Fun Ways to Teach Kids About Electricity

The most fun lesson? it's a classic that works every time: to get a shock in front of your class.

This is not a silly technique, it will produce 3 highly desirable effects:

1.- Keep the kids awake for the rest of the class.

2.- Teach them to work safely, not as you did.

3.- Eager expectancy for the following lessons, even if it is just to see you get another one.

That's a good one too ! (if not a too nasty permanent condition would result from it).

never did it to my cousins,........ older brother did it to them though..........

HA! My older brother got educated that way, then he tried to get me to try it! No thanks, I lean real quick from other's screw-ups. But he did get our dog to pee on a fence post and of course the lowest strand was at the right elevation. Never could get the damn dog close to that fence again.

You took my example,, some of them became very good electricians..even had kids.

We had an old telephone ringer generator (AC generator with a few U-magnets and a gearing system from a hand-crank telephone). We'd get the whole class (only those who would do so voluntarily and had no medical issues) to form a curved line and hold hands. The person on each end of the line would hold one of the wires coming from the generator. I'd be in the circle too. Commonly there would be one person who did not want to try it, so that person would turn the crank. That person would turn the crank slowly at first, then gradually faster, until someone could not take it and broke the chain.

Whoever broke the chain was eliminated, so the chain got shorter, and everyone felt the voltage a bit more. The process was repeated until it got down to two people, and the one who could hold on longest was declared the winner. Since I had been doing it for years, I was used to it, and was always one of the last two.

Since these generators are probably hard to find these days, some other variable AC source could be used, but any device that plugs in to a wall outlet MUST have an isolation transformer to be safe. It would probably also be wise to include a current-limiting resistor on each end.

I see from your profile that you're in Hangtown. How's your weather up there right now? What about up at 13 mile post in Pollock Pines? My dad pastored the Pollock Pines Baptist Church up their for a few years in the late 60's/early 70's, and we had 4 years of snow, with one winter seing our covered front porch completely enclosed, ground to roof, in snow. What a lovely, but cold, place that was.

I went to Pinewood Elementary, from64, to graduation in 68, where my science teacher was Roger Chappel, and Mrs. Slater, the Pricipal's wife, taught Math. Along with my 5th grade teacher, John Van Sant, they were three of the best teachers I EVER had, and I credit them with MY love of science, of teaching it, today. After that, I started my Freshman year at Hangtown High, but then completed it, and the rest of High School, at Oak Grove, in San Jose. Good Science teachers there, too, but because of Pinewood, I finished all four years of science at Oak Grove by the time I closed out my Junior year. I took a three year hands on Electronics course at Oak Grove, though, also, and that was the beginning of a 41 year work history in all aspects of electronic communications, from the pure hardware of the day, to computers and systems now, including UNIX administration and extensive shell programming.

Still, all credit for preparation, and it's good results, to the folks at Pinewood.

Balmy and dry! You can check it out any time at my personal weather station. (In case the link does not work, search for KCAPLACE21).

I think that would have been '75 for the big snow. I was teaching Physics and science at the high school ('69-'95).

I knew Roger and John well! I still live in the same house (since '70), although I now commute to San Diego every other week for my work.

for PP, check out http://www.pollockpinesweathercam.com/.

Old times, small world.

I would presume, since I'm 59, and years pass, that neither of them is still among us?

If I'm wrong, and you still have means of contacting them, please tell them they have a former student whose KIDS, now all in their 30's themselves, three married, with 10 children (soon to be 11) among them, know their names, since I quoted them oft and copiously in training my kids as they grew up. Those were great men!

I presume the same. Since I retired from teaching in '95, I've had very little contact with most of those I knew. I'm now doing engineering in aerospace... No plans to retire!

Well, yes. We do move on. I've been out of California since my wife and I married and I left with the Navy 40 years ago, so I've definitely lost track.

But right now, the only thing between me and retirement is the paperwork, but I work for DOD, and OPM is slow (as I'm sure the press has told the whole world over the last two years) (unfortunately, the press got THIS one right!).

Like you, though, retirement is just a move to another job. My wife and I plan to take up "Hobby Farming" in Southern Virginia when I finally get the paperwork done. We won't have to live on it, but it will supplement, and mean a better quality diet that stores can provide.

New friends, new place, new life. Keeps us young, no?

One of my favorite ways to teach classmates about electricity was to carefully plug the wires of a large mylar 600v capacitor into the nearest wall socket...as it was withdrawn it arced and left a charge on the cap wich was then passed around...sooner or later someone would get across it...great fun until the teacher got across it...three days detention...