Find out about Calcium

Find out about calcium.

How calcium reacts with water? Uses of calcium? How calcium bonds? (Am I right to say that calcium bonds with most other elements in the periodic table?)

Or maybe find what reactions a calcium compound can give... how to fry an egg using calcium oxide and water.

The Chemistry of Concrete

'Professor Poliakoff overcomes his fear of tall ladders to observe the chemistry of concrete.'

And we know the history of concrete, yes? How the Romans used it? Find out on Wiki.

Round up

Look over the periodic table. How many elements can you describe, explain, or talk about?

Now here's the Chemical Party. Don't show it to the juniors.

8 Lanthanides and actinides

In Ellen's story, the lanthanides and actinides are the underground miners of Periodic Table Town.

They are transition metals, but keep a separate place on the Periodic Table. Can you suggest why?

The lanthanides are industrious types who provide rare metals for high-tech products. Find out about one: Neodymium.

The actinides can be dangerous as they are radioactive. But what is radioactivity?

Ellen describes uranium, for example, as 'like a big crumbly cookie. Little bits can break off easily. When as atom's nucleus begins to crumble, it doesn't drop crumbs or chocolate chips, however. It flings out protons, neutrons, electrons and rays dangerous energy'.

Does that help? You could try Youtube too for understandable answers to the question. Here is a video with animation, and a video for the discovery of radioactivity.