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Trends of the Periodic Table Mark as Favorite (75 Favorites)

ACTIVITY in Periodic Table. Last updated January 29, 2024.


Summary

In this activity, students will assemble a fictitious periodic table based on clues about the structure of the real periodic table.

Grade Level

High school

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students should be able to

  • Understand trends of the periodic table such as ionization energy, atomic radius, group number, and valence electrons.
  • Better understand how the periodic table is organized.

Chemistry Topics

This lesson supports students’ understanding of

  • Trends of the periodic table
  • Periodicity
  • Valence electrons
  • Electron configuration
  • Ionization energy
  • Atomic radius

Time

Teacher Preparation: none

Lesson: 45–60 minutes

Safety

No specific safety considerations need to be observed for this activity.

Teacher Notes

  • One of my originals that I am proud of making from scratch. Believe it is a good (and fun) assessment on periodic table trends.

For the Student

Lesson

You’ve been studying periodic trends for your upcoming chemistry test. You had each element and symbol on index cards with all of its properties, but your kid brother stole your cards and hid them. He said the only way to get the cards back is to fill in the blank periodic table with the correct letters based on his list of fictitious elements. He gave you a practice table (page 3, in case you make mistakes) and a final copy for your final answers. There are 50 elements to correctly place in the periodic table.

Final (Fictitious) Periodic Table

GROUP 1


GROUP 18

GROUP 2 GROUP 13 GROUP 14 GROUP 15 GROUP 16 GROUP 17
















































Your Kid Brother’s Hint List

  1. T, R, Gx, B, Rb all have 2 electron shells. Gx has an atomic radius between R and I.
  2. Rb is a noble gas.
  3. I is a halogen with 2 electron shells.
  4. The alkaline Earth metals are K, U, B, Yo, Kc, and Ak.
  5. Ak has 6 electron shells.
  6. Yo when burned with oxygen gives off an extremely bright light and can also be found in antacid medicine as a hydroxide in the form of Yo(OH)2.
  7. M tends to lose 3 electrons and has the second smallest atomic mass in its group.
  8. V is the most metallic element on the table.
  9. Db, Y, No, K, Ey, Xl, O, and P are all in the same period. Ey has the lowest ionization energy and Db the largest. All have 5 electron shells.
  10. The metalloids are Do, Y, We, C, D, E, and O. Y is in Gx’s group.
  11. Fu, A, and L are all alkali metals.
  12. P is the only halogen that is solid at room temperature.
  13. R is in group 15.
  14. Q is a halogen directly under I.
  15. J is a noble gas that has an atomic mass between Db and By.
  16. By is the most massive noble gas.
  17. In order of decreasing ionization energy and excluding groups 1 and 18 are the elements Me, Lb, Bb, Jf, Rh, and U (all have 7 electron shells).
  18. The following elements are in the same period but do not include the noble gas. The order of decreasing atomic radii are A, Kc, N, Do, D, Nh, and Un.
  19. Group 15 has elements with increasing atomic radii in the order R, Hn, D, O, X, and Bb.
  20. Animals require the gas Gx to breathe and survive.
  21. F is in Group 1 but is a gas at room temperature.
  22. Fu ends in the electron configuration 6s1.
  23. T has the smallest radius of all of the alkali metals. B’s atomic radii is slightly greater than C, C’s atomic radii is slightly greater than S’s. All have 2 electron clouds.
  24. Group 14’s elements’ ionization energies in decreasing order are S, We, Do, No, W, Jf.
  25. The metalloid We is also used in computer chips and has 3 electron shells.
  26. U is the largest alkaline Earth metal and is radioactive; it was discovered by Marie Curie.
  27. L has larger atomic radii than T but smaller atomic radii than A.
  28. Z is a noble gas that has 2 valence electrons.
  29. K is directly below Kc.
  30. Xl has a greater electronegativity than P.
  31. H is a yellow powder found in the same group as Gx.
  32. Kc loses 2 electrons to become like Ef, which has a full valence shell.
  33. Bn has a full valence shell in the fourth period and is unreactive.
  34. E and G are in the same period. G has a lower electronegativity than E.
  35. Y has the configuration [Bn]4d105s25p4.
  36. E and Lm are in same period. E has a larger atomic radius than Lm.

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