The Periodic Table is a chart featuring
all the elements. It was put together by Dmitri Mendeleev. He set up the chart
by organizing the the elements according to the physical and chemical properties
they have in common, Each grouping is arranged starting with those with the
lowest atomic number and moving along in order of these atomic numbers. The
groups are numbered from one to eight in Roman numerals (I-VIII). Each group
is split into two subgroups called families.These families are called the a
series and the b series.
All the elements in the same group
are similar chemically. They have the same number of valence electrons. Valence
is the ability of different atoms to form chemical bonds based on the number
of electrons an atom gives up or takes on when forming chemical bonds. This
allows combinations of atoms to form compounds.
Atoms that form one chemical bond
are called monovalent, those that form two chemical bonds are called divalent,
those that form three chemical bonds are called trivalent and those that form
four chemical bonds are called tetravalent.
The rows going across the Periodic
Table contain elements with the same number of electron shells. These rows are
called periods.
