Summary

In this activity, students will become familiar with the periodic table by creating a skit to explain an element’s symbol, atomic number, and atomic mass.

Grade Level

Middle or high school

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students should will

• Be more familiar with the elements on the periodic table.

Chemistry Topics

This lesson supports students’ understanding of

• Periodic table

Time

Teacher Preparation: 10 minutes

Lesson: one class period to present, optional class time for students to prepare

Materials

• Materials vary depending on how much class time is used to prepare skits.

Safety

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

Teacher Notes

This is an opportunity for students to get creative with the periodic table as they are learning about elements that may be unknown to them. If you give students time to do some research, they may discover elements they are unfamiliar with are used in everyday things, and elements they are familiar with have uses they don’t expect.