Central Atoms with more than four bounds and lone pairs on central atom. [ENDORSED]

[Mike Vinci 2B]

What's going on Chemistry Community. After looking over 3.63 for homework earlier, the question asked to write the lewis structure for a.)SF6 , B.)XeF2, c.) ASF6[-],and d.) TeCl4. I don't think I'm struggling with drawing the structure. After reviewing Lew structures for the past few years (high school chem. and UCLA chem.), I have a general understanding of how the shape of the molecule is based on the Lewis structure. However, I'm still struggling on understanding the WHY in building structures such as SF6. To be more precise, why can an atom like SF6 have 6 bonding pairs of electrons to a single central atom? I understand from class the rule about being able to move extra electrons to a d-orbital that makes the atom stable enough to have the 6 bonding electron pairs, but I still feel the need to hear someone elses opinion on the topic. Any reasoning helps!

[Chem_Mod]

Correct, elements on row 3 or greater can form bonds using electrons in their d-orbitals. The d-electrons can be incorporated into hybrid orbitals. In the case of TeCl₄, hybrid orbitals are formed with one s, three p, and one empty 5d orbital where a promoted electron resides to form a series of 5 sp³d hybrid orbitals for bonding.