Reading Your Electric Meter

A Math Activity

If you have access to the electric meter in your home or building, you can read the meter to see how much electricity is being used each day. (Most meters have 5 dials.)

Steps:

• Record the readings at a specific time of day by recording the numbers displayed on the dials.
• The next day, at the same time, record the numbers displayed on the dials.
• Subtract yesterday's reading from today's reading and you can get an idea of how much energy (kilowatt hours) is used in one day.
• Have the children continue with their readings for a few days. Then they can put the data in a chart or create a graph of the data.  
• Younger students can calculate the amount of electricity used in 3 days or 7 days, etc. Older students can also find the average amount of electricity used per day.

Electricity Venn Diagrams

English Language Arts and Science

After the children have learned some facts about both Static and Current Electricity and Series and Parallel Circuits they can create Graphic Organizers to compare and contrast. They can use a Venn Diagram or other graphic organizer to list their facts.

In the center (overlapping parts of the circles) list how the things are alike and use the outer parts of the circles for listing how the things are different.

After they complete the graphic organizers, older students can write essays comparing the two forms of energy or the two circuits with the information in their Venn Diagrams or other graphic organizers.

You can visit Learning Workroom's website for a FREE Venn Diagram Worksheet that you can download and print.

Click here: Learning Workroom Website

Go to: Free Worksheets

Creating a Series Circuit

A series circuit has only one path for electricity to flow The bulbs are part of the circuit. They are connected one after another. The charges flow from the source (the battery), through the wires and each bulb then back to the source. If there is a switch, electricity also flows through the switch. If one bulb is broken, missing, or loose, then all the bulbs will not light.

Materials Needed

• Safety glasses and gloves
• D cell battery (1 or 2)
• Wide elastic(s) or battery holder(s)
• 3-4 insulated wires 
• 2 bulbs
• 2 bulb holders
• switch and extra wire (optional)
• extra bulbs, bulb holders, and wires (optional)

With adult supervision, have each students put on a pair of safety glasses and safety gloves and create a series circuit. Remember the circuit needs to be one complete loop.  Before making the circuit, have them PREDICT what will happen to the other bulb(s) if one bulb goes out.

After creating the series circuit with 2 or more bulbs, they should carefully loosen or remove 1 bulb and OBSERVE what  happens to the other bulb(s). Was their prediction correct? Why?

After the activity, students should sketch pictures of the activity in their science notebook and older students should explain how a series circuit works and what could prevent it from working.

Students can also try the activity with an extra bulb, bulb holder, and wire. They could also add a switch and an extra wire to the circuit. Before adding each new item, they should predict how they think it will affect the circuit.

A previous post (Creating an Electric Circuit) suggests different places where you can purchase the materials needed for this activity.
http://learningideasgradesk-8.blogspot.com/2011/01/creating-electric-circuit.html


Have fun with Science!

Conductor or Insulator of Electricity

Conductor or Insulator of Electricity

Reminder: This activity as well as all activities on this blog requires adult supervision.

Some materials are Conductors of electricity (They allow electricity to flow through them.)
Some materials are not conductors. They are called Insulators. (They do not allow electricity to flow through them.)

Have the students create an electric circuit (see previous post) with a mini light bulb to test different objects and materials to see which items are conductors and which items are insulators.

Before testing the objects students should PREDICT which objects they think will be insulators and which will be conductors.

Materials Needed

• Safety glasses and safety gloves
• D cell battery
• wide elastic or battery holder 
• 3 wires with alligator clips
• mini bulb 
• bulb holder
• Materials to be tested (eraser, penny, paper clip, wood, etc.)

 If the bulb lights, then the object or material is a conductor of electricity. If the bulb does not light then the object or material is an insulator of electricity.

At the conclusion, students should sketch a picture of their experiment in their science notebooks and make a list of the conductors and a list of the insulators. 

The previous post (Creating an Electric Circuit) suggests different places where you can purchase the materials needed for this activity.

http://learningideasgradesk-8.blogspot.com/2011/01/creating-electric-circuit.html

 

Electrical Energy Word Search

Learning about electricity can be a lot of fun!

