For a neutral atom, the # of electrons = the # of protons.

9. In-Class Assignment On Atoms You know that atomic # = # of protons or electrons and atomic mass = # of protons + # of neutrons. Use this to fill out your worksheet for 6 elements and TURN IN at the end of class.