Ionic Bonding Puzzle Activity
Name: _____________
When metals and non-metals chemically react, the atoms will tend to form ions or
charged atoms. Ions form because electrons are either gained or lost. Metals will
generally form cations or positive ions, since they tend to donate electrons Nonmetals will form anions or negative ions, since they tend to accept electrons.
Activity
In this activity you will work with a partner you will create models of ionic compounds
and observe the chemical formula of the binary molecules you have created.
Ionic Bonding Puzzle Activity Notes
Before completing the activity, read through pages 1-3 with your partner and complete
as directed. Get a teacher to initial your work then you can move on to the activity.
Fill in the blanks below with these words:
lose, gain, cations, anions
Metals ___________ electrons and become positive ions or ______________.
Non-metals __________ electrons and become negative ions or _____________.
The Model
neutral atom
ions
Lose 1 e-
Charge:
METAL
Gain 1 e-
Charge:
NON-METAL
Similarly, a +2 cation would
look this this:
Draw a –2 anion:
1
Bonding and Predicting Chemical Formulas
The subscripts show the ratio of each atom in the compound.
Al2O3
There are 2 Aluminum
ions and 3 oxygen ions
Fill in the blanks below with these words:
neutral, formula, ions, number, balance, charge
For an ionic bond, the ________ balance the overall _____________.
The _____________ of ions changes to make the compound _____________. The
chemical ___________ shows how many of each ion are needed to _____________
the charge and make the compound neutral.
At what ratio will the +1 and -1 ions combine to balance the charge?
RATIO
1:1
+
Charge: +1
Charge: -1
At what ratio will the +2 and -1 ions combine to balance the charge?
(Draw your own picture following the model to represent this)
2
Naming
When naming Type I ions (groups 1, 2, 13-18), the name of the cation stays the same.
The name of the anion changes by adding an –ide to the end.
For example, bromine changes to bromide, oxygen changes to oxide
So, KBr = potassium bromide; MgO2 = Magnesium Oxide
Type II ions are transition metals. Locate the puzzle pieces that have transition metals
on them and answer the following questions:
What does charge tell you for a Type II ion?
When naming ionic compounds that include Type II ions, you must include a Roman
Numeral in the name to indicate the charge on that particular cation.
Let’s review the Roman Numerals (fill in the rest of the blanks):
I: ____1___ II: _______ III: _______ IV: ______
V: _______
For example, a cation of copper could be either Cu+1 & Cu+2 , which would be called
Copper (I) or Copper (II)
So, when combined with oxygen,
(Cu+1) Cu2O = copper (I) oxide
(Cu+2) CuO = copper (II) oxide
Try these for practice, then go through each of your construction paper ionic bonds
and add the correct name for each ionic compound.
Fe2S3 = __________________________ AgO = __________________________
**Before going on to the next section, show me your work. I will
give you two pages of puzzle pieces which you will need to cut
out BEFORE you do the activity. Then READ THE DIRECTIONS at
the top of page 4. **
3
Teacher Initials
DIRECTIONS:
Using your ionic bonding puzzle pieces you have already cut out, create each bond
listed on the following pages. As you “form” each bond, glue it down on a piece of construction paper and LABEL it with the problem number and correct chemical formula.
Remember: the shape of the piece for each ion shows you the number of electrons it
will gain or lose to form a bond.
1. Example: potassium and chlorine (create the bond and glue it down)
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
potassium
K+1
Cation
1
KCl
chlorine
Cl-1
anion
1
(always list
cation first)
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
2. potassium and bromine
Ion name
Ion Symbol
3. potassium and oxygen
Ion name
Ion Symbol
4. magnesium and bromine
Ion name
Ion Symbol
4
5. aluminum and nitrogen:
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
6. aluminum and oxygen:
Ion name
Ion Symbol
7 and 8. Make two compounds of iron (II and III) and oxygen. (Fe+2 and Fe+3)
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Fe+2
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Fe+3
5
9 and 10. Make two compounds of copper (I and II) and sulfur.
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
11 and 12. Make two compounds of lead (IV and II) and oxygen.
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
Ion name
Ion Symbol
Anion/Cation
How many?
Chemical
Formula
6