How Do I Make a Poster of a Gold Atom for Elementary School Students?
A poster of an atom and its components is a good way to help elementary students visualize how protons, neutrons and electrons go together. Drawing a poster of a gold atom requires some planning to ensure you can fit in all the components in their correct locations -- doing a first draft in pencil may help. The traditional "bulls-eye" version of an atomic model, while not fully scientifically accurate, is still considered an acceptable way to portray an atom at the elementary level.
Things You'll Need
- Periodic Table of Elements
- Electron configuration table
- White poster board
- Colored markers
- Pencil and eraser
- Colored pencils
Instructions
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1
Write the title of your project (for example, Model of a Gold Atom) in large letters at the top of your poster board.
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Find the atomic number and atomic weight of the gold atom on the Periodic Table -- these are needed to determine how many protons and neutrons you must draw in your nucleus. Gold has an atomic number of 79 (this reflects the number of protons in a single atom of gold) and an atomic weight of 197; subtracting 79 from 197 leaves you with 118, which is the number of neutrons. In a stable gold atom the number of electrons equals the number of protons, so you will also have 79 electrons in your model.
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Draw the atom's nucleus at the center of your poster. Make 197 small adjacent circles in a cluster; mark 79 with a "+" to represent the protons and their positive charge and write "0" in the remaining 118 connoting neutrons, which have no charge.
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4
Draw concentric rings around the nucleus (but not touching it). Draw the outermost ring so it is close to the long sides of the poster; draw five additional rings close together inside the outer ring, for a total of six. These rings represent the energy levels in which the electrons move around the nucleus. Leave blank space between the nucleus and the energy levels (rings).
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Add randomly spaced small circles to the energy levels to represent the electrons of the atom. Mark each with "-" to represent the electrons' negative charge. Based on the electron configuration table, draw the 79 electrons in your gold atom as follows: two electrons in the first energy level (innermost ring), eight in the second, 18 in the third, 32 in the fourth, 18 in the fifth and 1 in the sixth (or outermost ring).
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6
Color in the protons with one shade of colored pencil, the neutrons with another and the electrons with a third; this makes it easier for viewers to identify each part. Draw a simple key on the lower right corner of your poster to guide viewers. Include a circle with a plus sign in it followed by "= protons", one with a zero in it and "= neutrons" and a third with a minus sign inside and "= electrons." Color the circles with the same shades you used in your model.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
