TED-Ed
The Science of Static Electricity
Add some spark to your physical science instruction with this short video on static electricity. Taking a look at the fundamental structure of atoms, this fun film explains how rubbing objects together can cause electrons to move from...
Virginia Department of Education
Electricity and Circuits
Electrify your classroom as you lead pupils through a series of steps to demonstrate basic principles of electricity and magnetism. They design a simple circuit and test this for static electricity and current electricity. Next, they...
Curated OER
Exploring Electricity - Four Activities
These are four classic activities used for instructing upper elementary electricians. The first involves experimenting with the Van de Graaff generator. The second is a series of hands-on experiences with static. In the third activity,...
Curated OER
Static Electricity
Students engage in a activity that is concerned with the concept of static electricity. They conduct an experiment with balloons and make observations of how it works. The data is collected and written down and they define positive,...
Curated OER
Electricity
First graders become aware of the presence of static electricity. They create static electricity using friction.
Curated OER
Zapped!
Fifth graders describe the behavior of static electricity as observed in nature and everyday occurrences.
Curated OER
Stormy Weather
Middle schoolers conduct various experiments to explore the concepts that static electricity is the cause of lightning.
Curated OER
The Invention of Faraday Cage
Students demonstrate how Faraday's cage work by building their own electroscope. In this physics lesson, students explain how Faraday's cage work. They cite several applications of this principle in the real world.
Curated OER
Lightning
Students study lightening and the history behind how it was used for electricity. For this electricity lesson students complete several experiments on the invention of the lightning rod.
Curated OER
What is Lightning?
Students experiment with electricity to understand lightning. In this lightning lesson, students show how static electricity causes lightning. Students discuss questions about their experiment and gather important facts. Students...
Curated OER
Lightning in a Jar
Young scholars create lightning with two common objects and observe the colorful "discharge" of electrons on a smaller scale. By exploring the phenomena of static electricity, students relate their knowledge to the real-life weather...
Curated OER
Storms and Extreme Weather
Young scholars explore hurricanes and tornadoes by conducting an experiment. In this weather pattern lesson, students define many extreme weather vocabulary terms and discuss the relationship with static electricity. Young scholars...
Physics Girl
DIY Lightning Experiment! Make a Shocking Capacitor
If you need a project to add a little spark to your physics class, why not build a capacitor? A video from a larger physics playlist demonstrates how a capacitor works and how to make one from easily sourced materials. As an added bonus,...
Curated OER
Thunderstorms
Fourth graders examine the attraction between two different charges to investigate lightning in a thunderstorm. They complete an experiment and a worksheet.
Curated OER
Insulators and Conductors
Young scholars conduct an experiment in which they create open and closed circuits. In this insulators and conductors lesson plan, students review open and closed circuits and then get in groups to make both kinds of circuit. Young...
Curated OER
Lightning It's Shocking, It's Frightening, It's Lightning!
Third graders decide what they want to explore lightning, how to go about finding the answers, and deciding what skills they need to further study some of their questions.