Learning about electricity should be fun and entertaining. Students learn best through interactive lessons. There are several key areas to focus on during the upper elementary years that create a base for the student's middle school and high school years.
Electricity is all around us. In this mondern world that we live in there is no way to avoid it. All the things in our house run on it. The street lights run with it. And the natural world is sparkled by it. Who is not fascinated by lightinging?
The key to beginning the exploration of electricity and electronics is to understand the basics of voltage, current, and resistance. Children can learn to manipulate electricity with currents. Which of course is fun but also helps the student have a true working understanding of the topic. Really we don't see electricity, just the effects of electricity. So it is somewhat of a mystery the children. In this resource we will try to unlock that mystery a bit.
Electricity Fact Videos
This is a classic video from School House Rocks. They make great learning videos on all sorts of subjects. There is a catchy tune to go with the video to keep students engaged.
The Basics of Electricity. This a good introductory video to teach students about electricity with some good really world examples.
Electricity concepts are best learned on a current board. We have compiled a list of the best curcuit boards on the market for kids. Click on the image to learn more about each board.
Thomas & Kosmos Electricity and Magnetism is a good combination of electricty and added magnet learning.
Electronic Snap Curcuit is a big set that includes fans and other fun moving parts.
Click on the images below to see more about each project.
Building a flashlight is a very practical way to see and understand how electricty works in the world all around you.
A combination of art and science. Students can make anything that inspires them out of tissue paper and watch it move.
Electricity Fact Printables
All the printables below are free and you can print them on your own computer.
Will it Light? Is a great problem solving worksheet to help students understand which order the curcuit needs to be set up in to get results.
Electric current and magnetism work together. This is a fun hunt and find to see what is magnetic. It also can invoke a student's interest to explore more.
There is a whole lot of vocabulary in the science of electricty. Here is a good list of pratice and a word search make it more fun.
This printable pack has it all static electricity, open and closed currents, series and parrallel curcuits, insulators and conductors. You will be a pro after doing this package.