Kids usually like doing word searches. It's a great way to introduce or review the essential vocabulary for a unit on Electricity or any other topic.

You can visit Learning Workroom's website for a FREE Electrical Energy Word Search that you can download and print. The puzzle has 30 important electricity words that are written horizontally and vertical.

Go to: https://www.learningworkroom.com

Click on "Free Science Worksheets"

ELECTRICITY WORKSHEET

There are many posts here at my blog about electricity!

circuit

Have fun with science!

Static Electricity and Bubbles

Materials Needed:

• comb
• piece of wool
• bubble mix
• bubble ring

 Directions

1. Rub a comb several times quickly on a piece of wool.
2. Make a spray of bubbles with the bubble ring over the wool fabric so that the bubbles land on the fabric.
3. Move the comb close to each bubble.
4. Watch the bubbles jump!

clipart by www.graphicsfactory.com

After the activity, children can sketch and label pictures of the bubbles "jumping" in their science notebooks. Older students can write a summary explaining what causes the bubbles to attract or repel.

Static Electricity and Balloons

Static Electricity Balloon Demonstration

Vocabulary: positive charges, negative charges, attract (to move close together), repel (to move away)

Materials: 2 balloons, 2 pieces of string, (piece of wool - optional)

An object generally has the same number of positive and negative charges.
An object can lose negative charges and thus become positively charged.

• When 2 positively charged objects are brought close to each other they will REPEL each other. (The same will happen to 2 negatively charged objects.)
• When a positively charged object is brought close to a negatively charged object they will ATTRACT each other.

This can be demonstrated with 2 balloons each tied to a piece of string.

Try rubbing a balloon(s) with a piece of wool. This will remove negative charges from the wool and add them to the balloon(s) making the balloon(s) negatively charged.

Give the kids time to experiment and work with the balloons as they try to make the balloons attract and repel each other.


After the activity, children can sketch and label pictures of the balloons attracting and repelling in their science notebooks. 

Older students can write a summary explaining what causes the balloons to attract or repel.

Static Electricity - Attract

Static Electricity - Repel

You can download a free ELECTRICITY WORD SEARCH PUZZLE at my website.

Click HERE

ELECTRICITY WORKSHEET

Have fun with science!!!

Static Electricity Activities

Static Electricity: Electrical charges caused by friction

Friction: a force caused when one object rubs against another

 

Creating Static Electricity

Materials Needed: balloons, combs, piece of wool (old sock or sweater), piece of paper, very small pieces of paper, plastic ruler, (camera - optional), (sugar, pepper - optional)

Before each activity have students PREDICT what they think will happen.

Activities 

1. Blow up a few balloons for the kids! Have the kids rub the balloons on their heads (and watch their hair stand up.) This is always good for a few laughs! Also have the camera ready!
2. Again, have the kids rub the balloons on their heads, then see if the balloons will stick to a wall.
3. Tear a sheet of paper into small pieces. Rub a piece of wool quickly back and forth on a balloon. Hold the balloon near the paper. (See what other light objects the balloon will pick up....sugar, pepper, etc.)
4. Rub plastic combs with wool.  Then have the kids comb their hair with the combs.
5. Rub a plastic comb with wool.  Then place the comb near a piece of paper.
6. Tear a sheet of paper into small pieces. Rub a piece of wool quickly back and forth over a comb (or ruler). Hold the comb (or ruler) over the paper. 
7. Turn on the faucet.  Rub a comb with a piece of wool. Bring the comb near the water but do not touch the water. (Watch the water bend!) 

clipart by www.graphicsfactory.com

Have the students try to recall any other times they they experienced static electricity.

Possibilities:

1. Did they ever walk across a rug, then touch a metal doorknob? (Did they feel a zap?)
2. Did they ever take socks out of an electric dryer and have the socks stick together?
3. Did they ever come in from outside on a cold day and quickly pull their hats off? (What happened to their hair?)

Have students sketch pictures of their static electricity experiments in their science notebooks. Older students should write a description of their experiments.

WELCOME!!!!!

WELCOME! WELCOME! WELCOME!
    to Learning Ideas - Grades K - 8

clipart by www.GraphicsFactory.com


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