Does anyone know a fun or easy way to memorize the 1st 20 elements on the P.T.E

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Future Doc1

Future Doc1

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I'm taking AP Chemistry next year and the teacher gave us a summer assignment to do. Part of the assignment is to memorize the first 20 elements on the periodic table of elements. I just wanted to know if anybody knows any fun or rather simple way to memorize them before I try to do it the old fashion way.
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DO you have to memorize them in order?

I had to memorize the transition metals for inorganic chem and I found memorizing them by period was easier (and using mnemonics with the atomic symbols).
 
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Ooo! Ooo!

There's a song. Let me see if I can find it.
 
I had to memorize the entire periodic table -_- Ended up making up a crapload of nasty mneumonics, but it worked.
 
I took the abbreviations for the first 20 elements and sang them to the tune of the alphabet song. Took about a day singing it on and off and now I will know them til the day I die.
 
For my school's AP chem (including me) we have to memorize a list of 60ish common ions
 
Future Doc1 said:
I'm taking AP Chemistry next year and the teacher gave us a summer assignment to do. Part of the assignment is to memorize the first 20 elements on the periodic table of elements. I just wanted to know if anybody knows any fun or rather simple way to memorize them before I try to do it the old fashion way.
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what a ridiculously stupid assignment. Wtf does that accomplish? Nothing. Im sorry you have to do that. And im sorry you have to memorize the rest later. I'd be pissed. That won't help you learn chemistry, its just making you memorize a list of words.
 
RySerr21 said:
what a ridiculously stupid assignment. Wtf does that accomplish? Nothing. Im sorry you have to do that. And im sorry you have to memorize the rest later. I'd be pissed. That won't help you learn chemistry, its just making you memorize a list of words.
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Yah, it is pretty dumb but I have to do so...
 
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I never had to memorize them for AP chem. :confused:
 
RySerr21 said:
probably cuz your teacher knew what he/she was doing.
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yeah seriously. I never encountered anything in chem where I wasn't allowed to use a periodic table. And plus... over the course of the class you'll probably end up memorizing the important stuff anyway.

Some things DO need to be memorized, like ions (although 60 of them? hahaha) and I suppose a few flame colors/ion colors (I had to, but I don't remember if this was useful at all) as well as solubility rules... but memorizing the periodic table? There's a reason those things are hanging on the walls of chem lecture rooms.
 
RySerr21 said:
probably cuz your teacher knew what he/she was doing.
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Haha! I was thinking the same thing. Unfortunately, I had to do the same ridiculous crap. Although, when you enter college and take organic/gen chem, memorization just comes naturally because of the repetition.

To answer you question, I just made flash cards and had funky names for each one. Li, Na, H, etc. These were easy for me... But, when you get into the really radioactive elements, it gets kinda tricky. So, just save those for last.
 
FuturaDocta said:
Haha! I was thinking the same thing. Unfortunately, I had to do the same ridiculous crap. Although, when you enter college and take organic/gen chem, memorization just comes naturally because of the repetition.

To answer you question, I just made flash cards and had funky names for each one. Li, Na, H, etc. These were easy for me... But, when you get into the really radioactive elements, it gets kinda tricky. So, just save those for last.
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at least when you memorize a reagent for an ochem reaction it is useful. You now know what this reagent does and can apply it to novel situations. What do you accomplish by memorizing element number 34..........absolutely nothing.
 
Sttebbs said:
yeah seriously. I never encountered anything in chem where I wasn't allowed to use a periodic table. And plus... over the course of the class you'll probably end up memorizing the important stuff anyway.

Some things DO need to be memorized, like ions (although 60 of them? hahaha) and I suppose a few flame colors/ion colors (I had to, but I don't remember if this was useful at all) as well as solubility rules... but memorizing the periodic table? There's a reason those things are hanging on the walls of chem lecture rooms.
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We did have to memorize ions - 75 question fill in the blank naming test. Write the formula for sulfuric acid or what is CuSO4, still like that. We had an unlimited number of times to take the test but we had to get every single one right before we got credit. It took me 8 tries because I'd always mess up on one or two. :boom:
 
I think knowing some of the major ions and there charges is definitely important, it goes a long way to help understand reactions, but there is absolutely no reason to memorize more than say 10 elements. The DAT and (I'm fairly sure) the MCAT give you periodic tables, so there's no reason at all you'd ever need to know what the atomic number of palladium is.

On another note, I DID memorize the Element Song for extra credit in my General Chemistry class! :D

"There's antimony, arsenic, aluminum, selenium,And hydrogen and oxygen and nitrogen and rhenium,..."
 
circulus vitios said:
We did have to memorize ions - 75 question fill in the blank naming test. Write the formula for sulfuric acid or what is CuSO4, still like that. We had an unlimited number of times to take the test but we had to get every single one right before we got credit. It took me 8 tries because I'd always mess up on one or two. :boom:
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Dang that sounds tough, getting them all right!
 
While I do recall having to memorize some ions and displacement reactions, definitely didn't memorize the table at all. Frankly, I see no reason why you need to, it didn't stop me from doing fine of the AP exam.
 
Future Doc1 said:
I'm taking AP Chemistry next year and the teacher gave us a summer assignment to do. Part of the assignment is to memorize the first 20 elements on the periodic table of elements. I just wanted to know if anybody knows any fun or rather simple way to memorize them before I try to do it the old fashion way.
Click to expand...

This sucks, all we have to do is read two books and right reviews on the books/insights.
 
Yah, well the teacher is kind of wierd--he's smart but sort of wierd and unsure about himself
He wrote three books so I think he's pretty sharp, but some of
his teaching methods are a little extreme.
 
