Electricity

In this hands-on activity, students explore the electrical force that takes place between two objects. Each student builds an electroscope and uses the device to draw conclusions about objects' charge intensity.

During this activity, students build a simple series circuit and discover the properties associated with series circuits.

In this hands-on activity, students build parallel circuits, exploring how they function and their unique features.

Students use balloons to perform several simple experiments to explore static electricity and charge polarization.

Students learn that charge movement through a circuit depends on the resistance and arrangement of the circuit components. In one associated hands-on activity, students build and investigate the characteristics of series circuits. In another activity, students design and build flashlights.

Students observe and discuss a simple balloon model of an electrostatic precipitator to better understand how this pollutant recovery method functions in cleaning industrial air pollution.

In this hands-on activity, students use batteries, wires, small light bulbs and light bulb holders to learn the difference between an open circuit and a closed circuit, and understand that electric current only occurs in a closed circuit.

Student groups make simple conductivity testers each using a battery and light bulb. They learn the difference between conductors and insulators of electrical energy as they test a variety of materials for their ability to conduct electricity.

Student teams investigate the properties of electromagnets. They create their own small electromagnets and experiment with ways to change their strength to pick up more paperclips. Students learn about ways that engineers use electromagnets in everyday applications.

Students build electromagnets and use them to pick up objects.

Students design and build a model city powered by the sun! They learn about the benefits of solar power, and how architectural and building engineers integrate photovoltaic panels into the design of buildings.

Students are introduced to the fundamental concepts of electricity. They address questions such as "How is electricity generated?" and "How is it used in every-day life?" Illustrative examples of circuit diagrams are used to help explain how electricity flows.

Students learn about current electricity and necessary conditions for the existence of an electric current. Students construct a simple electric circuit and a galvanic cell to help them understand voltage, current and resistance.

Students are introduced to the idea of electrical energy. They learn about the relationships between charge, voltage, current and resistance. In the associated activities, students learn how a circuit works and test materials to see if they conduct electricity.

Students gain an understanding of the difference between electrical conductors and insulators, and experience recognizing a conductor by its material properties. In a hands-on activity, students build a conductivity tester to determine whether different objects are conductors or insulators.

This lesson introduces electricity, batteries and motors using a LEGO® MINDSTORMS robot. The associated activity guides students to build a simple LEGO set-up and see the practical implementation of the concepts discussed.

To better understand electricity, students investigate the properties of materials based on their ability to dispel static electricity. . Students learn to identify materials that hold static charge as insulators and materials that dispel charge as conductors. The class applies the results from thei...

In this hands-on activity, students build flashlights and design their own operating series circuit flashlights.

This lesson introduces the concept of electricity by asking students to imagine what their life would be like without electricity. Students learn that electrons can move between atoms, leaving atoms in a charged state.

Students make design decisions about controlling LEDs in a light-up, e-textile circuit, plush toy project made using LilyPad ProtoSnap components and conductive thread. They follow instructions to assemble a product while applying their own creativity to customize it. In this sewable electronics pro...

Students learn about engineering applications in artistic venues by designing and creating eye masks that each contain three LEDs. They explore parallel circuits with their LEDs, and sew with conductive thread to create light-up displays on their masks, gaining hands-on experience in using engineeri...

In this hands-on activity, students construct a simple switch and determine what objects and what types of materials can be used to close a switch in a circuit and light a light bulb.

Students learn the functions of pre-programmed microcontroller units such as the LilyMini ProtoSnap as they use them to create light-up pennants with LED components. Students design their own felt pennants and sew on circuit components using conductive thread.

This activity helps students understand how a motor in a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot uses electricity produced by the battery to move a robot to do useful work in the form of throwing a ball.

Students explore the composition and practical application of parallel circuitry, compared to series circuitry. Students design and build parallel circuits and investigate their characteristics, and apply Ohm's law.

Students use potatoes to light an LED clock or light bulb as they learn how a battery works in a simple circuit. They also learn how chemical energy changes to electrical energy and get a better understanding of current, voltage and resistance concepts.

Students read and evaluate descriptions of how people live "off the grid" using solar power and come to understand better the degree to which that lifestyle is or is not truly independent of technological, economic and cultural infrastructure and resources. In the process, students develop a deeper ...

