• 6-8: 4D/M1a. All matter is made up of atoms, which are far too small to see directly through a microscope.
• 6-8: 4D/M1b. The atoms of any element are like other atoms of the same element, but are different from the atoms of other elements.
• 6-8: 4D/M1cd. Atoms may link together in well-defined molecules, or may be packed together in crystal patterns. Different arrangements of atoms into groups compose all substances and determine the characteristic properties of substances.
• 6-8: 4D/M3cd. In solids, the atoms or molecules are closely locked in position and can only vibrate. In liquids, they have higher energy, are more loosely connected, and can slide past one another; some molecules may get enough energy to escape into a gas. In gases, the atoms or molecules have still more energy and are free of one another except during occasional collisions.
• 6-8: 4D/M6a. There are groups of elements that have similar properties, including highly reactive metals, less-reactive metals, highly reactive nonmetals (such as chlorine, fluorine, and oxygen), and some almost completely nonreactive gases (such as helium and neon).
• 6-8: 4D/M8. Most substances can exist as a solid, liquid, or gas depending on temperature.
• 6-8: 4D/M13. The idea of atoms explains chemical reactions: When substances interact to form new substances, the atoms that make up the molecules of the original substances combine in new ways.

• 6-8: 11B/M1. Models are often used to think about processes that happen too slowly, too quickly, or on too small a scale to observe directly. They are also used for processes that are too vast, too complex, or too dangerous to study.

• 6-8: 11D/M3. Natural phenomena often involve sizes, durations, and speeds that are extremely small or extremely large. These phenomena may be difficult to appreciate because they involve magnitudes far outside human experience.

• 6-8: 12C/M3. Make accurate measurements of length, volume, weight, elapsed time, rates, and temperature by using appropriate devices.

Give your students a taste of atomic/molecular structure by exploring four elements: oxygen, neon, bromine.....chosen because they represent four very different structures -- a noble gas (neon), diatomic gas molecule (oxygen), diatomic liquid molecule (bromine), and diatomic solid molecule (iodine). Each element is represented in illustrations and animations that model the molecular motion.

• Physical Sciences K-8 Elements and the Periodic Table Unit
• Physics First Elements and the Periodic Table Unit
• Conceptual Physics Elements and the Periodic Table Unit
• Algebra-Based Physics Elements and the Periodic Table Unit