Does Beginning Chemistry Education Early Matter?
At 3DPT Enterprises, LLC we think so. That’s why we’re excited to introduce a novel Three Dimensional Periodic Table of the Elements designed specifically as a teaching and learning tool. Our mission is to help educators facilitate a fun and engaging learning environment for their students to learn the essential building blocks of chemistry – the Periodic Table. We believe that when students are immersed in hands-on activities and games, they have more fun and look for ways to apply their knowledge to everything around them in the real world.
The Challenge for Young Learners
One challenge with the conventional arrangement of the Periodic Table of the Elements is that it is not continuous. It breaks when a particular Period becomes full to the right of the Table and then begins a new Period by returning to the left of the Periodic Table to begin a new row. This process is repeated for the seven Periods. Another distraction with this flat, rectangular arrangement is that it is interrupted in two places in Periods 6 and 7 in order to accommodate the Inner Transition Elements-the Lanthanides and the Actinides, respectively.
An Effective Solution
Besides being very aesthetically pleasant to the eyes, the patented Three Dimensional Periodic Table of the Elements (3DPT) addresses these problems head on. Following are the highlights of the advantages of the 3DPT model over the traditional model:
- The 3DPT is continuous and unidirectional in its design
- The various Blocks of elements are readily identifiable through a color scheme
- The Inner Transition Elements are placed in their natural sequence
- It represents hands-on learning that is a hallmark of science education
- It appeals to students at an earlier age thus giving them a head start at becoming scientists
- It can be a basis for curriculum reform in teaching chemistry
The 3DPT is a hands-on teaching/learning tool that can facilitate understanding the basics of the chemical elements in particular, and stimulate interest in science, in general. This device can be used by students and their instructors from elementary school through college/university. At the early developmental stages such a manipulative can becomes a powerful tool for fostering learning the chemistry “alphabet.” The 3DPT has the potential for helping to stimulate added interest in STEM disciplines from an early age.