A foldable activity to help students learn historical development of the
periodic table
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Copies of each page should be made per student
Each of the boxes below should be cut out
Each of the two circles should be cut out and cut in half
Fold each half in half to create four quarter circle “flaps”
The front of flap should be the year or the span of years
The boxes below will be glued into the inside appropriately dated quadrant
EXAMPLE
Completed
and flaps
closed
Complete
with one flap
open
Antoine Lavoiser – Listed
the 23 known elements
Relationships between
atomic mass and elemental
properties started being
recognized
Mendeleev gets credit
because he published and
explain it first
More accurate methods of
determining atomic mass
were developed
Boxes are arranged in
increases atomic number to
create columns (groups) and
rows (periods)
Non-metals are on the upper
right side (above the stairstep)
1869-1913
Electricity was used to
separate more compounds to
elements
John Newlands first noticed
repeating patterns in
elemental properties every
eight elements when in rows
of eight
Mendeleev organized
elements by increasing
atomic mass every eight
element; this stacked
elements with similar
properties into groups
Spectrometers were
developed and used to
identify elements
By 1870s there were
approximately 70 known
elements
In 1860 chemist began using
atomic masses to organize
elements
Developed the Law of
Octaves
Not accepted at first because
of reference to music
Meyer and Mendeleev both
recognized a connection
between atomic mass and
elemental properties
Blanks were left in the table
where undiscovered should
be located
Predicted properties of
undiscovered elements
Some elements were out of
order when arranged by
mass
Moseley corrected
Mendeleev’s table
Moseley arranged elements
by increasing number of
protons
Table consist of boxes
Boxes contain atomic mass,
atomic number, symbol, and
element name
Total of seven periods
Divided into representative
and transition elements
Three main types of
elements: metals, non-metals,
and metalloids
Most of the elements are
metals (largest left side
portion)
Modern
1790s- mid
1800s
1864
Metalloids are found around
the stair-step line
These are also cut and placed on the front of the appropriate quadrant with the dates
The Beginnings of the Periodic Table
Before written history, people were aware of some of the elements in the
periodic table. Elements such as gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), lead
(Pb), tin (Sn), and mercury (Hg).
It wasn't until 1649, however, until the first element was discovered
through scientific inquiry by Hennig Brand . That element was
phosphorous (P).
By 1869, 63 elements had been discovered.
Creating Some Early Blocks for the Periodic Table
Between 1817-1829, Johann Dobereiner began to group elements with
similar properties in to groups of three or triads. This began in 1817 when
he noticed that the atomic weights of strontium, Sr, was halfway between
the weights of calcium and barium. These elements possessed similar
chemical properties. By 1829, he had discovered the halogen triad made up
of chlorine, bromine, and iodine and a alkali metal triad of lithium, sodium
and potassium. He postulated that nature contained triads of elements in
which the middle element had properties that were an average of the other
two elements. Later, other scientists found other triads and recognized
that elements could be grouped into set large than three. The poor
accuracy of measurements such as that of atomic weights hindered
grouping more elements
Precursors to the Periodic Table
In 1862, A.E.Beguyer de Chancourtois was the first person to make use of
atomic weights to reveal that the elements were arranged according to
their atomic weights with similar elements occurring at regular intervals.
He drew the elements as a continuous spiral around a cylinder divided into
16 parts. A list of elements was wrapped around a cylinder so that several
sets of similar elements lined up, creating the first geometric
representation of the periodic law
In 1863, John Newlands, an English chemist, proposed the Law of Octaves
which stated that elements repeated their chemical properties every eighth
element.
The musical analogy was ridiculed at the time, but was found to be
insightful after the work of Mendeleev and Meyer were published.
The Fathers of the Periodic Table
Lothar Meyer and Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev independently produced
remarkably similar versions of the periodic table of elements at the
essentially the same time.
Meyer's 1864 textbook included a abbreviated version of a periodic table
used to classify about half of the known elements. In 1868, Meyer
constructed an extended table which he gave to a colleague for evaluation.
This table unfortunately was not published until 1870, a year after
Mendeleev's table was published.
