Drawing Lewis Structures

[Shannon Asay 1C]

What are some general rules for drawing Lewis structures?

[Fiona Latifi 1A]

Generally, you would want to place the atom with the lowest electronegativity in the center of your lewis structure. Hydrogen can never be the central atom. To start your diagram, you should count the number of valence electrons for each atom so that you can determine how many electrons you need in total. Also, some compounds have multiple possible structures. The blend of these structures contributes to the resonance structure of the compound.

[Sjeffrey_1C]

Generally, if there is a singular of one element and multiple of another, the singular one will go in the middle. For example, CCl4, NF3, H2O, etc.

[alexfwang3g]

Put the least electronegative element in the middle and the remaining elements around it. Then, count the total valence electrons and proceed accordingly.

[sarahsalama2E]

Place the least electronegative element in the middle of the lewis structure. Also the single available element is in the middle of the structure.