Atoms/Periodic Table: Bingo

Have students fill in a blank bingo card with any numbers between 1 and 50.

You can make up your own clues involving elements' atomic numbers, protons, electrons, and neutrons, or you can use mine:

1 - # of protons in Hydrogen
2 - # of neutrons in Helium
3 - # of electrons in Lithium
4 - # of neutrons in Lithium
5 - # of protons in Boron
6 - atomic number of carbon
7 - # of neutrons in Nitrogen
8 - # of electrons in Oxygen
9 - atomic mass of Beryllium
10 - # of protons in Neon
11 - atomic number of sodium
12 - atomic mass of Magnesium
13 - # of in Aluminum
14 - # of protons + # of neutrons in Nitrogen
15 - # of protons in Phosphorous
16 - # of protons in Sulfur
17 - # of electrons in Chlorine
18 - # of neutrons in Chlorine
19 - # of protons + # of neutrons in Fluorine
20 - # of neutrons in Potassium
21 - atomic number of Scandium
22 - # of protons in Titanium
23 - # of protons + # of neutrons in Sodium
24 - atomic mass of Magnesium
25 - # of electrons in Manganese
26 - # of neutrons in Titanium
27 - atomic number of Cobalt
28 - # of protons + # of neutrons in Silicon
29 - # of protons in Copper
30 - # of protons in Zinc
31 - # of electrons in Gallium
32 - atomic number of Germanium
33 - atomic number of Arsenic
34 - # of protons in Selenium
35 - # of neutrons in Zinc
36 - # of electrons in Krypton
37 - atomic number of Rubidium
38 - atomic number of Strontium
39 - # of protons in Yttrium
40 - atomic mass of Argon
41 - # of electrons in Niobium
42 - # of neutrons in Arsenic
43 - atomic number of Technetium
44 - # of protons in Ruthenium
45 - atomic mass of Scandium
46 - # of  electrons in Palladium
47 - # of electrons in Silver
48 - # of protons + # of neutrons in Titanium
49 - atomic number of Indium
50 - # of protons in Tin
I recommend making up a list ahead of time, to make sure you don't use the same number over and over while completely skipping others.

I wrote my clues on index cards.  Then, for each round I shuffle the deck and draw the cards from the top.

Word Chain

Have students create a word chain for any topic they are studying. A word chain is simply a list of words related to the topic, but each word must begin with the last letter of the previous word.

An example for minerals:
Quartz – Zinc – Corundum – Malachite –

See who can make the longest chain in your class!

Classification: Scavenger Hunt

Provide students with a list of questions, such as:
*What is the common name for Felidae domesticus?
*What is the red squirrel’s order?
*What is the scientific name for the giant panda?

Students use the internet to find the answers to as many as possible.

Turn it into an assignment, a contest, extra credit, etc.

Test Review Raffle

To encourage your students to participate in a class review (or other comparable activity), hold a raffle at the end. For every correct answer the student supplies, she earns a raffle ticket. The more correct answers, the more tickets, the better chance to win. If you're using this for a test review, the most coveted prize would be some extra points on the test. Otherwise, use something that works into your pre-existing system.

Raffle tickets are available at office supply stores or online. Or you could create your own.

Periodic Table: Word Game

WHAt CaN I FINd
(Tungsten*Hydrogen*Astatine - Calcium*Nitgroen - Iodine - Flourine*Iodine*Neodymium)

Have your students use the symbols found on the periodic table to spell as many words as they can. It's a fun and simple game, but it does help familiarize your students with the periodic table, what's on it, and where they can find certain elements.

Set the parameters as you wish: work alone, as partners, or teams? how long do words need to be to qualify? do plurals count? should they write out the names of the elements as well?

In the past, I've managed to work it so that the last day of school before vacation, students take a quiz on the periodic table and the spend the remainder of the period playing the game - it works out GREAT! You can offer a prize to the student(s) with the most words or the longest word, but it's not necessary - they're so engrossed in getting as many as they can and besting their friends that they keep going on their own.

Photosynthesis: Photosynthesis Races

Teams of students (or individuals) race against each other to assemble the equation for photosynthesis. As students master the equation, they move from words to chemical symbols.


Carbon dioxide + Water + Light--> Oxygen + Sugar
6 CO2 + 6H2O + Light --> 6O2 + C6H12O6



Use index cards to create the equation components. You will need a set for each team you plan to have compete at one time.

Set one:
Carbon dioxide
Water
Light (Sun)
Oxygen
Sugar
-->
+ (x3)

Set two:
CO2
H2O
Light (Sun)
O2
C6H12O6
-->
+ (x3)

Depending upon the level of your students or how much of a challenge you wish to present, you can also provide the coefficients for students to put in the correct places.

I like to have each team begin with the words. The teams each work together to properly assemble their equation (remember, it doesn’t matter which order the reactants and products are in, just that they are on the proper side of the arrow).

As soon as a team claims to have completed the equation, I check it for accuracy. While I am checking, the other team can continue to assemble their equation in case the first team is incorrect. If they are incorrect, both teams continue to assemble the equation.


Once a team has correctly assembled the equation, the winning team moves on to chemical equations while the losing team continues to use the words.

This game can be played very quickly and is a good way for student to learn the equation for photosynthesis. By providing one additional card – ATP – and removing one card – Light – you can have students create the equation for cellular respiration. You could set up a whole tournament for your class to crown a photosynthesis champion!