Static Electricity Experiments

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,...

Fifth graders study static electricity. In this static electricity lesson, 5th graders complete a word search related to static electricity as they watch a PowerPoint for the topic. Students complete a static electricity experiment and...

Conduct four electrifying electricity experiments that challenge young scientists to explore positive and negative charges and magnetic fields without the shock.

Young electrical engineers use balloons, cereal, and PVC pipe to test how positive or negative charged particles can attract or repel each other. First they attract Rice Krispies with a static-charged balloon, and then they use two...

Why is static electricity worse in the winter? Learn about static charges and the Van de Graaff generator before conducting a quick experiment using bubbles and a Van de Graaff. If you don't have access to one, simply play this video...

Can static electricity affect the direction that water flows? Watch this short clip and attempt this experiment with your young learners! For older learners, pair with additional activities that illustrate positive and negative charges.

Five minutes and 80 cents is all it takes to create this levitating orb! Introduce the idea of static electricity with this simple, yet captivating experiment. Your learners will definitely want to play around with this one; it's...

Slide paper over a plastic straws to generate static electricity, and then stick that straw to glass, a wall, or even your own hands! This is a science activity that students can use to show parents what they learn in school whenever...

Young scholars investigate static electricity using inexpensive "grocery store" items. They view demonstrations with video segments. They graph the data they collect.

Students experiment to investigate static electricity.  In this static electricity lesson, students prepare a balloon head and draw a face on it.  Students rub the nose and the balloon moves toward the student rubbing.