Atoms+and+the+Atomic+Structure

= ATOMS = BUILDING BLOCKS= Atoms are the basis of chemistry. They are the basis for everything in the Universe. You should start by remembering that matter is composed of atoms. Atoms and the study of atoms are a world unto themselves. We're going to cover basics like atomic structure and bonding between atoms. As you learn more, you can move to the biochemistry tutorials and see how atoms form compounds that help the biological world survive.

= SMALLER THAN ATOMS? = Are there pieces of matter that are smaller than atoms? Sure there are. You'll soon be learning that atoms are composed of pieces like neutrons, electrons, and protons. But guess what? There are even smaller particles moving around in atoms. These super-small particles can be found inside the protons and neutrons. Scientists have many names for those pieces, but you may have heard of **nucleons** and **quarks**. Nuclear chemists and physicists work together with particle accelerators to discover the presence of these tiny, tiny, tiny pieces of matter.

Even though those super tiny atomic particles exist, there are three basic parts of an atom. The parts are the **electrons**, **protons**, and **neutrons**. What are electrons, protons, and neutrons? A picture works best. You have a basic atom. There are three pieces to an atom. There are electrons, protons, and neutrons. That's all you have to remember. Three things! As you know, there are over 100 elements in the **periodic table**. The thing that makes each of those elements different is the number of electrons, protons, and neutrons. The protons and neutrons are always in the center of the atom. Scientists call the center of the atom the **nucleus**. The electrons are always found whizzing around the center in areas called orbitals.

You can also see that each piece has either a "+", "-", or a "0." That symbol refers to the charge of the particle. You know when you get a shock from a socket, static electricity, or lightning? Those are all different types of electric charges. There are even charges in tiny particles of matter like atoms. The electron always has a "-" or negative charge. The proton always has a "+" or positive charge. If the charge of an entire atom is "0", that means there are equal numbers of positive and negative pieces, equal numbers of electrons and protons. The third particle is the neutron. It has a neutral charge (a charge of zero).



**PA Academic Standard: 3.4.10. GRADE 10-->**Explain concepts about the structure and properties of matter. • Know that atoms are composed of even smaller sub-atomic structures whose properties are measurable. • Explain the repeating pattern of chemical properties by using the repeating patterns of atomic structure within the periodic table. • Predict the behavior of gases through the use of Boyle’s, Charles’ or the ideal gas law, in everyday situations. • Describe phases of matter according to the Kinetic Molecular Theory. • Explain the formation of compounds and their resulting properties using bonding theories (ionic and covalent).