Students act as power engineers by specifying the power plants to build for a community. They are given a budget, an expected power demand from the community, and different power plant options with corresponding environmental effects.

This lesson provides students with an overview of the electric power industry in the United States. Students also become familiar with the environmental impacts associated with a variety of energy sources.

Students explore the static electricity through hands-on activities. They attract O-shaped cereal pieces to charged combs and watch the cereal jump away when it touches the comb. They also observe Styrofoam pellets pulling towards a charged comb, then leaping back to the table.

Students come to understand static electricity by learning about the nature of electric charge, and different methods for charging objects. In a hands-on activity, students induce an electrical charge on various objects, and experiment with electrical repulsion and attraction.

The class forms a "presidential task force" for a week, empowered by the president to find answers and make recommendations concerning the future of the national power grid. Task force members conduct daily debriefings with the research team and prepare a report and presentation of findings for the ...

Students engage in an interactive "hot potato" demonstration to gain an appreciation for the flow of electrons through a circuit. Students role play the different parts of a simple circuit and send small items representing electrons (paper or candy pieces) through the circuit.

Students build their own two-cell batteries. They also determine which electrolyte solution is best suited for making batteries.

Students learn about electrical connections, how they work and their pervasiveness in our world. They learn the Morse code rules and translate a few phrases into Morse code. Specifically, they learn about a wireless connection type known as Bluetooth that can be used to control LEGO robots remotely ...

Students are introduced to the concept of electricity by identifying it as an unseen, but pervasive and important presence in their lives. They compare conductors and insulators based on their capabilities for electron flow. Then water and electrical systems are compared as an analogy to electrical ...

Students build their own simple conductivity tester and explore whether given solid materials and solutions of liquids are good conductors of electricity.

Students build conductivity testers and test materials to see if they are good conductors of electricity.

Students gain a basic understanding of electrical circuits. They build wire circuits and pass paperclips through the mazes, trying not to touch the wires.

This lab demonstrates Ohm's law as students set up simple circuits each composed of a battery, lamp and resistor. Students calculate the current flowing through the circuits they create by solving linear equations.

Student groups create working radios by soldering circuit components supplied from AM radio kits. By carrying out this activity in conjunction with its associated lesson concerning circuits and how AM radios work, students are able to identify each circuit component they are soldering, as well as ho...

In an engaging E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial movie context, teams watch online movie clips and solve fun puzzles to discover clues to unlock padlocks on a box to answer the question: E.T. phone home—fact or fiction? They learn that renewable solar energy powers satellites and space communication.

Students teams each use a bar magnet, sheet of paper and iron shavings to reveal the field lines as they travel around a magnet. They see that the current flowing through a wire produces a magnetic field around the wire and that this magnetic field induced by electricity is no different than that pr...

Students explore the concept of current in electrical circuits, with current defined as the flow of electrons. Then photovoltaic (PV) cell properties are introduced.

Students are given a history of electricity and its development into the modern age—an energy lifeline upon which our society so depends. A range of methods of electrical power generation are introduced—turbines, hydroelectric, steam, fuel cells, solar power and wind power—along with further discuss...

Students complete three different activities to evaluate the energy consumption in a household and explore potential ways to reduce that consumption. The focus is on conservation and energy efficient electrical devices and appliances. The lesson reinforces the relationship between power and energy a...

Students are introduced to the correct technical vocabulary for lighting, which is different than layperson's terms. They learn about lamp (light bulb) technology and how to identify the various types of lighting in their spaces. They are also introduced to lighting controls as a means for saving en...

Students learn what goes on inside video game controllers by building their own, which shows them the use of simple circuits and switches. Inside a shoebox, they wire up a joystick and two arcade push buttons to a MaKey MaKey and a laptop by following a provided hole-cutting template and wiring sche...

Working in groups, students look at three different villages in various parts of Africa and design economically viable engineering solutions to answer the energy needs of the off-the-grid small towns, given limited budgets. Each village has different nearby resources, both renewable and nonrenewable...

Students build a saltwater circuit, which is an electrical circuit that uses saltwater as part of the circuit. Students investigate the conductivity of saltwater, and develop an understanding of how the amount of salt in a solution impacts how much electrical current flows through the circuit.

Students learn how photovoltaics enable us to transform renewable solar energy into electricity both on Earth and in space. Watching a clip from “The Martian” movie shows the importance of PV technologies in space exploration. Two student journaling sheets are provided.

