JoinTried and True: The living periodic table
To help make the abstract world of chemistry more concrete to your middle-school students, have them create a living periodic table that can be displayed in the classroom or hallway. This display includes information about the elements arranged in the traditional periodic table format, but also includes visual real-world representations of the elements chosen by students. For example, an inflated balloon represents helium, a penny symbolizes copper, and a tube of toothpaste denotes fluoride.