Exploring the Atomic World
In this course we will do an in-depth study of atoms and molecules. We’ll find out how big or small things are at the atomic level. We’ll see what atoms are made of and the role of each part. We’ll find out what protons and neutrons are made of. We’ll see what role electrons play and how they allow atoms to stick together. We’ll look at ions and isotopes and find out what radioactivity is. We’ll look at the Periodic Table and investigate some interesting elements. We’ll explore the meaning of “quantum” and find out what “quantum mechanics” is. And much more!
This course is designed so that you can do it either on your own or with a group.
The “BEFORE CLASS” sections are tasks that the students need to complete on their own, a combination of reading and watching short videos. If you are doing it as a group, all these tasks should be complete before you meet together.
The “IN CLASS” section usually has hands-on activities, video labs, and also some discussion topics. If you are doing the class as a group, this is the section you can do together. If you happen to have some lab supplies available, you might even be able to do some of the video labs yourself. But if you don’t, that’s okay. You can watch the video labs together. (Often there are games to play– you’ll need to download and construct these ahead of time.)
The “AFTER CLASS” section provides a wrap-up to the lesson, and ends with an online quiz. The quiz is set to require 80 percent right answers as a passing grade, but there is a reset button so you can retake the quiz if you need to. I don’t think website keeps a running tally of your quiz scores, so you will need to do that manually. You can choose whether or not to give yourself a grade. If you don’t need a grade, the quizzes are still a nice way to check and see how much you are remembering.
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Everything is provided (as either embedded text and videos, or as downloads) online EXCEPT for a book that you will need to order. You will need my “Chemical Elements Coloring and Activity Book,” which is a 300-page book targeted to older students, not young kids. It is loaded with information! We’ll be using this to read about many of the elements. You can order it at most online book sellers, but here is its listing on Amazon if you want it: Chemical Elements book on Amazon
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This course is worth 1/2 high school credit for chemistry.
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If you would like to be able to do some of the simple labs I have listed, and you are willing to purchase some inexpensive things, I recommend the following:
Lesson 3: student-grade spectrometer such as this one on Amazon (about $10 USD): Student spectrometer If you want a less expensive option for a group of students, you could consider diffraction grating slides ($11 for 25-pack) Diffraction gratings on Amazon
Also lesson 3: An infrared thermometer “gun.” These are not that expensive ($9 USD) and they are very fun to use. Infrared thermometer gun on Amazon
Lesson 7: A card game about ionic bonding. ($24 USD) In this lesson I have also listed some free online games about bonding, which can be played by just one student, so this card game would be best if you are working with a small group who can get together to play it. Here is the listing on Amazon: IONIC A compound building game
Lesson 12: If you want to make the (harmless) homemade smoke bomb that I give directions for, you will need to get some potassium nitrate. It is sold commercially as stump remover. You can get it from a garden center (might be seasonal, though), or you can order it on Amazon.
Also for lesson 12: If you want to be adventurous and try the sodium in water experiment (adult supervision required) you can actually buy pure sodium on Amazon, believe it or not. It is kind of expensive for the amount you get ($15 USD for 1 gram), but I have found it very worthwhile in my classes. The students really enjoy seeing the reaction, and they really remember the experience. You can also buy potassium samples on Amazon– potassium gives a more vigorous reaction. Just search Amazon for “pure sodium/potassium samples for chemistry” or use this link to go right to the page where I ordered sodium: Sodium on Amazon Potassium on Amazon
Lesson 13: Some good quality magnets, and a neodymium magnet, if possible. NOTE: Small neodymium magnets can be DEADLY for young children if they swallow them. They can cause serious injury to intestines. If you have small children in the house, don’t order small neodymiums even though the small ones are cheaper than the big ones. I suggest a neodymium with a handle like this one: Neodymium magnet with handle– on Amazon Or you can just skip buying neodymiums. // For ceramic magnets (iron-based, no rare earths) I usually buy these (they are pretty strong): Good quality ceramic magnets on Amazon
Lessons
Atomic World, Lesson 1: Atoms
Atomic World Lesson 2: The Nucleus, and the “Standard Model”
In this lesson, we will find out what protons and neutrons are made of. A hundred years ago, scientists thought that atoms were the smallest units of matter. The word “atom” comes from “atomos” meaning “indivisible.” However, in the late 1900s, sub-atomic particles were discovered. These discoveries solved some mysteries such as how protons can […]
Atomic World, Lesson 3: Photons and the Electromagnetic Spectrum
In this lesson, we will explore electromagnetic energy. Light is one type of electromagnetic energy– it is the only type of electromagnetic (EM) wave that we can see. Other EM waves are all around us but we can’t sense them. Radio waves, microwaves and x-rays are also EM energy waves. EM waves can act like […]
Atomic World, Lesson 4: Electrons
In this lesson, we will find out more about electrons. The electrons are what gives an atom its chemical properties– how it reacts to, or combines with, other atoms. Electrons have some very strange properties. In this lesson we’ll learn about their size, mass, spin, and wave properties. If the information in this lesson is […]
Atomic World, Lesson 5: What is “empty space” made of?
