Idon’t understand how to find these

8 shared electrons

Explanation:

When you are looking for the number of shared electrons via the equation:

S = N-A

Where:

S = means the shared electrons

N = Needed electrons

A = available electrons

"Needed electrons" means how many electrons does it need to have a noble gas configuration, in this case, to complete the octet rule.

"Available electrons" means how many valence electrons is actually available considering the compound or the elements involved in the compound.

To get the needed electrons, treat the elements involved separately.  We have a silicon (Si) atom and 4 chlorine (chlorine) atoms in this compound. Let's list it down first:

              Number of atoms

Si                      1

Cl                     4

Next step is to determine how many electrons should it have in its outer shell to achieve the octet rule. Both of them in this case would be 8. Multiply that by the number of atoms and add up the needed electrons to determine how many you will need for this particular compound.

             Number of atoms             Electrons to achieve Octet       Needed

Si                      1                      x                         8                           =       8

Cl                     4                      x                         8                           =     32

                                                                     TOTAL:                              40

This is now our N. N = 40 electrons

Next step is to determine how many we actually have. Your clue in determining how many valence electrons the atom has is the group. Silicon is in Group 4A, this means it has 4 valence electrons. Chlorine is in Group7A, so ths means it has 7 valence electrons.

So first we write the number of atoms again, then in the next column, you write down the actual number of valence electrons and multiply them. Sum it up to see how many electrons available  in this particular compound.

             Number of atoms             Valence electrons                 Available

Si                      1                      x                         4                           =      4

Cl                     4                      x                         7                          =     28

                                                                     TOTAL:                              32

This is now our A. A = 32 electrons

Now we apply this:

S = N - A

N = 40 electrons

A =  32 electrons

S = 40 - 32 = 8

Number of shared electrons is 8