We read the first 6 pages from the Electricity book in the KS1 Science series we have, which gives a nice, simple introduction to the topic.
We looked at examples around the house of electric devices and made a distinction between mains and battery powered devices.
We talked about why electricity and electric items can be dangerous and how we should never play with them or touch them with wet hands.
We talked about insulators and conductors - in the context of how is it safe for us to use electric appliances if electricity is so dangerous? Because the inside of the appliance has conductors to let the electricity flow and the appliance to work but the outside is covered with an insulator which doesn't let electricity past so it's safe to touch. We talked about which kinds of materials are electric conductors (e.g. metals, especially copper, and water) and which are insulators (plastic and some others which we'll look at in more detail later InshaAllah).
(M remembered here about our work on insulators when investigating materials to keep a mug of tea hotter for longer, so we talked about what the words actually mean and how thermal insulators and conductors might be different to electric insulators and conductors... They should just think of the word insulator as to block or trap something as a wall does, and the word conductor as to let something through it easily or help it get past - I drew some simple diagrams on the whiteboard of arrows being blocked or going through a wall to help illustrate the point.)
We talked about how electricity is generated in power stations and the different kinds - e.g. water, coal - and whether it was better to use renewable energy sources or fossil fuels and why.
Finally, we watched a few of the relevant episodes from Blaze and the Monster Machines which were on Amazon Prime at the time (e.g. Episode 28 - Darington to the Moon! - features the characters visiting different kinds of power station).
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Week 2:
We read the double page spread about circuits in the Electricity book and talked about how electricity needs to flow in a loop to make things work. I showed the girls the battery from the remote control and how the ends were labelled positive and negative, how the remote control had a positive and negative sign where the battery fits inside and how we need to make sure the positive and negative signs match when putting the battery inside. I briefly told them about how the electricity moves from the negative end to the positive end in a circuit, which is why a loop needs to be made, but literally just as an introduction to the concept rather than expecting them to remember or understand!
We bought a simple circuit components set from Amazon (similar to this one, I can't find the exact link we used!) for the girls to experiment with. I did consider the Snap Circuits set, but I couldn't justify it for the price... And actually I'm pleased we went with this instead as with all the wires and clips it feels more raw and rewarding to do. 😆
I began by demonstrating how to build a simple series circuit with a bulb, narrating what I was doing so as to introduce the component names (wire, crocodile clip, battery holder, battery, bulb holder, bulb) and discussing with the girls which parts were conductors/insulators and how the electricity could flow from one component to the next. They could see clearly the copper wire from where it was exposed at the ends and how the screws were metal where the clips attached to the holders.
When the bulb was lit up (cue delighted gasps!) we talked about how there was a complete loop and how when the loop was broken the bulb would turn off.
I took away the bulb and replaced it with the fan and motor - introducing the component names first - and we talked about how the fan was able to spin... The motor was spinning and the fan was attached to it. The electric energy had been converted into movement (kinetic) energy, as well as a little heat from friction and some sound energy too. What was the electric energy turned into in the bulb? Light and some heat!
I disconnected the motor and showed the buzzer to the girls. We'd already converted electric energy to light and to movement, so what did they think this component did? F guessed heat and M said it looked like a hairdryer. 😂 When I connected it and it made a noise they both laughed and said sound energy! Then I told them the component was named a buzzer.
Finally, I took everything apart and asked them which was their favourite - the bulb, motor or buzzer? They both said the motor and fan. I gave them the necessary components (i.e. 2 wires, battery holder with battery inside and the motor with the fan attached) and challenged them to build a circuit to make the fan spin.
MashaAllah they managed and they really enjoyed it too! They could have played for longer tbh but it was dinner time so everything had to be put away. 😋
Later that week, we watched the film Monsters Inc. together and talked about how they got their energy not from electricity but from screams. 😁😁
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