Storytelling is a vital skill for the guiding adult in a Montessori classroom. The heart of cosmic education is the five Great Lessons/Great Stories that teachers give at the beginning of the school year. Teachers are charged with being storytellers of the truth – giving children accurate information in an inspiring way.
Truth is a slippery concept. In science or in stories that have science content, we deal with truth with a small “t”; the pursuit of Truth with a capital “T” is beyond our lessons. Scientific truth is based on evidence that scientists have gathered by observing and measuring phenomena. Scientists are able to gather more evidence as they invent newer instruments and techniques; as a result, the truth changes. Mostly, the changes are small, but that doesn’t mean they are unimportant. Note also that we cannot discount the present state of knowledge because it might change.
Recently, I received a version of the first Great Lesson, The Coming of the Universe. Below, I’m going to quote some statements from that lesson and then give my ideas on how to make them more truthful. I am referring back to this example when I write “the lesson.”
Referring to the beginning of time, the lesson says “…it was very cold…” You cannot truthfully say anything about the conditions that existed before the Big Bang. It could have been hot, cold, or something in between, but we have no evidence, so we cannot make any definitive statements. Neither can we say if it was dark or light.
The example lesson tells of tiny particles coming together to create the Big Bang. This is not how we understand the first event in the universe. I like the way the book, The Stardust that Made Us* tells it: “In the beginning, there were no elements at all. Our universe exploded into a sea of energy…” At first, there was only energy. The universe quickly expanded and cooled, and within a fraction of a second, some of the energy was converted into particles. Within minutes, the particles came together to form atomic nuclei. It was too hot and energetic for atoms to form. (An atom is an atomic nucleus with a cloud of electrons swarming close around it.) The high energy kept the electrons from the nuclei. Atoms didn’t form for nearly 400,000 years. At that time, the universe had expanded and cooled enough that atomic nuclei could capture and hold their electrons.
The lesson says, “Although this explosion occurred over 13 million years ago, our universe continues to expand.” Yes, this is a good truth for the story. After the Great Lesson, children may wish to learn more about how astronomers learned that the universe is expanding. Look for the story of Edwin Hubble’s observations of galaxies.
The lesson goes on – “Within a few minutes of this explosion, all the matter in the universe was formed.” Not quite – energy can be transformed to matter, although we are more familiar with the opposite. Our Sun and all stars convert matter to energy, which is what keeps them from collapsing under the force of gravity. All of the matter AND energy of the universe came into being then.
The lesson implies that all the early matter was in the form of a gas. This is not true. At those temperatures, matter is in the plasma state. It is a sea of bare atomic nuclei, free electrons, and various other particles. It is important to get this right. Here’s a better version.
In the beginning, the first atomic nucleus to form was hydrogen. In the very hot, dense, and energetic conditions, some hydrogen nuclei collided and formed helium. There were also teeny tiny traces of lithium and possibly just a few other elements – all of which were less than one-billionth of all matter. Almost all the matter was hydrogen and helium. That’s what scientists observe today when they look at the stars – they are mostly hydrogen and helium. After this, the universe was too cool for atomic nuclei to smash together and form new elements. It would take special conditions found only in a very special place to make other elements.
The lesson says that as the universe cooled, the particles came together and formed stars, planets, moons, asteroids, etc. There is more to the story, and it is not too complicated for children to understand.
There is only one thing that can be made from hydrogen and helium alone, and that’s a star. Stars are made of enormously huge amounts of atoms. Gravity pulls the atoms together until the star’s center is very hot and dense. Astronomers think that it took an extra huge amount of hydrogen and helium to make the first stars. These giant stars burned their hydrogen and helium fuel quickly. Gravity pulled their matter together very compactly, and that made their centers very, very hot. These conditions squeezed the atomic nuclei together and formed larger elements. Some of the matter converted to energy, like it still does in stars. Now you know the special place where elements other than hydrogen and helium form. It is the amazing furnace inside the stars that gave us the elements that form planets and life.
