Our first unit is about atoms. I introduced the three main parts of an atom (protons, electrons and neutrons) We read about the periodic table and the first 18 elements. (I really want them to know the abbreviations for those first 18.) Then we looked at the periodic table in a book we checked out from the library called Simple Chemistry Experiments with Everyday Materials by Louis V. Loeschnig. This table in particular showed the atomic number (the number of protons in the nucleus) but also the number of electrons in each shell "orbiting" the nucleus. With that information, Tera and Daniel picked two elements in the first 18 to diagram. They drew the nucleus with protons and neutrons, then the appropriate number of electrons in each orbital shell. Finally they labelled the diagram with the element and abbreviation. We tried to draw the electrons smaller than the protons but that was a little hard to do and still label it as having a negative charge. Tera liked it so much she wanted to make more today, so I suggested she make diagrams for the first 18 elements. Then we can put them together in a book form.
We went over our Bible quizzing questions today with a little multiple choice quiz on our Bible selections for the week. The kids remembered a whole lot more than I thought they would. YEAH!
