Chemistry, Quarter 1, Unit 1.3 
                                        Periodic Table Arrangement  
                                                               Overview 
                  
                 Number of instructional days:  12                 (1 day = 47 minutes) 
                 Content to be learned                                  Science processes to be integrated  
                 ¥   Identify the arrangement of the elements on the    ¥   Observe, measure, and draw conclusions. 
                     periodic table.                                    ¥   Use, analyze, and interpret data.  
                 ¥   Explain the relationship between properties of     ¥   Use evidence from an investigation to draw 
                     elements and their location on the periodic            conclusions. 
                     table. 
                 ¥   Predict the relative chemical and physical         ¥   Perform calculations.  
                     properties of an element based on its location     ¥   Compare and contrast properties. 
                     on the periodic table.                             ¥   Make appropriate use of tools and techniques. 
                 ¥   Identify an element based on its relative           
                     chemical and physical properties. 
                                                                             
                 Essential questions  
                 ¥   How is the periodic table organized?               ¥   What evidence can you use to identify an 
                 ¥   What is the relationship between the physical          element based on its location on the periodic 
                     and chemical properties of an element and its          table?  
                     placement on the periodic table?                   ¥   What can scientists predict about the physical 
                                                                            and chemical properties of an element by 
                                                                            examining its location on the periodic table? 
                  
                Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools,                                     C-9 
                in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin 
       Chemistry, Quarter 1, Unit 1.3    Periodic Table Arrangement (7 days) 
       2011-2012 
         
                         Written Curriculum 
        Grade-Span Expectations 
        PS1 - All living and nonliving things are composed of matter having characteristic properties that 
        distinguish one substance from another (independent of size or amount of substance). 
          PS1 (9-11) POC Ð3 
          Explain how properties of elements and the location of elements on the periodic table are related. 
            PS1 (9-11)-3 
            Students demonstrate an understanding of characteristic properties of matter by É 
            3a identifying and explaining the basis for the arrangement of the elements within the periodic 
            table (e.g. trends, valence electrons, reactivity, electronegativity, ionization). 
             
