Periodic trends help us understand how different elements act based on where they are in the periodic table.
When you look across a row (called a period), you can see some changes:
Atomic radius: This usually gets smaller from left to right. For example, sodium (Na) is bigger than chlorine (Cl).
Ionization energy: This goes up as you move from left to right. This means it gets tougher to take away an electron from elements like noble gases (which are found on the far right of the table).
Now, when you go down a column (called a group), there are some different trends:
Atomic radius: This gets larger as you go down the group. That’s because there are more electron shells added. For example, lithium (Li) is smaller than cesium (Cs).
Reactivity: This increases for metals but decreases for non-metals as you move down.
These trends help scientists, called chemists, guess how elements will react and join with each other. This makes understanding chemistry much easier and clearer!
Periodic trends help us understand how different elements act based on where they are in the periodic table.
When you look across a row (called a period), you can see some changes:
Atomic radius: This usually gets smaller from left to right. For example, sodium (Na) is bigger than chlorine (Cl).
Ionization energy: This goes up as you move from left to right. This means it gets tougher to take away an electron from elements like noble gases (which are found on the far right of the table).
Now, when you go down a column (called a group), there are some different trends:
Atomic radius: This gets larger as you go down the group. That’s because there are more electron shells added. For example, lithium (Li) is smaller than cesium (Cs).
Reactivity: This increases for metals but decreases for non-metals as you move down.
These trends help scientists, called chemists, guess how elements will react and join with each other. This makes understanding chemistry much easier and clearer!