Future Doc1 said:
Yah, well the teacher is kind of wierd--he's smart but sort of wierd and unsure about himself
He wrote three books so I think he's pretty sharp, but some of
his teaching methods are a little extreme.
Click to expand...
I was going to say that it is a complete waste requiring students to memorize the periodic table, but in his defense... the only elements important in medicine are within the first 20.

That said, if you ask most physicians what the atomic number of Phosphorus is you'll probably get a blank stare in return. :p
 
I had to memorize zero elements of the periodic table when I took AP. Granted, now I can probably remember a fair majority of the first 20 or 30 just through dealing with them in class and in lab, but that's a ridiculously pointless assignment.
 
terpskins99 said:
i was going to say that it is a complete waste requiring students to memorize the periodic table, but in his defense... The only elements important in medicine are within the first 20.

That said, if you ask most physicians what the atomic number of phosphorus is you'll probably get a blank stare in return. :p
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32
 
Bacchus said:
32
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Coming from a biochemistry major who took an elective course in inorganic chemistry (don't do it) along with a litany of other chemistry courses, I can say to you there is no point in this assignment and you will realize so when you get to college. If you go into chemistry or biochemistry you will memorize a lot of elements through sheer usage along with their atomic weights. 15.9994 for oxygen, 12.011 for carbon (that might be wrong), 28.98 or something close for sodium. You get the point.

6.02214X10^23
 
Future Doc1 said:
I'm taking AP Chemistry next year and the teacher gave us a summer assignment to do. Part of the assignment is to memorize the first 20 elements on the periodic table of elements. I just wanted to know if anybody knows any fun or rather simple way to memorize them before I try to do it the old fashion way.
Click to expand...

H. Helibeb C'Nofne Nam Gal Sips Clark Cask

Say that aloud about four times and you should have it. Cask gives you Scandium, which is 21. Oh well.
 
Terpskins99 said:
Uh no. The atomic number of Phosphorus is 15.
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Hehe, maybe he meant weight... though I don't have a periodic table sitting here so I can't check...

I'm taking GChem right now, we have to memorize ions and solubility charts and stuff, but not the Periodic Table. I did take Chemistry at the high school where we had to memorize certain facts and properties about the elements in their groups; but never just flat out memorize the table... that's kinda silly and useless unless you also memorize all of their atomic masses and numbers... in which case I don't envy your task.
 
CScull said:
Hehe, maybe he meant weight... though I don't have a periodic table sitting here so I can't check...
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Nope! Phosphorous's atomic weight is 30.973. Unless you're rounding to the nearest 2, that's not more than 31.
 
CScull said:
Hehe, maybe he meant weight... though I don't have a periodic table sitting here so I can't check...

I'm taking GChem right now, we have to memorize ions and solubility charts and stuff, but not the Periodic Table. I did take Chemistry at the high school where we had to memorize certain facts and properties about the elements in their groups; but never just flat out memorize the table... that's kinda silly and useless unless you also memorize all of their atomic masses and numbers... in which case I don't envy your task.
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We have to remember their symbol and atomic #. The atomic weights are
(rounded up) about double the number so, lol, it's like killing two birds with one stone
(not that I kill birds or anything).
 
Only the first 20 elements?

We had to memorize the first 89 elements for chemistry honors

I'm taking AP next year too, and we have to memorize all 60-something polyatomic ions and the molecular geometry shapes. We have a quiz on the first day back. D:
 
Vespertine said:
Only the first 20 elements?

We had to memorize the first 89 elements for chemistry honors

I'm taking AP next year too, and we have to memorize all 60-something polyatomic ions and the molecular geometry shapes. We have a quiz on the first day back. D:
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Read the rest of the thread, I have explained this.
 
Future Doc1 said:
We have to remember their symbol and atomic #. The atomic weights are
(rounded up) about double the number so, lol, it's like killing two birds with one stone
(not that I kill birds or anything).
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Rounded up? That's silly, what happens when you have a balance that measures to the hundreth of a gram and you can't use the information because you're only aloud to use two sig figs?
 
When I was in undergrad, we memorized the first couple rows to the tune of Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start The Fire".

"Hydrogen, Helium, lithium, berylium..."
"Boron, Carbon, Nitrogen, O."

And so on. Silly but it works.

I'd imagine that REM's "End of the World" would work well too.
 
CScull said:
Rounded up? That's silly, what happens when you have a balance that measures to the hundreth of a gram and you can't use the information because you're only aloud to use two sig figs?
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Thats not even fair.

now I can't do that.

:thumbdown:(
 
Well obviously... the atomic weight is an average of all the elements in their natural forms and isotopes... many are more commonly found in an isotope form so the atomic weight is often with more or less neutrons than protons.
 
CScull said:
Well obviously... the atomic weight is an average of all the elements in their natural forms and isotopes... many are more commonly found in an isotope form so the atomic weight is often with more or less neutrons than protons.
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Okay, Ms. All knowing chemistry Master

Lol, I'm kidding--I know I can't but when I use to do that for my Bio class,
it helped me remember better.

I remember stuff in a wierd way--

like the opposite of something helps me remember the original thing

hard to explain, but yeah :p
 
Haha, it's alright I just took a test on it last friday.
 
Terpskins99 said:
I was going to say that it is a complete waste requiring students to memorize the periodic table, but in his defense... the only elements important in medicine are within the first 20.

That said, if you ask most physicians what the atomic number of Phosphorus is you'll probably get a blank stare in return. :p
Click to expand...

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that iron, copper, zinc, technetium, iodine, cesium, and barium (to name a few) are ions fairly relevant to medicine.;)
 
In my high school chemistry classes, we always had the periodic table available. I hope I don't have to memorize any part of the table in college.
 
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