Protons are the defining characteristic of an element's atom; if you change the number of protons, you change what sort of element it is (for example, gold has 79 protons, but mercury has 80). Protons are clumped together in the middle of the atom (known as the "nucleus"). They have a positive charge, and they are made up of an elementary particle called quarks. Protons were originally discovered by Ernest Rutherford in 1909.
Neutrons are electrically neutral particles that help give an atom its mass. Like protons, neutrons are found in the nucleus of an atom, and they are made up of quarks. An atom that differs in the amount of neutrons from the stable version (which is when protons are equal to the number of neutrons) is called an "isotope." Neutrons were discovered by James Chadwick in 1932.
Electrons are a particles in the atom with a negative charge. Unlike protons and neutrons, electrons are not found in the nucleus, but they instead orbit around the nucleus. Atoms of the same element may differ in the amount of electrons that they have, which can give the atoms a charge; atoms in this state are known as "ions." Negatively charged ions easily bond with positively ions, and this forms compounds. Electrons were originally discovered by J. J. Thomson at the end of the 19th century.
An ion is a negatively or positively charged version of an atom; an atom gains its charge when it gains or loses electron, and thus there is an imbalance in the electrons and protons (if there are more electrons than protons, it is negatively charged; if there are more protons than electrons, it is positively charged). Static is caused when the atoms have been destabilized due to an exterior cause, such as an extreme change in heat or pressure, and thus there is a buildup of ions. Static will sit on the object until it reacts with another object, at which point the static is discharged and neutralized. If a large number of ions are built up, they can be felt by human beings, often in the form of a shock.