As the first stars died, they spread new elements into space, and this helped further star formation. With some different kinds of atoms mixed with the hydrogen and helium, smaller stars that lasted longer could form. Our Sun is likely a third-generation star. It has a bit less than 2% of its mass as elements other than hydrogen and helium as compared to less than a billionth in the first stars.
One of my favorite children’s science books, The Horse and the Iron Ball** explains the origin of elements very well. It is a bit outdated, as astronomers now know of other cosmic events that produce heavy elements. The basic story is still good and still inspiring.
I will write more about the formation of our Sun, the Earth, and the Moon another time. This is a big enough bite for now. Please feel free to add your questions and comments.
* The Stardust that Made Us: A Visual Exploration of Chemistry, Atoms, Elements, and the Universe. Written by Colin Stuart, illustrated by Ximo Abadia, published in 2024 by Big Picture Press (no relation to Big Picture Science.)
**The Horse and the Iron Ball: A Journey Through Time, Space, and Technology. Written by Jerry and Georgiana Allan, illustrated by Jerry Allan, published in 2000 by Lerner Publications Company.
We all know and use the periodic table. This icon of chemistry classrooms has many versions. The chemistry community is celebrating the table’s 150th anniversary this year. You can see the latest version of it here: https://iupac.org/what-we-do/periodic-table-of-elements/ . If you would like to know more of its history, see https://www.sciencenews.org/article/periodic-table-history-chemical-elements-150-anniversary.
All elementary and higher classrooms need to have this chart. I recommend that you start with a simple version that has the elements’ symbol, name, and atomic number but little else. That’s enough information for beginners. The color scheme should make it easy to tell the metals, metalloids, and the nonmetals apart. Samples of some common and safe elements will help children see the significance of this chart.
My card set, “Discovering the Periodic Table”, helps children find out why the elements are arranged as they are on the periodic table. You can see more about at https://big-picture-science.myshopify.com/collections/physical-science/products/discovering-the-periodic-table.
I like to tell children that if they meet an alien from another planet, they could communicate via the periodic table because the chemical elements are present throughout the universe. We can tell this by the unique wavelengths of light that each element gives off.
After children are familiar with a simple periodic table, they may find a chart that illustrates the elements attractive. These charts vary in quality, and most are confusingly busy. Make sure that an illustrated chart shows something that is meaningful to children or that it shows the actual element. Vague scenes or unfamiliar objects are not likely to help children grasp the concept of elements.
There is another chart for chemistry that is very useful for advanced elementary and middle school levels. It is the classification of matter chart. If you search the Internet for “classification of matter chart,” you will find many flow charts. Big Picture Science offers the chart from InPrint for Children, which I helped design. This chart shows the chemical forms that matter can take. First, it divides matter into pure substances and mixtures. It has four photo cards with information on the back for each of four categories – elements, chemical compounds (both are pure substances), and homogeneous and heterogeneous mixtures.
This chart has information that children need to imagine the kinds of atoms or molecules that may be in a substance. They see how chemical elements are a part of all matter and how elements combine in compounds. Most matter that they encounter is some sort of mixture. The chart will help them sort out the major types of mixtures as well.
The photos show four common elements that you can have as samples in the classroom – zinc, copper, sulfur, and silicon. The latter is available from scientific supplies as the lump form, laboratory grade. Be sure to get the lump or crystalline form. This element is also sold in a powder form, but this doesn’t allow children to see the shiny crystals.
Enjoy exploring the chemical elements and ordering them on the periodic table and the classification of matter chart!
Priscilla
Last June, the organization that officially recognizes the discovery of chemical elements and their names announced the proposed names for the final four elements on the periodic table. This governing body, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), took suggestions from the discoverers of the elements and then it issued the proposal. People could submit comments about the names for several months, and then in November, the IUPAC published the names. This was the final step in making them official.