Mendeleev periodic table appeared in his work "On the Relationship of the
Properties of the Elements to their Atomic Weights" in 1869. Mendeleev
placed many elements out of order based on their accepted atomic weights
at the time.
Mendeleev predicted the existence and properties of unknown elements
which he called eka-aluminum, eka-boron, and eka-silicon. The elements
gallium, scandium and germanium were found later to fit his predictions
quite well.
The Modern Periodic Table
Glenn Seaborg discovered the transuranium elements, atomic numbers 94
to 102. The completion of the actinide series allow Seaborg to redesign the
periodic table into it current form. Both the lanthanide and actinide series
of elements were placed under the rest of the periodic table. These
elements technically should be placed between the alkaline earth metals
and the transition metals, however, since this would make the periodic
table too wide, they were placed below the rest of the elements.
Dr. Seaborg and his colleagues are also responsible for the identification of
more than 100 isotopes of elements.
Metals, Nonmetals, & Metalloids
Most periodic tables contain a stair step line which allows you to identify
which elements are metals, nonmetals, and metalloids. Following are
descriptions of each of the three types of materials.
Since metals tend to lose electrons and nonmetals tend to gain electrons,
metals and nonmetals like to form compounds with each other. These
compounds are called ionic compounds. When two or more nonmetals
bond with each other, they form a covalent compound.
Metals
Most elements are metals. 88 elements to the left of the stair step line are
metals or metal like elements.
Metalloids
Elements on both sides of the zigzag line have properties of both metals
and nonmetals. These elements are called metalloids.
Physical Properties of Metals:
• Luster (shininess)
• Good conductors of heat and electricity
• High density (heavy for their size)
• High melting point
• Ductile (most metals can be drawn out into thin wires)
• Malleable (most metals can be hammered into thin sheets)
Physical Properties of Metalloids:
• Solids
• Can be shiny or dull
• Ductile
• Malleable
• Conduct heat and electricity better than nonmetals but not as well as
metals
Chemical Properties of Metals:
• Easily lose electrons
• Corrode easily. Corrosion is a gradual wearing away. (Example: silver
tarnishing and iron rusting)
Nonmetals
Nonmetals are found to the right of the stair step line. Their
characteristics are opposite those of metals.
Physical Properties of Nonmetals:
• No luster (dull appearance)
• Poor conductor of heat and electricity
• Brittle (breaks easily)
• Not ductile
• Not malleable
• Low density
• Low melting point
Chemical Properties of Nonmetals:
• Tend to gain electrons
Information was obtained from various web sources.
http://www.bpc.edu/mathscience/chemistry/history_of_the_periodic_tab
le.html
http://www1.whsd.net/courses/J0078/Periodic__Table/metals.html
Antoine Lavoiser – Listed
the 23 known elements
Relationships between
atomic mass and elemental
properties started being
recognized
Mendeleev gets credit
because he published and
explain it first
More accurate methods of
determining atomic mass
were developed
Boxes are arranged in
increases atomic number to
create columns (groups) and
rows (periods)
Non-metals are on the upper
right side (above the stairstep)
1869-1913
Electricity was used to
separate more compounds to
elements
John Newlands first noticed
repeating patterns in
elemental properties every
eight elements when in rows
of eight
Mendeleev organized
elements by increasing
atomic mass every eight
element; this stacked
elements with similar
properties into groups
Spectrometers were
developed and used to
identify elements
By 1870s there were
approximately 70 known
elements
In 1860 chemist began using
atomic masses to organize
elements
Developed the Law of
Octaves
Not accepted at first because
of reference to music
Meyer and Mendeleev both
recognized a connection
between atomic mass and
elemental properties
Blanks were left in the table
where undiscovered should
be located
Predicted properties of
undiscovered elements
Some elements were out of
order when arranged by
mass
Moseley corrected
Mendeleev’s table
Moseley arranged elements
by increasing number of
protons
Table consist of boxes
Boxes contain atomic mass,
atomic number, symbol, and
element name
Total of seven periods
Divided into representative
and transition elements
Three main types of
elements: metals, non-metals,
and metalloids
Most of the elements are
metals (largest left side
portion)
Metalloids are found around
the stair-step line
1790s- mid
Modern
1800s
Color Coded Key
1864