Periods in the Periodic Table 

    Periods in the Periodic Table are rows of elements. Each element that is in the same row has the same number of valence electrons, which are the electrons in the outermost shell of an atom. Each next element that is in a period has an additional proton. Each horizontal row is a period in the periodic table, thus there are 7 periods in the periodic table. There are also lanthanides and actinides. These fit into the sixth and seventh periods in the Periodic Table. Lanthanides are the series of 15 metallic elements from lanthanum to lutetium in the Periodic Table. Actinides are the series of 15 metallic elements from actinium to lawrencium.  

Groups/Families in the Periodic Table 

    Groups/families in the periodic table are groups of elements with similar properties in the Periodic Table, which identifies the number of valence electrons that are in an element. Therefore, elements in a group also tend to have similar reactivity. There are 18 groups/families in the periodic table. The family names are Alkali Metals, Alkaline Earth Metals, Transition Metals, Boron Family, Carbon Family, Nitrogen Family, Oxygen Family, Halogens, and Noble Gases. 

The Role of Protons 

    Protons within an atom's nucleus contribute in the nucleus's bonding. They also attract and maintain negatively charged electrons in orbit around the nucleus. The chemical element is determined by the number of protons in an atom's nucleus. Also, the amount of protons inside a nucleus must be equal to the number of electrons outside it.

Metals, Nonmetals, and Metalloids 

    Metals are on the left side of the Periodic Table. Though, hydrogen is not a metal, it is a nonmetal, but it is still on the left side of the Periodic Table. Metals tend to be conductors of electricity because they conduct electricity by enabling electrons to flow freely among atoms. They are also conductors of heat. Nonmetals are on the far right of the Periodic Table. Most of the nonmetals are clear gases with no odor. Metalloids are in between metals and nonmetals, in the picture below you can see the metalloids are highlighted in yellow. A metalloid is a chemical element with a majority of characteristics that fall between metals and those of nonmetals, or that are a combination of the two.  

Valence Electrons and their Role 

    The electrons in an atom's outermost shell are known as valence electrons. Valence electrons control an atom's electronegativity, electron affinity, and ionization energy, all of which influence covalent and ionic bonding. The periodic table is divided into families. Because of the valence electrons, the families share similar characteristics. Different shells in an atom can hold a different amount of electrons. For example, first shell can hold 2 electrons, but the second shell can hold 8. If the outermost shell gets full, meaning that it is holding the maximum amount of electrons it can, the element is not reactive. This is because it does not need another electron for its outermost shell to be full. Thus, it will not go looking for another electron, or in other words, it will not be reactive. 

The Families/Groups in the Periodic Table ➡ 

Periodic Table Family Names: 

Alkali Metals, Alkaline Earth Metals, Transition Metals, Boron Family, Carbon Family, Nitrogen Family, Oxygen Family, Halogens, and Noble Gases 

Alkali Metals 

    Alkali metals are the metals that are in the first group in the Periodic Table. Alkali metals get their name from the fact that when they react with water, they produce alkalies. Alkali metals are soft, shiny, and highly reactive at a standard pressure and temperature. The elements for alkali metals are lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, caesium, and francium. Some practical uses of alkali metals are sodium and rubidium. Sodium is used as luster in metals, and rubidium carbonate, which is a convenient compound of rubidium, is used in making optical glasses. 

Transition Metals 

    Transition metals are the elements in the body of the table elements. These elements are in the d-block and exhibit a property transition from the s-block to the p-block. As a result, these are referred to as transition elements. Transition metals are large, have high densities, form compounds, good conductors, and are less reactive. Some element examples of transition metals are scandium, nickel, and cobalt. Some practical uses of transition metals are iron and titanium. Iron is used for making steel and titanium is used for making aircrafts. 

Alkaline Earth Metals 

    Alkaline Earth Metals are in the second group of the Periodic Table. Because of their relatively low effective nuclear charges and ability to achieve a complete outer shell structure by losing just two electrons, alkaline earth metals have the second-lowest initial ionization energies in their respective periods of the Periodic Table. Alkaline earth metals are shiny, with a white shine, have low densities, are somewhat reactive, have low boiling points, and have low melting points. The elements in for Alkaline Earth Metals are beryllium, magnesium, calcium, strontium, barium, and radium. Some practical uses of Alkaline Earth Metaks are strontium and limestone. Strontium is highly used in fireworks, and limestone is used as a white pigment in toothpaste. 

Fun Fact: Magnesium and calcium are key alkaline earth elements in animal and plant physiology! 

Boron Family 

    The Boron Family (group 13) is a group of elements, which all have 3 valence electrons, thus, 3 electrons in their outermost shell. One element in this group is a metalloid, which is boron. Boron is also the lightest element out of all of the elements in this group of elements and is also less reactive. Before modern chemistry separated the elements in this group, none of these elements were known in their complete form. All of the elements can conduct electricity and they can also be found not combined in nature. The elements in the Boron Family are boron, aluminum, gallium, indium, thallium, and nihonium. Some practical uses of the elements in the Boron Family are boron and aluminum. Boron is used as a rocket fuel igniter and aluminum is used for kitchenware. 

Carbon Family 

    The Carbon Family (group 14) is a group of elements, which all have 4 valence electrons, thus, 4 electrons in their outermost shell. One element in this group is a nonmetal, which is carbon. The density of the elements increases as you go down the group, and the atomic radius and ionic radius rise as you go down the Periodic Table in the carbon family, but electronegativity and ionization energy drop. Some practical uses of the elements in the Carbon Family are silicon and lead. Silicon is used for computer chips and lead is used for car batteries.