Introduction
Standards 
Objectives
Activities
Assessment 
Results
Resources

 Table by Kostas Tsigaridis     

(click on it to go to his site)

Excellent Information about the Periodic Table and you can make customized Periodic Printable Tables.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction
     This lesson is to help students become acquainted with the periodic chart and to give them a foundation of how the elements are made up of one atom and are arranged on the chart by their chemical properties.    

         Lesson is designed for a classroom with only 2 to 3 computers.  Student activities will allow students to work online and at their desks in groups at same time.

 

Subject :  Physical Science
Topic:  Atoms and their corresponding elements arranged by chemical properties.
Grade Level:  Fifth Grade

Standards Addressed
Fifth Grade
Science: Focus on Physical Science
 Elements

1.  Elements and their combinations account for all the varied types of matter in the world.

d.  Students know that each element is made of one kind of atom and that the elements are organized in the periodic table by their chemical properties.
 
Instructional Objectives

    Class can be split into groups for activities.

  1. After reviewing what matter is and atoms, students will view on online web site about matter and atoms.  Students will take an online quiz on matter and fill in a worksheet on atoms. 
  2. After a lesson and being shown a periodic table and how it is organized, students will go to an online site and view other examples of periodic charts and learn about the history of the periodic table.  Students will have a basic understanding of the periodic table and its organization.  
  3. After collecting data about different elements from online sights, students will be able to identify the basic elements such as carbon, hydrogen,  and oxygen; and, they will be able to locate the atomic number, chemical symbol, and atomic mass/weight by passing a test on these items.
  4. After viewing and looking at the online sites, students will pick two elements to make up their own comic strip to display their knowledge of the properties of each of the elements that they picked.
Student Activities

      

Introductory Activities
1)  The students need to have certain knowledge of matter and atoms before proceeding on.  Teachers need to have some introductory lesson or lessons to acquaint or refresh students minds about matter and atoms before moving on the periodic table.  Go to Stacy Miller's lesson plans,  to choose a few that you would like to do.  Students at desks can conduct matter experiments and build atom models while others are at computers visiting the online sites on matter and atoms.  Have they do the Online matter questionnaire and fill out the worksheet for atoms.

2)  Students need to understand that different things have properties.  Start with a button activity and have the students discuss different ways that buttons can be organized.  Have them put the buttons into their different properties.

3)  Show the students a periodic table and get there input as to why certain elements are grouped together and why the elements maybe organized the way they are.  Have them look for similarities and differences.  Teachers at this time needs to give some background history of the periodic table and show examples of other alternate designs of the periodic table.  Go to history and alternate designs web site. Put the students into groups of two or four and have them think about how they would design their own periodic table from the information they already know.  This could be a discussion or you could have them design a periodic table  and give an oral presentation on how they went about organizing the different elements.  This would depend on whether you wanted to expand the lesson or not. 

Enabling Activities
1)  Students will play different games in order for them to learn more about the elements.  Have the students pick a partner or choose them one and let them visit the Jefferson Lab classroom resource page for online element games:  Element Concentration, Element Flash Cards, Element Hangman, Element Matching Game, and Element math Game or download a copy of two different paper games from the Jefferson Lab classroom resource page:  Element Bingo and Element Word Search for the students to play and do.  Games can be online and in class at same time.

2)  Have the students visit different online periodic tables to learn about the different elements:  It's Elemental.  Have the students download a periodic table from the Jefferson web site.  As the students visit different online periodic tables have them fill out a worksheet with the name of the element, chemical symbol, atomic number, atomic mass/weight, and other information such as boiling/melting points and other chemical properties.

Culminating Activity
1) Have the students pick two of the elements they have looked at and gotten information on through their visiting the online sites and have them think about the element's chemical properties.  Have them make a comic strip displaying two elements of their choosing. 

                                                                                                                          

Assessment

     My assessment of the different activities was done with rubrics that score on points for certain information that I am looking for in their work.  This way I can preset the criteria that I am looking for and have a range inside that area, but I can also let the students know what I am looking for so that they have a better idea of what they need to be doing.

     Please view and download a copy of the assessment rubrics that I used for this lesson.

                                                                                             

Results     

Anatomy of An Element

Lesson Assessment  

 

Gender

Pretest

Intro Act. Button

Enabling Act. Element Research

Culminat- ing Act. Comic Strip

Posttest

Grade

male

18%

80%

90%

91%

82%

86%

male

16%

73%

93%

83%

78%

76%

male

14%

66%

85%

83%

70%

76%

female

8%

73%

81%

66%

66%

72%

female

12%

73%

75%

75%

68%

73%

female

10%

66%

80%

70%

76%

73%

male

6%

53%

77%

83%

68%

70%

male

18%

46%

75%

80%

78%

70%

female

16%

73%

84%

75%

80%

78%

female

32%

93%

100%

86%

94%

93%

male

40%

88%

80%

91%

90%

87%

female

18%

73%

98%

75%

88%

84%

female

24%

93%

100%

83%

82%

90%

female

16%

66%

82%

77%

78%

76%

male

32%

80%

87%

75%

84%

82%

male

44%

80%

93%

93%

90%

89%

male

24%

73%

88%

83%

88%

83%

male

38%

86%

97%

93%

92%

92%

female

2%

53%

94%

72%

70%

72%

male

38%

86%

98%

93%

88%

91%

female

12%

73%

93%

75%

74%

79%

female

22%

80%

100%

78%

84%

86%

male

8%

60%

92%

77%

78%

77%

male

10%

73%

75%

93%

72%

78%

View a graph of these Results.

                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Web Resources & Supplementary Materials

Introductory Activities
1) Pretest

2) Stacy Miller's lesson plans,  Online matter questionnaire and fill out the worksheet for atoms.   

3) Go to history and alternate designs web site.

Enabling Activities
1) Element Concentration, Element Flash Cards, Element Hangman, Element Matching Game, and Element math Game or download a copy of two different paper games from the Jefferson Lab classroom resource page:  Element Bingo and Element Word Search.  

2)  It's Elemental. Periodic table from the Jefferson web site. 

3)  View different periodic tables.  See Student Activities Page.

Culminating Activity
1)  Comic Strip periodic table from the University of Kentucky

Westside Elementary School
2294 W. Vaughn Road
El Centro, CA   92243   
lshumard@icoe.k12.ca.us
Last Revised:  6/28/01