Electricity & Magnetism

This activity is designed to help students "discover" that light reflected form a mirror’s surface is reflected in a systematic, predictable way such that the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflection.

In this investigation, students will first experiment with an ordinary bar magnet and describe its effects on a compass and a tube of iron filings. The second part of the lab challenges students to create a temporary magnet out of the tube of iron filings, and show that it is magnetic using the compass.

This simple inquiry lab challenges students to light a mini bulb using only a battery and one short wire. Even students who have seen circuit diagrams may be stumped when they have only one wire. Students will also discover how light bulbs are constructed, with a partial circuit that leads from the outer base, through the filament, to the bottom of the base. Their circuit must touch each of the two parts of the base to work.

Students will observe that the magnetic field created by a coil of wire is perpendicular to the plane of the coil. They will also see that the field is stronger with more current, and that the field reverses direction when the current reverses.

Electricity is the flow of electrons through a substance. Those materials permitting this flow are called conductors; those which do not are nonconductors (or insulators). Among those materials which are conductors, some are better at conducting electricity than others. In this exercise, we will study a number of materials to see whether or not they are conductors. In general, among solid substances, metals are conductors and nonmetals are not. Distilled water is not a conductor. Solutions containing ions (salt water, acids, tap water) are conductors.

Talk about hands on! Students love interacting with Genecons. There's such a direct connection between cranking the handle and producing electricity. In my energy conservation unit, for example, students can experience energy as electrical current plus heat, sound and electromagnet static.

Students will construct series and parallel circuits with both bulbs and resistors. The lab begins with bulbs, but since taking measurements with bulbs can often be imprecise, the measurement portion of the lab uses resistors and a DC power supply.

Students will make observations of bar and horseshoe magnets, using iron filings or magnetic chips to map the field. The filings will be close together where the field is strong, and farther apart where it is weak. Lines will form, following the lines of the field, from the north pole to the south.

We will explore magnetic field configurations and field strengths for permanent magnets in this inquiry exercise. Students will observe the curved field lines around a permanent magnet, and explore how field strength varies with distance. They will observe the magnetic field created by a current-carrying wire, as well as the current created in a wire when a magnet moves past it.

Static charge (electrons, in this case) can be physically transferred from one object to another through friction. Students will use rubber, glass, fur and silk to create positive and negative charges, and investigate how these charges cause forces.