[header] How to read the periodic table [title] View the periodic table as starting at the top left and ending at the end of the last row, near the bottom right. [step] The table is structured from left to right in order of increasing atomic number. The atomic number is the number of protons in a single atom. 
[substeps] Not every row or column is complete. Although there may be breaks in the center, reading the table will continue from left to right.