Side Note

I provided an in depth description of the history of Atomic Theory but think that it is important to include a short post on how atomic structure is connected to bonding. The Bohr diagram that I drew in my last post shows the arrangement of subatomic particles in atoms. The following are some key vocabulary that it is important to understand and use when discussing Atomic Theory:

Stable Octet = A energy shell that is full
Valence Shell = The outermost energy shell containing electrons
Valence Electrons = The electrons in the valence shell (these electrons are involved in bonding)
* When an atom forms a compound it acquires a full valence shell and becomes stable.

There are two basic types of compounds, ionic and covalent.

Ionic Compounds:
Atoms become electrically charged particles known as ions when they lose or gain electrons during bonding. An iconic compound consists of a positive ion and a negative ion. In ionic bonding at least one electron transfers from each atom of the metal ion to each atom of the non-metal ion. The metal ions lose their electrons and become positively charged ions called cations. Non-metal ions gain electrons becoming negatively charged ions called anions. Cl becomes an anion as it gains one electron becoming Cl 1-.

Covalent Compounds:
Only two non-metal atoms can bond covalently. In covalent bonding the atoms of two non-metals share electrons. Unpaired electrons from each atoms will pair together as a bonding pair creating a covalent bond.

Resources:

The following is a PDF of an exert from a textbook.

Atomic Theory and Bonding