Inquiry Lab Stations

1. Inquiry Lab Stations

2. Particles of Matter http://mypuzzle.org/color-link-a-pix-volume-2

3. Atomshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1RMV5qhwyE • Atoms are the general term used to describe pieces of matter • Matter is composed of atoms. Solids are made of densely packed atoms while gases have atoms that are spread out. • Are there pieces of matter that are smaller than atoms? Sure there are. Super-small particles can be found inside the pieces of atoms. These subatomic particles include nucleons and quarks. Nuclear chemists and physicists work together at particle accelerators to discover the presence of these tiny, tiny, tiny pieces of matter. However, science is based on the atom because it is the smallest distinct unit of matter.

4. Three Easy Pieces Even though many super-tiny atomic particles exist, you only need to remember the three basic parts of an atoms: electrons, protons, and neutrons. What are electrons, protons, and neutrons? • Electrons are the smallest of the three particles that make up atoms. • Electrons are found in shells or orbitals that surround the nucleus of an atom. • Protons and neutrons are found in the nucleus. They group together in the center of the atom. That's all you have to remember. Three easy pieces!

5. ~ There are almost 120 known elements in the periodic table. Chemists and physicists are trying to make new ones every day in their labs. ~ The atoms of different elements have different numbers of electrons, protons, and neutrons. ~ Every element is unique and has an atomic number. That number tells you the number of protons in every atom of the element. The atomic number is also called the proton number.

6. Charges of Atoms You can see that each part of the atom is labeled with a "+", "-", or a "0." Those symbols refer to the charge of the particle. Have you ever heard about getting a shock from a socket, static electricity, or lightning? Those are all related to electric charges. Charges are also found in tiny particles of matter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCUK93s1jUY

7. Always Moving • As you know, electrons are always moving. • They spin very quickly around the nucleus of an atom. As the electrons zip around, they can move in any direction, as long as they stay in their shell. • Any direction you can imagine — upwards, downwards, or sideways — electrons can do it. • Electrons are constantly spinning in those atomic shells and those shells, or orbital's, are specific distances from the nucleus. • If you are an electron in the first shell, you are always closer to the nucleus than the electrons in the second shell.

8. Charge It Actual atoms of Graphite • Electrons are the negatively charged particles of atom. • Together, all of the electrons of an atom create a negative charge that balances the positive charge of the protons in the atomic nucleus. • Electrons are extremely small compared to all of the other parts of the atom. The mass of an electron is almost 1,000 times smaller than the mass of a proton

9. Shells and Shapes ~ Electrons are found in clouds that surround the nucleus of an atom. ~ Those clouds are specific distances away from the nucleus and are generally organized into shells. ~ Because electrons move so quickly, it is impossible to see where they are at a specific moment in time. After years of experimentation, scientists discovered specific areas where electrons are likely to be found. ~ The overall shape of the shells changes depending on how many electrons an element has. ~ The higher the atomic number, the more shells and electrons an atom will have. The overall shell shape will also be more complex (because of the suborbitals) as you have more electrons

10. Creating Bonds ~ Electrons play a major role in all chemical bonds. ~ There is one type of bonding called electrovalent bonding (ionic), where an electron from one atom is transferred to another atom. ~ You wind up creating two ions as one atom loses an electron and one gains one. ~ The second type of bonding is called covalent bonding, where electrons are actually shared between two or more atoms in a cloud. ~ Both types of bonds have specific advantages and weaknesses

11. Power Up ~ Electrons are very important in the world of electronics. ~ The very small particles can stream through wires and circuits, creating currents of electricity. ~ The electrons move from negatively charged parts to positively charged ones. ~ The negatively charged pieces of any circuit have extra electrons, while the positively charged pieces want more electrons. The electrons then jump from one area to another. When the electrons move, the current can flow through the system.

12. Ions The atomic number of an element, also called a proton number, tells you the number of protons or positive particles in an atom. A normal atom has a neutral charge with equal numbers of positive and negative particles. That means an atom with a neutral charge is one where the number of electrons is equal to the atomic number. Ions are atoms with extra electrons or missing electrons. When you are missing an electron or two, you have a positive charge. When you have an extra electron or two, you have a negative charge.

13. What do you do if you are a sodium (Na) atom? You have eleven electrons — one too many to have an entire shell filled. You need to find another element that will take that electron away from you. When you lose that electron, you will you’ll have full shells. • Whenever an atom has full shells, we say it is "happy." Let's look at chlorine (Cl). Chlorine has seventeen electrons and only needs one more to fill its third shell and be "happy.“ Chlorine will take your extra sodium electron and leave you with 10 electrons inside of two filled shells. You are now a happy atom too. You are also an ion and missing one electron. That missing electron gives you a positive charge. You are still the element sodium, but you are now a sodium ion (Na+). You have one less electron than your atomic number.

14. Electrovalence is just another word for something that has given up or taken electrons and become an ion. If you look at the periodic table, you might notice that elements on the left side usually become positively charged ions (cations) and elements on the right side get a negative charge (anions). That trend means that the left side has a positive valence and the right side has a negative valence. Valence is a measure of how much an atom wants to bond with other atoms. It is also a measure of how many electrons are excited about bonding with other atoms.

15. Isotopes Neutrons play a major role in the mass and radioactive properties of atoms. Isotopes are created when you change the normal number of neutrons in an atom.

16. You know that neutrons are found in the nucleus of an atom. Under normal conditions, protons and neutrons stick together in the nucleus. During radioactive decay, they may be knocked out of there. Neutron numbers are able to change the mass of atoms, because they weigh about as much as a proton and electron together. If there are many atoms of an element that are isotopes, the average atomic mass for that element will change. We have spoken about carbon (C) having an average mass of 12.01. It's not much different than you would expect from an atom with 6 protons and 6 neutrons. The number of carbon isotopes doesn't change the atomic mass very much. As you move higher in the periodic table, you will find elements with many more isotopes.

17. Compound Basics • Molecule is the general term used to describe any atoms that are connected by chemical bonds. • Every combination of atoms is a molecule. • A compound is a molecule made of atoms from different elements. All compounds are molecules, but not all molecules are compounds. • Hydrogen gas (H2) is a molecule, but not a compound because it is made of only one element. Water (H2O) can be called a molecule or a compound because it is made of hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) atoms.

18. When we discuss phase changes in matter, we are looking at physical changes. Physical forces alone (unless you're inside of the Sun or something extreme) rarely break down compounds completely. You can apply heat to melt an ice cube, but there will be no change in the water molecules. You can also place a cup of water in a container and decrease the pressure. The water will eventually boil, but the molecules will not change.

19. Chemical changes in compounds happen when chemical bonds are created or destroyed. Forces act on the bonds between atoms, changing the molecular structure of a substance. You can pour liquid acid on a solid and watch the solid dissolve. That process is a chemical change because molecular bonds are being created and destroyed. Geologists pour acids on rocks to test for certain compounds

20. Naming Compounds • When you have two different elements, there are usually only two words in the compound name. • The first word is the name of the first element. • The second word tells you the second element and how many atoms there are in the compound. • The second word usually ends in IDE. That's the suffix. • When you are working with non-metals like oxygen (O) and chlorine (Cl), the prefix (section at the beginning of the word) of the second element changes based on how many atoms there are in the compound. It's like this...

22. Carbon + (1) Oxygen = Carbonmonoxide (CO) • Carbon + (2) Oxygen = Carbondioxide (CO2) (1) Carbon + (4) Chlorine = Carbontetrachloride (CCl4)