Curated OER
Electricity and Electrical Circuits
Students are introduced to electricity and electrical circuits. In groups, they draw circuit diagrams, complete a KWL chart and discover the difference between open, closed and series circuits. They define new vocabulary and make...
Bonneville
Using a Multimeter to Analyze a Solar Circuit: Measuring Current and Voltage—Calculating Power and Resistance
Power to the people who understand electricity. A simple experiment teaches pupils how to set up an electric circuit that includes a solar module and how to measure voltage and current using a multimeter. They calculate power and...
Curated OER
Investigating Electrical Circuits
Sixth graders draw and construct a complete circuit. In small groups they develop a list of questions about electricity, listen to a teacher-led lecture, construct a complete circuit, test circuits, and create an illustration of a...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Get Connected with Ohm's Law
Ideal for your electricity unit, especially with middle schoolers, this lesson plan gets engineers using multimeters in electrical circuits to explore the relationships among voltage, current, and resistance. Older learners may even plot...
Bonneville
A Simple Circuit
Heat up a lesson on solar energy by building a circuit for a cooling fan. Given a solar module and a DC motor, scholars develop hypotheses for how to make the fan turn. They test out their hypotheses, and then draw a circuit diagram to...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Electric Switches
Young scholars examine how electric circuits are controlled with a switch. They incorporate a switch into a battery/bulb circuit. They design and create their own switches using everyday materials.
Bonneville
Introduction to Circuits
Light up the class's knowledge. Pupils build a simple circuit using a battery, wire, and a light bulb and create a diagram of their circuit. The teacher provides a short lecture on a complete circuit, calling attention to the direction...
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #3 Parts of a Solar Panel - Part I
A solar cell is similar to a rechargeable battery in many ways. Science lab groups connect each in a series circuit to run a mini motor and then compare and contrast them by answering questions and completing a Venn diagram. This is an...
DiscoverE
Oranges and Batteries
Orange you glad you can make circuits using fruit? Young electricians learn about electric circuits and electricity. As part of the lesson, they build a circuit with an orange and then with a banana.
Bonneville
Phone Charger Efficiency
Be efficient in learning about efficiency. A fun hands-on activity has pupils calculate the efficiency of cell phone chargers by measuring the power in and power out. They also learn how to read and use circuit diagrams.
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Light the Bulb!
Third graders investigate electrical circuits and how light bulbs are powered. In this electricity and power lesson, 3rd graders study the vocabulary necessary which includes the different types of circuits, electrical currents, and...
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #1 - Solar Cell Inquiry
Give youngsters the components of a solar-powered electric circuit and turn them loose to figure out how to connect them in order for a light to shine or motor to turn. They compare energy output of a solar panel to that of a battery. On...
Teach Engineering
How a Hybrid Works
Work with your class to connect series and parallel circuits to hybrid cars. The instructional activity introduces basic circuit diagrams before having scholars apply the understanding of the difference between parallel and...
Curated OER
Physics: Electricity and Magnetism
Learners draw series and parallel electrical circuits. In this electromagnet lesson, students describe how current changes depend on circuit components. Learners use an OHT of a series and parallel circuit to predict the path...
Curated OER
Electrical Symbols - Making Circuits from Circuit Diagrams
Students draw different electrical circuit symbols. For this electricity lesson, students construct simple circuits based on circuit diagrams. They share their findings to class.
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Two Button Buzzer Circuit
Learners explore circuit structure, draw a schematic for it, and construct a two button buzzer model out of wires, a battery, buttons (switches), and a buzzer.
Trash For Teaching
The Light-House Project
Groups work together to design a lighthouse, from designing and drawing the wiring diagram, to creating prototypes of the switch and circuit, to envisioning and building a scale model along with a blueprint. By including different...
Curated OER
Adventures in Electrical Engineering
Students explore electricity by conducting a series of experiments. In this physics lesson plan, students discover the relationship between current, voltage and resistance. They calculate voltage and power in a given system.
Curated OER
Electric Current: The Light Output from a Light Bulb
Students investigate the energy used by a light bulb. In this electrical energy lesson, students conduct an investigation to explain the relationship between the output of light and the electrical power used by a light bulb.
Curated OER
Electric Circuits
Students model the flow of electrons in a circuit, draw diagrams of an electric circuit and build an electric circuit. Students explain how to tell when the path of an electric circuit is complete, and test the conductivity of a variety...
Curated OER
Changing circuits
Young scholars identify that there are conventional symbols to represent the components in circuits. Students use these symbols to draw diagrams of circuits. They are reminded that electric circuits can be drawn in diagrams using...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Insulators and Conductors
In a classic activity, emerging electricians test various objects for electrical conductivity in a circuit. Each group constructs a simple circuit by following a diagram. Predictions are made and objects are inserted into the circuit,...
Curated OER
Bulbs & Batteries in a Row
Students investigate simple series circuits and their properties. In small groups they draw a circuit diagram on their Series Circuit Building worksheet, follow step-by-step directions to construct a simple series circuit, and solve...
Curated OER
Circuits
Fifth graders discover the differences between parallel and series circuits. They draw and construct the two types of circuits using wires, bulbs, batteries, sockets, and switches.