Elemental Crazy Eights 
                                    
                                                                                           Periodic Table Memory Mnemonics  
                                    
                                    
                                    
                  
                  
                 Topics: Periodic Table, 
                 Chemical Symbols, 
                 Properties 
                   
                 Materials List                                                                                                                                                                
                   Color copy of                            Periodic Table Memory Pegs design by John P. Pratt, art by David R. Pratt www.johnpratt.com/atomic/periodic.html 
                       Periodic Table                         
                       Memory Pegs                           Play card games using unique pictures and impart a vivid and lasting impression on 
                       (page 7)                              students through fun memory pegs (mnemonics) for the atomic number with 
                   Memory Peg                               corresponding chemical name and symbol for the elements in the periodic table. 
                                                           
                       descriptions (pages                   Assembly  
                       3 to 6)                               1.  Print out a color copy of the Periodic Table Memory Pegs (page 7). 
                   Color copy of                            2.  Cut out the pictures of the elements to be memorized.  (Suggestion: use the first 
                   Blank playing cards                            36 elements initially to familiarize the students with the atomic number, chemical 
                   Scissors                                       name and symbol before adding other elements of interest to the deck). 
                   Clear adhesive tape                      3.  Use tape to attach the pictures to playing cards - one picture per card. 
                                                           
                                                             Playing the Game (for 2-4 players) 
                                                             1.  Prior to playing the game, go over the description of the Memory Pegs (page 3 to 
                                                                   6) to allow students to digest the unique association between each picture and its 
                                                                   atomic number, chemical symbol, and chemical name.  
                                                             2.  Players each draw a card to determine who will be the dealer. The one with the 
                                                                   highest atomic number deals 5 cards to each player and then turns the top card 
                 This activity can be used                         face up from the remaining deck of cards to be the “starter” card. If the top card is 
                 to teach:                                         one of the noble gasses (Group 8 elements are “wild”) the card is buried into the 
                                                                   deck of cards and the next top card is turned over.   
                      Structure of matter                   3.  The player clockwise from the dealer goes first, with play moving clockwise. 
                       (Next Generation                      4.  Each player takes a turn and discards a card that matches the top card on the 
                       Science Standards:                          discard pile in any one of the following five ways:  
                       Grade 5, Physical                              a.    same last digit of the atomic number (e.g., 2, 12, 22)  
                       Science 1-1, Middle                            b.  same first letter of the chemical name (e.g., Sodium, Silicon, Sulfur)  
                       School, Physical                               c.    same first letter of the chemical symbol (e.g., N, Ne, Na, Ni) 
                       Science 1-1)                                   d.  same element period (e.g., Period 2: Li, Be, B, C)  
                      Periodic Table (Next                           e.    any element that is a noble gas (e.g., Group 8: H, He, Ne, Ar)  
                       Generation Science                    5.  A player who cannot match the top card on the discard pile in any of the above 
                       Standards: High                             five ways, must draw cards until a match can be played.  When the deck of cards 
                       School, Physical                            runs out, a player without a match must pass.   
                       Science 1-1) 
                                                             6.  Any wild card can be played as a valid match to any card during a player’s turn. 
                                                                   When discarding a wild card, the player gets to choose the “period”. The next 
                                                                   player must play either a card from that “period” or another wild card. 
                  
                                                             7.  The first player to discard their last card is the winner.  Count the number of cards 
                                                                   in the other players’ hands and assign that number of points to the winner.  If no 
                                                                   one can make any more plays, end the round and declare the one with the fewest 
                                                                   cards as the winner of the round.  Record the winner and the points in each round. 
                                                             8.  After playing eight rounds the person with the highest point total wins the game.  
                 Written by Gus Liu, based on the work of John P. Pratt and David R. Pratt, used with permission            Copyright 2015, RAFT 
               The Science Behind the Activity 
               Elements are basic units of matter, each is a pure substance that cannot be broken down into a simpler substance, 
               which are the building blocks for everything in the universe.  The atom is the smallest unit of an element that 
               retains the properties of the element and is made up of three kinds of particles; protons, neutrons, and electrons. 
               The atomic number of an element indicates the number of protons in the nucleus of each atom of the element as 
               well as the number of electrons surrounding each nucleus. 
                
               Scientists during the 19th century began organizing these elemental substances as they gained a better 
               understanding of atomic structures and how the elements combined to create molecules of other more complex 
               substances.  In 1869 a Russian scientist, Dmitri Mendeleyev, found that the chemical properties of the elements 
               went through repeating cycles and he organized the known elements into a chart (table) based on their chemical 
               properties. 
                
               Each element was given a 1 or 2-letter symbol, with the first letter always a capital, while the second letter, if 
               present, in lower case.  Some elements are named after countries, places, or scientists (e.g., Berkelium was made 
               at UC Berkeley, CA; Germanium was discovered by a German chemist; Einsteinium was named after Albert 
               Einstein).  Others were inspired by heavenly bodies (e.g., Helium from the Greek word “helios” for sun) or by 
               mythology (e.g., Titanium is named after “titans”, Greek supermen).  Other elements have names that describe 
               their properties (e.g., Hydrogen from the Greek words “hydro” and “genes”, with respective meaning of “water” 
               and “forming”.  Some chemical symbols are based on ancient names (e.g., Na, sodium, is an abbreviation for the 
               Latin word “natrium”).  Each element has a unique combination of physical and chemical properties which can be 
               used to identify the substance, including boiling point, density, chemical reactivity, and conductivity of electricity 
               and heat. 
                
               Taking it Further 
                   For more advanced students who enjoy a challenge play Periodic Table BINGO: distribute standard 5 x 5 
                    bingo cards (numbers 1-75) to each student and then call out either the element’s chemical name or its 
                    symbol.  Students must correctly identify the corresponding atomic number of the element and circle that 
                    number on their own BINGO card.  Five numbers in a row, horizontal, vertical or diagonal, results in a loud 
                    voice claiming BINGO and winning the round. 
                   Print atomic numbers 1 through 40 on separate slips of paper and place in a box.  Have each of the students 
                    pick a number and then individually design a unique picture for that element.  The students have to provide 
                    their own reasons as to why the picture would serve as a good mnemonic for the atomic number, the 
                    chemical name, and symbol. 
                   For more chemistry games see RAFT Idea Sheets Element Match and Match 3 for Chemistry. 
              
               Web Resources (Visit www.raft.net/raft-idea?isid=589 for more resources!) 
               For more information on the properties of elements and for printable periodic tables, go to: 
                   http://www.webelements.com/ 
                   http://www.chemicalelements.com/index.html# 
                
               For Short videos about every element on the periodic table, plus other cool experiments: 
                   http://www.periodicvideos.com/# 
               
               To find out more about an element's properties, how the element was discovered, history and uses, and why it 
               was given its unique name, click on the symbol for that element in the following periodic table. 
                   http://education.jlab.org/itselemental/index.html 
                   http://www.nexusresearchgroup.com/fun-science/the-elements.htm 
              
               Periodic Table Memory Pegs design by John P. Pratt with artwork by David R. Pratt as found at: 
                   www.johnpratt.com/atomic/periodic.html 
             Elemental Crazy Eights, page 2                                                                                                      Copyright 2015, RAFT 
       Description of the Memory Pegs for the first 80 elements in the periodic table: 
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
               
      Elemental Crazy Eights, page 3                                                                                                                    Copyright 2015, RAFT 
      Elemental Crazy Eights, page 4                                                                                                                    Copyright 2015, RAFT