The element names and atomic numbers are: nihonium (Nh) for element 113, which is named for the country of Japan; moscovium (Mc) for element 115, named for Moscow, Russia; tennessine (Ts) for element 117, named for the state of Tennessee; and oganesson (Og) for element 118, named after a Russian scientist who helped discover several elements, Yuri Oganessian. A new periodic table with these names is available at the IUPAC website, https://iupac.org/what-we-do/periodic-table-of-elements/ .
So what does this mean for the Montessori classroom? Children are ready for the abstract idea of chemical elements when they are in their elementary years. When they get an introduction to the periodic table, it should include the full set of names. Children should get a least a brief story of how elements get their names and how governing bodies of science fields bring order to science knowledge.
Children need to know, however, that there are elements that one cannot see with one’s eyes. There are quite a number of elements that are known only by the energy, particles, and atoms produced when they undergo radioactive decay.
The image below is from my newly updated card set, Discovering the Periodic Table. It comes with two sets of cards for all 118 elements, one in color and one in black and white. The card on the left is an example of the color set, and in this case sodium's symbol is color-coded red to show it is one of the alkali metals. The other card is the back of the black and white card, and it shows the type of information given for each element - physical properties, chemical properties, and other information. The front of the black and white card is like the card on the left, but with the symbol only outlined.
I updated and expanded Discovering the Periodic Table last summer after the new names were announced. At that time I added some features to help children understand the nature of the largest elements. The elements that cannot be made in visible quantities have symbols with a dotted outline rather than a solid one. The smallest of these is astatine, atomic number 85. Scientists have calculated that if one could make a piece of astatine, it would instantly vaporize itself because of the energy released by its vigorous radioactive decay.
If you tell children this, they may wonder how such an element was ever discovered. If they don’t think of it, help them arrive at this question. We want children to think about what they hear and ask about how we know what we know. The idea to search for astatine came from its place in the periodic table. Mendeleev left a blank beneath iodine on his first periodic table, implying that there was another element in the halogen family. Researchers that first identified this element used a nuclear reactor to bombard bismuth, atomic number 83, with alpha particles. This added two more protons to bismuth nuclei, and produced a small amount of astatine, which quickly decayed. Later, when researchers knew astatine’s characteristics, and they were able to find tiny traces of it in uranium ores.
After astatine, the next element that can’t be made in visible amounts is francium, atomic number 87. The dotted outline symbols don’t show up again until atomic number 101, mendelevium. It and all larger elements cannot be made in visible amounts. Researchers have made so little of elements 104-118 that the chemical properties of these elements are also unknown. In the cards with color-coded symbols from Discovering the Periodic Table, elements 104-118 have gray symbols to show that there is not enough evidence to assign them to a chemical group such the halogens.
Your children may ask if more elements can be discovered. In theory there could be, but if someone does discover more elements, it will be bigger science news than any recent element discovery. Meanwhile, help 6-9 year-olds explore the common everyday elements with the cards set, Elements Around Us from InPrint for Children. The set, Element Knowledge, will help 9-15 year-olds learn element names, symbols, and several significant groups. This set includes the first 111 elements. You can add the names and symbols of the other seven if your children are interested. They certainly won’t see those symbols in any chemical formulas.
The first time I introduced children to the chemical elements, I wanted to give them a sense of where they might find these substances, either as single elements or in combination with others. Laying out the periodic table is one experience with the elements, but it is quite abstract and disconnected with everyday life. I wanted to help children learn about the elements in common substances, items they could encounter and experience.
I made a set of cards that had pictures of items, and I listed the major elements in each one on the back of the card. To let you know how long ago that was, I printed the lists of elements with a dot matrix printer and an Apple II computer. Fast forward a decade or so, and Carolyn Jones of InPrint for Children was designing a new series of materials for study of matter and atoms in Montessori elementary classrooms. We discussed the idea of a card set that shows common objects and their elements. She took the idea and produced an attractive set of cards that she calls “Elements Around Us.” Presently, only Big Picture Science sells this set.
