Fun Science – Gadgets and Gizmos worksheet
Today we have learned all about electricity. See if you can fill in the blanks with the words below.
We learned that there are two types of electricity, current electricity and static electricity. Current electricity comes
from sockets or batteries and powers things like our lights and our TV. The name for something that electricity will
flow through (like your skin or metal) is a conductor. The name for something that electricity will not flow through
(like your clothes or plastic) is an insulator. Electricity needs a complete circuit to be able to flow. Rubbing a balloon
on your hair makes the balloon really negative because lots of electrons rub off your hair onto the balloon. This
makes your hair attracted to the balloon and this is static electricity!
Conductor
Negative
Static
Electrons
Batteries
Circuit
Insulator
Can you find the electricity words in this wordsearch?
austni r t t in
o e s ecn i i ono
o s insul a tor
l w r ec r r eoo t
o i l r nogn t l c
y t ici r tcele
t c i caduaha l
t h chadr r abe
b r canh i n i eu
t e hocoo t co l
s c cooocc r nn
Electron
Balloon
Switch
Electricity Conductor Insulator
Circuit
Charge
True or False? Decide if the statements below are true or made
up by our sneaky scientist!
When you rub a balloon on your hair it picks up protons from
your hair. True/False - It picks up electrons from your hair
Two opposite charges (Positive and Negative) will attract
True/False?
Lightning is made by static electricity.
True/False?
Your clothes will let electricity pass through them because they
are conductors.
True/False – Clothes made of fabric are
insulators so electricity will not go through them.
Electricity can flow through people.
True/False?
Try it at home! Mix a small amount of salt and pepper together
then charge up either a balloon or your comb. Bring the balloon
or comb slowly towards the salt and pepper mixture. The pepper
should jump out from the salt. If it doesn’t work the first time,
try charging your balloon/comb again or try again on a dryer day.
What’s happening? We know that rubbing a balloon or comb on
our heads makes it negatively charged. Salt and pepper are more
positively charged and as opposite charges attract, they will try
and jump to the balloon/comb. As pepper is a lot lighter than
salt, it is able to jump to the balloon/comb much more easily.
Static sticks! – Try charging your balloon by rubbing it on your hair. Hopefully, it will take lots of electrons from your
hair and become negatively charged – your hair may even stick up too! Put it on your static stick and see what
happens! How about if you use a comb instead of the jumper or rub it on your jumper instead of your hair? What
happens if you rub the balloon for longer? See how you can make the science dust move around the tube! Warning
– The science dust is not toxic, but it would not be very nice to eat so be careful not to open the top of your tube.
Visit www.fun-science.org.uk to find out what else we do!