« Return to AACT homepage

AACT Member-Only Content

You have to be an AACT member to access this content, but good news: anyone can join!

Need Help?

Reviewing the Periodic Table and Periodic Trends Mark as Favorite (63 Favorites)

ACTIVITY in Elements, Periodic Table, Review, Atomic Mass, Atomic Radius, Ionization Energy, Ions. Last updated May 04, 2021.

Summary

In this activity, students will use their knowledge of the periodic table and periodic trends to add fictional elements to a periodic table based on their properties. Once the elements are in the correct place they will reveal a hidden message. This review activity will help students prepare for a summative assessment such as a unit test or final exam.

Grade Level

High School

Objectives

By the end of this activity, students should be able to

  • Demonstrate their understanding of the periodic table and trends to place fictional elements based on their properties.

Chemistry Topics

This activity supports students’ understanding of

  • Periodic table
  • Periodic trends
  • Ions

Time

Teacher Preparation: 5 minutes

Lesson: 20-30 minutes

Materials

  • Student document

Safety

  • No specific safety precautions need to be observed for this activity.

Teacher Notes

  • This activity was highlighted in the ChemFun section of the May 2021 issue of Chemistry Solutions.
  • The game was designed to give students practice demonstrating their understanding of the placement of elements in the periodic table based on their properties.
  • This activity includes 20 fictional elements that will be placed in the first four rows of the periodic table. Only elements in columns 1, 2, and 13-18.
  • This activity can be used as a summative assessment during a unit about the periodic table or as a review before a unit test of exam.
  • An Answer Key document has been included for teacher reference.
  • Teachers can easily change the hidden message by changing the element symbols given in the clues. If changes are made, just be sure that there are not more than one of each symbol.

For the Student

Lesson

Use your knowledge of the periodic table and trends to add fictional elements to a periodic table based on their properties. Once the elements are in the correct place they will reveal a hidden message. Once you have placed all of the elements into the table correctly, write out the symbols in the order of “increasing atomic mass” and read the hidden message.

  • Um is in the 3rd period and has three electrons in its highest p-orbitals.
  • St is a gas that does not belong to a specific family.
  • Ea, Nd and Dy are all alkali metals. 
  • F, En, and K are alkaline earth metals. 
  • A and Rb are halogens. 
  • Ma, U and R are all elements that have a full octet. 
  • Me and Ex both form -2 ions. 
  • The ionization energy trend for the elements that form +1 ions is Ea < Nd < Dy.
  • The electronegativity value for En is greater than K, but it is less than F.
  • A has a smaller atomic radius than Rb.
  • R is the noble gas with the largest atomic radius.
  • Me has a smaller value for ionization energy than Ex.
  • Th, Or and E are all located in the second period. 
  • Ma has one less proton than Nd.
  • Jo would form a +3 cation and is a metal.
  • The electronegativity values of Th is less than E but greater than Or.
  • Ys can only form a +4 ion.

Write the hidden message in the space below.