APA citation style: Historic American Buildings Survey, C. & Benison, G. (1933) Oakland Plantation, Mount Pleasant, Charleston County, SC. Documentation Compiled After. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sc0292/.
There are 18 groups (columns) in the periodic table. Group 1 (also known as the alkali metals) is the column on the far left of the table. Elements in the same group have similar, but not identical characteristics. This is because they all have the same number of electrons in their outermost shell.
The Periodic table can also be divided into several families of elements each having similar properties. For our purposes we will define the following ten families: Alkali metals. The alkali metals, found in group 1 of the periodic table, are highly reactive metals that do not occur freely in nature. These metals have only one electron in their outer shell. Therefore, they are ready to lose that one electron in ionic bonding with other elements. As with all metals, the alkali metals are malleable, ductile, and are good conductors of heat and electricity. The alkali metals are softer than most other metals.