This week, we did a bit more with electricity. I used a few fun games I found online a long time ago that are really handy for any school situation. They’re interactive demonstrations that show how magnetic charges can transfer from one object to another. You can find them here at the PHeT website hosted by The University of Colorado: https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/filter?subjects=electricity-magnets-and-circuits&type=html&sort=alpha&view=grid
John Travoltage and the Balloons are my favorites, for showing the charges. This link will also be used next week when we extend ourselves to electricity and circuits!
Then I challenged them to field hockey. Well, electric charge field hockey! In this interactive activity, you have to place positive and negative charges in order to attract or repel the puck and score a goal. The higher the level, the more difficult it gets! They add barriers, moving arms, and other charges that you have to maneuver around! The lower levels were easy, so they breezed through them, but by about level 6, there was trouble! https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Physics-Interactives/Static-Electricity/Put-the-Charge-in-the-Goal/Put-the-Charge-in-the-Goal-Interactive
It was a good break and gave them a really good jump on understanding the flow of electrical current!
The Franklin Academy for Gifted People 