structure and understand its behavior in reactions.
reactions.
Now let's apply the steps to draw an
actual atom. Let's try with our element
here oxygen. First we find its atomic
number that's eight. So oxygen has eight
protons in the nucleus and eight
electrons to place in the shells.
Step two, we draw a nucleus and label it
with oxygen symbol a capital O. Next, we
draw the electron shells. Let's draw one
shell for now. Let's start with the
first shell. That's the smallest
innermost layer where electrons can go.
It's like a tiny circle with just two
sits. So, we place two electrons there
to fill it completely. One here and one
beside it. That's it. full. No extra
space. Once the first shell has two, we
move on. Now we've got six more
electrons to place in the second shell.
The shell is bigger and it has four
spots where electrons like to sit.
Imagine four sets of chairs is space
around the table. Each pair can hold up
two electrons. But here's the trick. We
don't put both on a chair right away. We
go around the table and place one
electron per chair first. 1 2 3 4. Now
every chair has one electron. Then we go
back and add the last two electrons to
make pairs.
This pattern might feel a bit extra, but
it actually helps us understand how
atoms bond with others later on.
Next, we draw the atom for sodium.
Sodium has an atomic number of 11, which
means it has 11 electrons.
Now, let's write the symbol N in the
center of the nucleus. We currently have
two shells around it.
Let's fill in the electrons.
Two in the first shell,
eight in the second,
and one electron in the third shell. And
that's it.
Now let's try a simpler one. Helium.
Helium has two protons. So it has two electrons.
electrons.
That means it only needs one shell. And
that shell it's like a tiny bench with
just two seats. We place both electrons
there, one on each seat.
Now the bench is full. No more room. And
that's makes helium a very stable atom.
Now let's draw a larger atom. Calcium.
Calcium has an atomic number of 20. So
it has 20 electrons to fill the shells.
We'll need two electrons in the first shell,
shell,
eight in the second.
And although the third shell can
accommodate up to 18 electrons, the
octet rule says the outermost shell
can't have more than eight electrons.
And so we put eight in the third shell
and the last two in the fourth shell.
There are different ways to draw
electrons in atom diagrams. You can draw
them as dots or as X's, whichever is
easier to see. What matters most is
their correct placement in each shell.
Also, instead of drawing each atom, we
can simply write the electron
configuration as numbers.
For example, 281 for sodium and 287 for
chlorine. That means two electrons in
the first shell, 8 in the second, and 1
or 7 in the outermost shell. This method
is faster and just as informative. But
whether you use diagrams or numbers,
both show one powerful truth. Atoms
follow clear patterns. And now you know
how to see them.
Let's wrap things up. Let's take a final
look at what we've learned. The atom is
the smallest unit of matter, but it's
made of even smaller parts.
As its center is the nucleus, a dense
core containing protons and neutrons.
Surrounding the nucleus are the electron
shells where negatively charged
electrons move in specific energy levels.
levels.
We also practice drawing atoms by
showing the nucleus at the center and
placing electrons in their correct
shells based on the atomic number.
This shows us how matter is put
together. Atoms aren't just random dots.
They have parts that make them behave a
certain way. Next time we'll check out
protons, neutrons, and electrons and how
their properties affects an element's
identity and reactivity.
This is Learning with G. Stay tuned for
the next lesson. Please subscribe to my
channel for more science content. [Music]
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