Digital Inquiry - Circuits
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Posljednje ažuriranje about 2 years ago
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Click the link to watch a video about the
basics of electricity.
In this video segment from IdahoPTV's Science Trek you follow electricity from its generation at a hydroelectric plant to your home, while learning some of the vocabulary about electricity. Discover some other sources of electricity, and why it is so dangerous.
How does water help communities generate electrical energy for their homes and businesses?
What other forms of energy are produced from electricity?
As you read the text, think about how an electric current flows through series and parallel circuits. Click the link to read and explore the text.
How do series and parallel circuits differ?
Why would you want to use a parallel circuit rather than a series circuit?
An electric circuit is a pathway for the flow (movement) of electricity. To light an LED, you need several things: a power source, a path for the flow of electricity, and the LED.
The power source can be a 9-volt battery. A copper wire is an excellent conductor of electricity for the pathway. A conductor must allow electricity to flow freely. The LED is called the load in this circuit. A load, like the load of books you might carry, is what uses the energy in the circuit.
The power source provides electricity to flow (move) through the circuit. As the electric flow reaches the LED, the LED lights up. That’s not the end of the circuit. The electricity must continue to flow back to the battery power source.
The complete pathway from the positive side of the battery and back to the negative side is a closed circuit. If there is a break anywhere along the path, electricity will not flow. The incomplete circuit with a break in it, like an open switch, is called an open circuit.
What path does the current follow in a closed circuit?
What materials are necessary for a circuit to work?
Click the link to watch the 4-minute video and learn about how we can think like engineers and use circuits in innovative ways.
Electrical circuits are used in a wide variety of technological innovations, from television sets to windshield wipers, escalators to telephones. In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, cast members use electrical circuits to create door alarms out of a variety of materials. This resource is useful for introducing components of Engineering Design (ETS) from the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) to grade 3-8 students.
What materials do the teams use to build their circuits?
Why do they choose those materials?