“Elements Around Us” has photos of 20 objects. The set includes two copies of each card, one to leave whole with text that tells the elements, and one to cut apart for matching. We intentionally used some substances to simulate thinking. The photo of a cotton towel (which is mainly cellulose) and table sugar both say “This is composed of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen.” Cellulose is a macromolecule that is built of sugar molecules. These cards lead to the concept that elements can be joined in many ways to make different substances. The card that shows gold colored coins lists no gold as an ingredient. There are cards for carbon in the form of graphite and of diamond.
After children have worked with the cards, they are often interested in doing more. The “Elements Around Us” set has a black line master called a replicard, which you can copy for children so they can make their own booklets. They can color the outline drawing and write the elements. There are two blanks for children to draw their own object and research its elements.
Elementary children who are past the stage for card materials or who want to pursue the idea further will likely enjoy How to Make a Universe with 92 Ingredients, a book by Adrian Dingle. The book, Planet in a Pebble, by Jan Zalasiewicz, begins with a chapter on the elements in a common beach pebble. This book is for adult general readers, but selections from it can be read to older children or read by secondary students.
Happy element hunting!
In 2009, Theodore Gray published his book, The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe. While the subtitle might have been a bit ambitious, the illustrations have fascinated many children and adults. The book has a wealth of graphic information, as well as engaging images of the substances that contain the element.
Gray has just released a new book called Molecules: The Elements and the Architecture of Everything. It has his usual outstanding photos along with illustrations of the molecules. Children can copy these into three dimensions with a molecular modeling kit. You can see how a molecule of omega-3 oil looks compared to other oils. Soap and sweets, poisons and peppers, fibers and dyes – it’s all here.
If you are looking for a good molecular modeling kit, I recommend the Molymod™ brand. The models hold together well. There’s nothing more frustrating than to have your large, beautiful molecule fall apart. Look for an organic modeling kit. These are sometimes required for organic chemistry courses in college, and I’ve seen them used at bookstores near universities.
Not every child will be interested in making molecular models more complicated than water and carbon dioxide, but those that love this abstract study will be thrilled with Gray’s Molecules.
Update: I am sorry to say that the magnetic periodic table is sold out and InPrint for Children doesn't want to print more at this time. The names of several elements have been added since this material was created, and it would take an extensive re-do to make it current. I suggest that you take a look at the set, Discovering the Periodic Table, which is available printed and as a pdf that you print for yourself. https://big-picture-science.myshopify.com/collections/physical-science/products/discovering-the-periodic-table
We have a few more of the periodic tables with magnetic tiles from InPrint for Children, so I’ve added it to my product listings. I helped design this periodic table several years ago, guided by the principle of “isolate the difficulty.” Each tile has only an atomic symbol and the atomic number that goes with it. The background color of the tiles codes for metals, metalloids, and nonmetals. Hydrogen gets its own color as a reflection of its special role in the universe. With this simplified periodic table, children can see the big patterns of chemical elements before they have to deal more advanced periodic tables with their overwhelmingly busy look. When you look at this periodic table with all the tiles in place, you will likely be struck by the number of metals versus nonmetals. Five of the six main elements of life are nonmetals, and you see that nonmetals are a small fraction of the total elements. Children will also see the state of matter of each element at room temperature from the border around the square where the tile goes. With enough heat, all would be gases. With enough cold, all would be solids, but it would take near absolute zero for that to happen. Children enjoy constructing this periodic table several times, and they learn the location of elements as they do so. They can learn the element names when they refer to the table that comes with this set. The table also shows the origin of each element, whether it was formed by the Big Bang, by cosmic rays, in the center of stars, during supernova explosions, or synthesized in laboratories.
In its present production, this periodic table is printed on a heavy-weight magnet-receptive vinyl. It needs to be mounted on a rigid backing material. Suggestions for backing materials come along with the teacher’s background information. I mounted my own on white board material, and then added a narrow wooden frame to secure the edges. This arrangement has survived several trips to conferences, teacher education programs, and workshops.
Coupled with samples of a few metals, sulfur, carbon, and silicon - safe substances for children to handle, this material is a great way to introduce children to the chemical elements.
I wanted a way to make the chemical elements less abstract and more a part of children’s experiences
