KS3 ~ Year 7 ~ Atoms & Elements

This lesson is designed for the Activate KS3 Science Course, specifically Year 7 C1.2 ’Elements, Atoms & Compounds’.

For more lessons designed for KS3 and KS4 please visit my shop at: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resources/shop/SWiftScience.

This lesson begins with an introduction to the definition of an element, by using the element gold as an example. Students will then be asked to ‘Think > Pair > Share’ their ideas about the names of other elements they might have heard of before.

An animation will then be shown to students on atoms and elements, they will need to answer a set of questions whilst watching the animation. The answers are included in the PowerPoint so students can assess their work once complete.

A visual representation of an atom with an object (a silver ring) is shown to students, to demonstrate that an atom on its own does not have properties of the element. Millions of silver atoms will be found in a silver ring. Together, these atoms make the silver ring a shiny, grey silver colour.

Next, students are introduced to the periodic table. They will have a handout of the periodic table, which they will need to stick into their books. Once this is stuck in, they will be given a set of questions to complete using the periodic table. Students can self-assess their work using the mark scheme provided.

Lastly, students will complete a progress check to assess their understanding of the lesson so far, which can also be self-assessed.

All resources are included at the end of the presentation. Thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)