if I was asked to write a balance equation how do I know which one should be on the right side and which one on the left for example we were doing an experiment in class at the high temperatures used in the experiment, magnesium reacts with nitrogen in the air how do I write the balance equation for this reaction. Thank You!

Thank you for posting your question to the Ask Me Help Desk.

Think of it this way...

We know that the equation will consist of the reactants and the products.

You stated in your question...


magnesium reacts with nitrogen in the air

Now we know what the reactants are.

Using the periodic table, can you determine what the product might be in a reaction between these two things?


how do I know which one should be on the right side and which one on the left

I always thought of it this way using the letter "P"

The arrow always Points to the Products.

This should be a nice reminder to last you quite some time. You will eventually learn some other pieces to that concept.

Let me know what you come up with.