Name_____________________Science Teacher___________Period_______Date_________
Classifying Matter Study Guide
Textbook pages to look over.
pp. 42-44 (Matter and Elements)
pp. 45-46 (Compounds and Formulas)
pp.48-51 (Common elements in Earth’s crust, oceans, atmosphere and living matter)
pp.102-104 (The Periodic Table, Metals)
pp. 114-115 (Nonmetals)
pp. 118-119 (Metalloids)
1. Know the definitions to the following vocabulary terms or be able to identify examples of.
Matter
Proton
Metals
Nonmetals
Atom
Neutron
Luster
Metalloids
Element
Electron
Malleability
Semiconductors
Compound
Mixture
Ductility
Matter – anything that has mass and takes up space
Atom – a small particle that is the building block of matter; the smallest part of an element that
still retains the element’s properties
Element –a pure substance made of only one kind of atom
Compound – a substance made of two or more different elements that are chemically joined in a
specific combination
Proton – particle in nucleus with a positive charge
Neutron – particle in nucleus that is neutral
Electron – particle that orbits the nucleus in different energy levels and has a negative charge
Mixture – made from two or more substances-elements, compounds, or both – that are together in
the same place but are not chemically combined into a new substance; matter that can vary in
composition
Metals – an element that is generally shiny, ductile and malleable
Luster – describes the ability of a metal to reflect light
Malleability – the ability of a substance to be hammered or rolled into sheets
Ductility – the ability of a substance to be pulled into thin wires
Nonmetals – elements that have no metallic properties
Metalloids – an element that has physical and chemical properties of both metals and nonmetals
Semiconductors – conducts electricity at high temperatures, but not a low temperatures
2. Label the following parts of an atom: nucleus, neutron, electron, proton, electron cloud
1 ELECTRON
2 NEUTRON
4 ELECTRON CLOUD
+ +
3 PROTON
5 NUCLEUS
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3. Know how to use the Periodic Table of the Elements to determine physical properties of
elements.
-Metals are to the left of the stairstep line.
-Nonmetals are to the right of the stairstep line.
-Metalloids touch the stairstep line (with a couple of exceptions like Aluminum)
4. Know the properties of metals. Luster, ductile, malleable, conductors, high densities, high
melting/boiling points, stronger than other elements, mostly solid, to the left of the stairstep line
5. Know the properties of nonmetals. Dull, brittle, insulators, lower densities, lower
melting/boiling points, many are gases, to the right of the stairstep line, includes hydrogen
6. Know the properties of metalloids. Act as semiconductors, conductors at high temperatures,
insulators at low temperatures, most border the stairstep line. (Aluminum, although it borders the
line, is considered a metal and is an exception.)
7. Identify elements or compounds from their symbols or formulas. Elements are pure substances
and are represented by symbols with one or two letters. (F, B, H, He, O2) Compounds are
substances made of two or more different elements and are represented by formulas. (H2O, NaCl,
H2SO4)
8. When given a list of elements, know whether it makes up earth’s crust, atmosphere, living
things or oceans.
Earth’s Crust: Oxygen, Silicon, Aluminum, Iron, Calcium
Earth’s Ocean: hydrogen and oxygen (in the form of water), dissolved in the water: chlorine,
sodium, magnesium, sulfur, calcium, fluorine
Earth’s atmosphere: nitrogen, oxygen, argon
Living Matter: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, phosphorus, iodine, zinc
9. Know the significant contributions of some scientists like John Dalton, J.J Thomson, Ernest
Rutherford, and Dmitri Mendeleev.
Dalton – first to propose the atomic theory; stated that the atom was a solid ball with no parts; that
each element was made of different atoms
Thomson – proposed the atom was not a solid ball but that there were negative and positive parts
to the atom
Rutherford – proposed the nucleus of the atom and that the atom was mostly empty space
Mendeleev – created the first periodic table of elements and made predictions for unknown (at the
time) elements
Name_____________________Science Teacher___________Period_______Date_________