Water for life

2.5 What is water made of?

2.6 Models of a water molecule

2.6.1 (a) Using Lego as a model

In this kind of building set, there are a limited number of types of block and each block has a particular shape. Just as importantly, each one has a particular way in which it can link to other blocks because of the way the studs are arranged.

The blocks can help you see how the atoms link in a molecule of water. Look at Figure 7 where the red brick represents an oxygen atom and the white bricks represent hydrogen atoms. There are only two locations where the hydrogen atoms can join the oxygen atom - at the top and bottom - as shown in Figure 7.

Figure 7
Figure 7 A Lego representation of a water molecule where the red brick represents an oxygen atom which is sandwiched between the two white bricks, each representing a hydrogen atom
Figure 7