            3b predicting the relative physical and chemical properties of an element based on its location 
            within the Periodic Table. 
        Clarifying the Standards 
        Prior Learning 
        In grades KÐ2, students were introduced to the property of weight using tools.  
        In grades 3Ð4, the concept of weight was expanded to include the fact that the whole equals the sum of its 
        parts.  
        In grades 5Ð6, students were introduced to the conservation of matter. Students learned how to distinguish 
        between solutions, mixtures, and ÒpureÓ substances (e.g., compounds and elements). 
        In grades 7Ð8, student knowledge was expanded to include the idea that the amount of matter before and 
        after undergoing a physical or a chemical change in a closed system remains the same, classifying 
        common elements and compounds using symbols and simple chemical formulas, and interpreting the 
        symbols and formulas of simple chemical equations. Students continued to classify and compare 
        substances using characteristic properties, adding nonmetals. 
        Current Learning 
        Students have spent time addressing observable physical properties of weight; then exploring mass and 
        the law of conservation of mass. The periodic table and the properties of elements have not been 
        addressed. Chemical change has been introduced at a limited level involving a closed system. Students 
        are introduced at a development level to the periodic table and how it is arranged. Students need to 
        understand physical and chemical properties in order to explain how we use the data to determine an 
        elementÕs location on the table. This will reinforce their knowledge of physical and chemical properties. 
        Using data, students need to make predictions (at a developmental level) of where an element will be 
        located on the periodic table. Students will demonstrate their knowledge by identifying an element based 
        on its relative chemical and physical properties during laboratory investigations.  
       C-10                Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools,  
                     in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin 
                 Periodic Table Arrangement (7 days)                                                Chemistry, Quarter 1, Unit 1.3 
                                                                                                                       2011-2012 
                  Students demonstrate an understanding of characteristic properties of matter by identifying the 
                  arrangement of the elements within the periodic table. They identify an element based on its relative 
                  chemical and physical properties. 
                  Through investigations, students use, analyze, and interpret data in order to draw conclusions relating to 
                  the characteristic properties of elements and how these properties determine the elementÕs placement on 
                  the periodic table. Students need to perform calculations to aid in the identification of elements. 
                  Investigations should be done using appropriate tools and techniques. 
                  Student learning about the characteristic properties of matter and the periodic table should include both 
                  inquiry-based and discussion-based experiences. Students should conduct investigations where they 
                  collect and analyze data in order to draw conclusions. A variety of activities where students investigate 
                  the physical and chemical properties of elements could be used here. Additionally, students need to use 
                  evidence to predict where an element would belong on the table as well as to identify an element based 
                  upon its physical and chemical properties. 
                  Students in grades K-8 have had no experience with the periodic table and how it is arranged and 
                  organized. Students have had previous experience with characteristics properties of matter mostly in the 
                  area of physical properties at the observable levels. Physical properties were expanded upon in earlier 
                  units and chemical properties were introduced in earlier units. Knowing the characteristic properties of 
                  matter will enable students to understand the arrangement of the periodic table. This will further enable 
                  them to predict the relative and physical and chemical properties of elements within the periodic table. 
                  They will use this knowledge to identify and element based upon its characteristic properties.  
                  Future Learning 
                  This unit of study addresses portions of PS1 (9-11)-3a. In a later unit, students will need to explain 
                  periodic trends such as valence electrons, reactivity, electronegativity, and ionization. Future units will 
                  also address how the placement of elements on the periodic table determines the type of bonds they make 
                  with other elements. Atomic theory will be addressed during a later unit where students will use the 
                  periodic table to count protons, neutrons, and electrons. Students will explore later how our scientific 
                  thought of atomic theory has changed over time. Students will need to be able to use the periodic table to 
                  write an elementÕs electron configuration. During bonding, new formulas from elements will be created. 
                  The calculation of molar masses and the determination of empirical formulas are directly related to 
                  atomic structure. Chemical equations will be developed using chemical formulas. Later, students will 
                  need to demonstrate an understanding of physical, chemical, and nuclear changes of the atom. 
                  Throughout chemistry, students will observe, measure, analyze, and interpret data in order to draw 
                  conclusions. Students need to be able to use appropriate laboratory tools and techniques effectively. 
                  Additional Findings 
                  The development and expansion of the periodic table is not addressed in this GSE. Students need to have 
                  some understanding of how the periodic table came to be as well as the changes that have taken place 
                  over time. At the end of the 18th century, chemists knew of about 26 elements and today the list has 
                  expanded to over 100 (Science Matters, p. 76). 
                  Herron et al. suggest that pupils find this conception (elements) a difficult one to apply because it is based 
                  on prior knowledge of substances rather than on directly observable qualities such as physical state, color, 
                  or melting point (Making Sense of Secondary Science, p. 76).  
                  Sixty-six percent of students sampled in a study stated that an atom of copper vapor had different 
                  properties from an atom of solid copper. They appeared to regard a change in the physical state of a metal 
                 Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools,                                        C-11 
                 in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin 
       Chemistry, Quarter 1, Unit 1.3    Periodic Table Arrangement (7 days) 
       2011-2012 
        as due to a change within atoms rather than a change in the organization of the atoms. Students often get 
        the idea that atoms just fill matter up rather than the correct idea that the atoms are the matter 
        (Benchmarks for Science Literacy, pp. 75Ð76).  
        Difficulties appear to arise because different individuals have different conceptions of an element as the 
        simplest type of substance. Many children appear to have difficulty restricting the use of the term 
        ÒnonmetalÓ to its scientific sense of elements only. The scientific understanding of atoms and molecules 
        requires combining two closely related ideas: All substances are composed of invisible particles, and all 
        substances are made up of a limited number of basic ingredients or Òelements.Ó These two merge into the 
        idea that combining the particles of the basic ingredients differently leads to millions of materials with 
        different properties (Benchmarks, pp. 75Ð77). 
        Some strategies to help students/teachers overcome the challenges presented by this unit of study would 
        be to describe the complexity of atoms gradually, using evidence and explanations from several 
        connected story lines. Repeated exposure to this concept through the use of investigations as well as real-
        world examples may help (Benchmarks, p. 75). 
       C-12                Bristol-Warren, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Tiverton Public Schools,  
                     in collaboration with the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin