WE ALL “MATTER”
SETTING:
Periodic Intermediate School
CHARACTERS:
Mr. Mendeleev (science teacher)
Oxygen Molecule (O2)
Nitrogen Molecule (N2)
Water (H2O)
Iron Oxide (Fe2O3)
Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3)
Narrator
NARRATOR: It was the first day of school at Periodic Intermediate School.
Everyone was nervous, especially Oxygen molecule.
OXYGEN MOLECULE: Hey Nitrogen Molecule! I haven’t seen you since last
year! How are you?
NITROGEN MOLECULE: I’m okay. You can call me N2 for short.
OXYGEN MOLECULE: You can call me O2 for short! What’s wrong?
NITROGEN MOLECULE: I’m a little nervous. You and I look different
compared to everyone else here.
OXYGEN MOLECULE: I was nervous too, but now that you’re here, I feel
better. If we stick together, we won’t feel so different! Let’s go to class!
NITROGEN MOLECULE: Yeah! I heard Mr. Mendeleev is a great teacher!
NARRATOR: O2 and N2 walk into science class, only to see everyone at their
desks staring at them. They hear some snickers.
MR. MENDELEEV: So, you see kids, I have organized all of the elements into
a handy dandy table. I call it the periodic table…
NARRATOR: Iron Oxide whispers to Calcium Carbonate.
IRON OXIDE: This is so boring. Who cares about a periodic table? Why do
we have to learn this?
CALCIUM CARBONATE: Yeah, I know. Does he really think that the world
needs a periodic table? Does he really think that people are going to use it to
create new materials? That was a really big waste of his time!
MR. MENDELEEV: …and it’s really cool because I arranged the elements
according to their mass AND their properties, such as metals, nonmetals…
NARRATOR: After class is dismissed, everyone goes outside for recess.
IRON OXIDE: Haha! Look at O2 and N2! They only have one type of element!
They’re so not cool!
CALCIUM CARBONATE: Yeah! You can only be cool if you’re made of more
than one element!
NARRATOR: O2 and N2 just ignore them. Water walks up to the four of
them.
WATER: Hey, you shouldn’t bully O2 and N2! They look different, but it’s
what’s inside that counts!
IRON OXIDE: Don’t get all wimpy on us, Water! I am popular because I am
made of iron and oxygen. And you are popular because you are made of
hydrogen and oxygen. Calcium Carbonate is the most popular because he is
made of calcium, carbon, AND oxygen! We are compounds, and they are not!
WATER: I know, but who cares?
CALCIUM CARBONATE: We all care! If you are not compound, you are a
loser! Molecules are losers! Losers! Losers!
WATER: But aren’t we all the same on the inside?
NITROGEN MOLECULE: My parents always taught me that we’re all molecules
on the inside!
OXYGEN MOLECULE: Yeah! Doesn’t the Constitution say that “All molecules
are created equal”?
NARRATOR: The bell rings and everyone goes into Mr. Mendeleev’s class.
MR. MENDELEEV: Why does everyone look upset? Are you feeling peer
pressure? Is the heat, electricity, or light getting to you?
OXYGEN MOLECULE: No! But Nitrogen Molecule and I have been getting
picked on for not being compounds. They say we’re not good enough! I can’t
help the fact that nature made me like this! I am made of one type of
element…I can’t change that!
MR. MENDELEEV: You all should be ashamed of yourselves! Don’t you realize
that you are all made of the same “stuff”? You are all molecules, and some
of you are also compounds. But that doesn’t make compounds better. You are
all made of atoms, and you are all made of elements. Look inside your nucleus
and see the truth! We are all matter! And we all “matter”!
NARRATOR: And from that realization, all molecules and compounds got along
better at Periodic Intermediate School. The only problem they had was global
warming. The heat made the molecules and compounds break down into their
elements. This was a scary change for the compounds! Water broke down into
oxygen and hydrogen and was feeling very gassy instead of his usual watery
self. Iron Oxide broke down into iron and oxygen and was feeling very heavy
and gassy instead of his usual rusty self. Calcium Carbonate had it the worst!
He broke down into calcium, carbon, AND oxygen and was not feeling like his
usual chalky self. But Oxygen Molecule and Nitrogen Molecule felt great!
They didn’t feel any differently! I guess what goes around, comes around!