This paper describes a first-year general chemistry laboratory that uses NMR spectroscopy and model building to emphasize molecular shape and structure. It is appropriate for either a traditional or an atoms-first curriculum. Students learn the basis of structure and the use of NMR data through a cooperative learning hands-on laboratory experience, and work in groups to assign names and structures to unknown compounds. This laboratory can be successfully run at a number of experimental levels, from students preparing their own NMR samples for analysis to running this as a dry laboratory with spectra provided by the instructor.