Curated OER
Electrical
In this electrical activity, students identify and locate vocabulary words in a word search that are related to electricity. There are 27 words in the puzzle.
K12 Reader
Waves & Currents
Challenge your young readers with a passage about physical science. After reading about sound waves and electric currents, kids answer five reading comprehension questions about what they have read.
It's About Time
Detect and Induce Currents
Young scientists recreate an 1820 experiment and build off of it to investigate how to detect and induce electrical currents. As a final activity, scholars answer questions in multiple formats.
Curated OER
Electricity: Will It Conduct?
Students build conductivity testers and investigate which solids and solutions conduct electricity. Working in groups, they predict which items will conduct electricity and record their answers on worksheets.
Curated OER
Simple Circuits
Students investigate how series and parallel circuits work. In this physics lesson, students build their own simple circuits and compare their characteristics. They explain the importance of circuit breakers in household circuits.
Curated OER
Home Electrical Safety
Learners explain the danger of incorrectly wired plugs. In this physics lesson, students construct their own safe plug. They share the finished project in class.
Curated OER
The Physics of Electricity: Real or Magic?
Eighth graders participate in various demonstrations on electricity. For this physics lesson, 8th graders explore static and current electricity. They apply concepts to real world situations.
Curated OER
Electric Current and Circuits
Students view a basic circuit in operation and discuss what is happening behind the scenes. Using a worksheet with common electrical symbols, they diagram several setups of series circuits and discuss the flow of electrons. They solve...
Curated OER
Mississippi’s Electricity: From Generation to Consumption
Eighth graders discover how electricity is produced. In this physics instructional activity, 8th graders infer about the future of Mississippi's energy industry. They participate in a Smart Board interactive activity at the end of the...
Curated OER
Electric Current and Circuits
Compare the drift speed of conduction electrons in a current-carrying wire to the signal speed of changes in current. They also distinguish between DC and AC and describe how AC is converted to DC.
Curated OER
Exploring Magnetism and Electricity
Learners explore Faraday's Law. In this electromagnetism instructional activity, students investigate Michael Faraday. Learners discover the history of the electromagnet. Students examine the parts of an electromagnet.
Curated OER
Circuit City
Fifth graders are introduced to the concept of circuits and how electricity works. In groups, they design their own subdivision with houses in which they have inside and outside light sources. To end the lesson, they make the circuits...
Curated OER
Electrical Safety Emergency Plan
Students discuss Picture 7 which is a hairdryer near a basin. They discover that if the hairdryer is plugged in and turned on and falls into the water it will form a circuit and anyone touching the water or hairdryer may be electrocuted....
Curated OER
Homopolar Motor Experiments
Students construct a homopolar motor following certain procedures. In this physics lesson plan, students explain how generators and motors work. They compare and contrast the characteristics of both.
University of Minnesota
Virtual Neurons
It's electric! Young anatomists use Virtual Neurons software to build, control, and analyze complex nerve circuits within the body. Colorful and packed with content, class members enjoy interacting with the nervous system at a personal...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Wet Etching in Nanofabrication
Chemistry and physics combine forces to benefit nanofabrications. Learners examine the process of wet etching in nanofabrication. Using corrosive substances such as lemon juice and Coca-Cola, they model the etching process. They then...
Curated OER
Be forceful!
Didn't some scientist develop rules about force and motion? Youngsters can experience physical science as they determine which picture shows the force of pushing or pulling. Tip: Ask learners if they can think of any unseen forces that...
Curated OER
Electrical Engineers for a Day
Students build a robot out of a 3-¿¿ inch floppy disk drive, two floppy disks, and some other miscellaneous supplies. They apply information they gather about electrical circuits from a web-based circuit design program.
Curated OER
Electromagnets
Students conduct a series of experiments on electromagnets. In this physics lesson, students build their own electromagnet and explain how it works. They determine the factors that affect its strength.
Curated OER
Electromagnetic Bomb (E-Bomb)
High schoolers explain how E-bomb works. In this physics lesson, students simulate the effects of e-bombs on electronic targets. They discuss its potential harmful effects when used as a weapon.
Curated OER
Please Turn Up the Lights!
Eighth graders discuss series and parallel circuits and design an investigation to test a hypothesis on total resistance of series and parallel circuits in combination. After discussion, groups design their experiments, run tests, and...
Curated OER
Design Project: Sensitive Audio Detector
In this physics learning exercise, learners answer 5 conceptual questions about the sensitive audio detector they built. They analyze the component of their circuit.
Curated OER
Conductors, Insulators, and Semiconductors
Middle schoolers will investigate the differences in conductivity of materials, design a variety of complete circuits, and observe the differences between the manner in which light is produced in an incandescent light bulb and an LED.
Curated OER
Electromagnets
Students are introduced to the relationship between electricity and magnetism. Using a compass, they observe and record the effects of placing the object near magnetic fields and electric currents. They also experiment using a steel and...