Lesson 3 of 6
Reading the periodic table
Goal: Use the table to find an element and say whether it is a metal.
Each element has its own box in the table. The position of the box tells you what kind of element it is.
- Each box shows a symbol and an atomic number. The atomic number counts the elements in order: hydrogen is 1, helium is 2, and so on.
- Metals are on the left and in the middle. Non-metals are on the right. A zigzag line divides them. A few elements beside the line, such as silicon, have properties of both.
- About three quarters of the elements are metals.
MetalsNon-metalsNot yet known
This is the whole table: 118 elements. The last six have only ever been made a few atoms at a time. That is too few to test whether they behave as metals or as non-metals.
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Key words in this lesson
Periodic table A chart of all the elements, arranged in rows and columns
Period A row of the periodic table
Atomic number The number that gives an element its place in the periodic table
Metal An element that is usually shiny and a good conductor
Non-metal An element that is usually dull and a poor conductor