Block (periodic table) the s-block, with its outer (and only) electrons in the 1s atomic orbital, although its chemical properties are more similar to the p-block noble gases due to its full shell. In addition to the blocks listed in this table, there is a hypothetical g-block which is not pictured here. The g-block elements can be seen in the expanded extended periodic table. Lanthanum and actinium are placed under scandium and yttrium to reflect their status as d-block elements, as they have no electrons in the 4f and 5f orbitals, respectively, while lutetium and lawrencium do. The s-block is on the left
Block (periodic table) form compounds. The first period elements in this block, however, are nonmetals. Hydrogen is highly chemically reactive, like the other s-block elements, but helium is a virtually unreactive noble gas. S-block elements are unified by the fact that their valence electrons (outermost electrons) are in the s orbital. The s-orbital is a single spherical cloud which can contain only one pair of electrons; hence, the s-block consists of only two columns in the periodic table. Elements in column 1, with a single s-orbital valence electron, are the most reactive of the block. Elements in the second column have two s-orbital