Intro to Atoms and Molecules

• Matter is the substance that all physical objects are made of.

• Matter is all around you. Everything you see is matter.

• All of this matter is made of small particles.

• The small particles are made of smaller particles.

• The basic unit of matter is an atom

• Atoms are the smallest units when it comes to matter

• Everything in our world is made up of atoms!

• At the center of an atom is its nucleus.

• Protons are positively charged particles in the nucleus.

• Also in the nucleus are neutrons with no electrical charge.

• Orbiting the nucleus are tiny electrons. Electrons are negatively charged.

• An atom with the same number of protons and electrons is electrically neutral.

• If the atom has more or less electrons to protons it is called an ion.

• An ion will have positive charge if it has more protons than electrons.

• It will have negative charge if it has more electrons than protons.

• An atom is the smallest unit of a chemical element.

• That is, an atom has all the properties of that element.

• All atoms of the same element have the same number of protons.

• An elements atomic number tells us how many protons the element has

Elements can be found on the PERIODIC TABLE OF ELEMENTS!