Students are briefly introduced to Maxwell's equations and their significance to phenomena associated with electricity and magnetism. Basic concepts such as current, electricity and field lines are covered and reinforced. Through multiple topics and activities, students see how electricity and magne...

Students are introduced to the role of electricity and magnetism as they build speakers. They also explore the properties of magnets, create electromagnets, and determine the directions of magnetic fields.

Students learn about electricity and magnetism by building speakers.

Student groups construct simple conductivity probes and then integrate them into two different circuits to test the probe behavior in solutions of varying conductivity (salt water, sugar water, distilled water, tap water).

Students build solar USB chargers using solar panels, rechargeable batteries, and other components.

Students learn how to build simple piezoelectric generators to power LEDs. To do this, they incorporate into a circuit a piezoelectric element that converts movements they make (mechanical energy) into electrical energy, which is stored in a capacitor (short-term battery). Once enough energy is stor...

Students are introduced to several key concepts of electronic circuits. They learn about some of the physics behind circuits, the key components in a circuit and their pervasiveness in our homes and everyday lives.

Students’ background understanding of electricity and circuit-building is reinforced as they create wearable, light-up e-textile pins. Using fabric, LED lights, conductive thread (made of stainless steel) and small battery packs, students design and fabricate their own unique light-up pins.

Students investigate circuits and their components by building a basic thermostat. They learn why key parts are necessary for the circuit to function, and alter the circuit to optimize the thermostat temperature range. They also gain an awareness of how electrical engineers design circuits for the c...

Through this activity, students come to understand the environmental design considerations required when generating electricity. Students research and evaluate the electricity needs of their community, the available local resources for generating electricity, and the impact of using those resources....

Students explore the basics of DC circuits, analyzing the light from light bulbs when connected in series and parallel circuits. Students measure and see the effect of power dissipation from the light bulbs.

Students act as engineers to apply what they know about how circuits work in electrical/motorized devices to design their own battery-operated model motor vehicles with specific parameters. They calculate the work done by the vehicles and the power produced by their motor systems.

Students explore electromagnetism and engineering concepts using optimization techniques to design an efficient magnetic launcher. They are introduced to Faraday's law and Lenz's law to explain the physics behind the launcher.

Students learn how to find the maximum power point (MPP) of a photovoltaic (PV) panel in order to optimize its efficiency at creating solar power. They also learn about real-world applications and technologies that use this technique, as well as Ohm's law and the power equation, which govern a PV pa...

Students learn and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of renewable and non-renewable energy sources. They also learn about our nation's electric power grid and what it means for a residential home to be "off the grid."

In this extension to the Ohm's Law I activity, students observe just how much time it takes to use up the "juice" in a battery, and if it is better to use batteries in series or parallel.

Students experiment to increase the intensity of a light bulb by testing batteries in series and parallel circuits. They learn about Ohm's law, power, parallel and series circuits, and ways to measure voltage and current.

Create a sure-to-impress flashing birthday card or design a light-up Christmas card—all with paper circuits! In this activity, students are guided through the process to create simple paper circuitry using only copper tape, a coin cell battery, a light-emitting diode (LED) and small electronic compo...

Students learn about a fascinating electromechanical coupling called piezoelectricity that is being employed and researched around the world for varied purposes, often for creative energy harvesting methods. Students explore the use of a piezoelectric generator.

Students examine how the power output of a photovoltaic (PV) solar panel is affected by temperature changes. Using a 100-watt lamp and a small PV panel connected to a digital multimeter, teams vary the temperature of the panel and record the resulting voltage output.

Students learn how engineers design devices that use water to generate electricity by building model water turbines and measuring the resulting current produced in a motor. Student teams work through the engineering design process to build the turbines, analyze the performance of their turbines and ...

For a hypothetical solar farm design problem, students are given a solar cost-benefit analysis sheet to complete within groups. They weigh the expense and benefits of two types of solar panels (with different costs, wattage outputs and land impacts), consider the cost of using the acreage for solar ...

Students use conductivity meters to measure various salt and water solutions, as indicated by the number of LEDs (light emitting diodes) that illuminate on the meter. Students create calibration curves using known amounts of table salt dissolved in water and their corresponding conductivity readings...