Skip to Content Go to sign in Skip to Primary Navigation Skip to Secondary Navigation Skip to Page Navigation Skip to Header Navigation Skip to Footer Navigation Read more about accessability options and our navigation

Physics Classroom is making strides to make our site accessible to everyone. Our site contains 6 navigation areas. The Primary, Secondary, and Page Level navigations have a screen reader version of their nav structure that allows using the left and right keys to navigate sibling navigation items, and up or down keys to navigate parent or child navigation items. The others can be navigated using tabs. The Primary Navigation handles the first 2 levels of site pages. The Secondary (which is not always available) handles the 3rd and 4th level of structure. The Page level navigation allows you to navigate the current page's headings quickly. The Header Navigation contains the Light/Dark Mode toggle, Search, Notifications and account login. The Breadcrumb Navigation contains the breadcrumb of the current page. If the current page has a breadcrumb, you can get to it by skipping to the content and tabbing in reverse (shift plus tab). The Footer Navigation contains links such as Privacy, Contact, about and terms. Some resources contain an Audio Player that can be activated by holding down the T key for 3 seconds, and then using K to pause and resume. While not every area of Physics Classroom is usable purely from keyboard and screen reader, we are committed to continue work on making this possible. If you have questions or need additional help, please use this link to contact us.

Return to screen reader navigation
Home Concept Builders Chemical Bonding and Molecular Shape Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion Theory Help Help 1

Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion Theory - Questions 1 Help

The shape of a molecule can be predicted from the Lewis electron dot diagram. By inspecting the number of groups of electrons AND the number of atoms that surround the central atom of the molecule, the shape of the molecule can be predicted.

There are three versions of questions in this Question Group. Each version is very similar the others. They only differ in terms of the order in which the molecular formulas are given. Here is one of the versions:
 

Version 1:
One of these molecules has a shape that is not like the others. Which one doesn't belong? Begin by identifying the correct Lewis electron dot structure. Then identify the one structure that leads to a molecular shape that is different than the other two.

CO2
H2O
SCl2

To be successful on this question, you must complete two tasks. First determine the correct Lewis electron dot diagram. And second, determine the molecular shape of the three molecules. Pick as an answer the molecule that has a shape that is different than the other two.

This page does not discuss the Lewis electron dot diagrams. You will find help with that on a separate page. View Lewis Electron Dot Diagrams page.

The graphics below represents our help with molecular shape. The model used to predict the shape of molecules is known as the Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion Theory. The graphics describe this theory and give three sample analyses. The table that follows the three analyses is very important. Study the table and use it to help you answer this question.







Concept Builder Teacher Notes Directions