BEFORE CLASS: We’ve learned that atoms are made of mostly empty space. If the nucleus was the size of a marble in the middle of a sports stadium, the electrons would be the size of pinheads circling in the upper decks. If you removed all the empty space from the atoms in a tall building, […]
Atomic World, Lesson 6: Introduction to the Periodic Table
That last lesson was intense! This one will be much easier than the previous one. It might be review for some of you. In this lesson we’ll see how the various types of atoms (the elements) are arranged into a table that we call the Periodic Table. We’ll learn the history of how this table […]
Atomic World lesson 7: How atoms stick together
In this lesson we will cover the 3 basic ways that atoms can stick to each other to form molecules. It is important to discuss this now, before we go on to do more study of the Periodic Table, because there is a connection between atomic bonding and the location of elements on the table. […]
Atomic World Lesson 8: Atoms that don’t bond to other atoms
In this lesson we will meet a group of atoms on the Periodic Table that don’t react to, or bond with, any other atoms: the “noble” gases. They are the only elements that float around as single atoms. We’ve mentioned this group briefly in past lessons, but in this lesson, we’ll really focus in on […]
Atomic World Lesson 9: An atom that will bond with almost anything! (CARBON)
In the last lesson we met the inert elements that refuse to interact or bond with other atoms. In this lesson we’ll meet the exact opposite– we’ll meet an element that is happy to bond with almost any other element! This “friendly” element is CARBON. Carbon is the element on which almost all organic (“living”) […]
Atomic World Lesson 10: Radioactive Carbon (C-14)
In this lesson we’ll learn about some isotopes of carbon, including an especially important one– carbon-14. Remember, an isotope is when the number of protons stays the same, but there are different numbers of neutrons. For carbon, the isotopes are C-12, C-13, and C-14. You will read about the strange way in which C-14 is […]
Atomic World Lesson 11: The non-metals
In the past two lessons, we’ve concentrated on just one of the non-metal elements: carbon. In this lesson, we’ll look at the rest of the non-metals, including a sub-group called the halogens. We’ll end the lessons with the most abundant and important molecule made of covalently bonded non-metals: H2O, water. We’ll consider some recent research […]
Atomic World Lesson 12: Metals that don’t look or act like true metals (alkalis, and metalloids)
The word “metal” makes us think of things like iron, copper, tin, nickel and steel. We know that metals are, in general, hard and shiny. They can be melted and poured into molds. or bent into various shapes. to make useful tools and utensils. We have a definite idea of what a “metal” is. Technically, […]
Atomic World Lesson 13: Transition metals, true metals, and electron orbitals
This is a rather long lesson because we are looking at a fairly large section of the Periodic table. The next lesson will be shorter. We now come to the largest “family” on the Periodic Table: the transition metals. They transition us from the alkali metals to the “true” metals. The transition metals are colored […]
Atomic World Lesson 14: The Lanthanide series– the “rare earth” elements
In this lesson we will be looking at one of the rows that sits down at the bottom, usually underneath the main part of the Periodic table. These two rows actually belong right in the table. If you turn to page “x” in the coloring book, you will see a Periodic Table at the top […]
Atomic World Lesson 15: Radioactive elements
In this lesson we’ll take a look at the actinide series— the row right underneath the lanthanide series. The actinide series is named after the element actinium, which sits right below lanthanum. Every element in the actinide series is radioactive, though some are more dangerous than others. We’ll also take a brief look at the […]
Atomic World Lesson 16: Review activities
We’ve covered a lot of ground in this course — a lot of information! There might be a little new information in this lesson, but it is mostly about review. We’ll be using more of the activities in the back of the coloring and activity book. SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES: 1) Word puzzles: — Least abundant elements: […]
