Name: ___________________________

Identifying Atoms and Ions

Journey into the Atom Part A - Atomic Structure
Pre-Activity Questions:
How do you find the atomic mass of an element if you know the number of protons and
neutrons?

How do you determine the charge an atom has?

Introduction:
Atoms are composed of subatomic particles, such as the protons and the neutrons, which
make up the nucleus of the atom and are similar in mass, and electrons, which are found orbiting
the nucleus in an electron, cloud and have a negligible mass. All atoms contain the same kinds
of particles but may differ in the number of each particle. This accounts for the presence of
isotopes and ions for the different elements.
This activity will allow you to use what you know about the composition of the atom, as
well as isotopes and ions, to describe sixteen atoms. The atoms are contained in Petri Dishes and
the subatomic particles are coded as follows.
Protons – Black Beads
Neutrons – Green Beads
Electrons – Marked on the Back of the Dish and on the title of the picture

***To use your time wisely, complete the first 3 columns of your
table (# of protons, neutrons and electrons) before you complete the
rest of the table.***
Objective:
Students will collect data and relate number of subatomic particles to atomic number, mass
number, electrical charge, atomic symbol, and name of element.

Procedure:
Analyze each dish (atom) and record its vital statistics in the data table provided.

AFTER YOU COMPLETE THE ENTIRE TABLE, ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
Data Analysis:
1. List the isotopes that are on your table. How do you know they are isotopes?

2. List the ions that are on your table. How do you know they are ions?
 # of # of # of Atomic Mass Electrical Chemical Element Name
Dish # Protons Neutrons Electrons Number Number Charge Symbol (Name – mass #)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
**
Barium-139
**
Krypton-94
**
Uranium-235

** à use your periodic table and the information in the last column to complete these rows.